The first nine years of my life were by far the most eventful, moving several times internationally from my birthplace in Buenos Aires through Venezuela and Honduras, finally settling in New Jersey just in time for the fourth grade. Throughout my adolescent years, I was drawn to dance, theatre, and singing, as well as to spiritually themed books and meditation. These hobbies were the foundation of my love for teaching yoga, with which I subsequently had contact during the five years it took to complete my Anthropology degree at Boston University. It was love at first sight. In my early twenties I visited many yoga studios in Boston and New York, becoming acquainted with several styles and discovering the wide range of practices associated with yoga in the west. 

Soon after completing my degree, I was given the opportunity to travel to India to help make a film about the Kumbha Mela, an auspicious Hindu festival.  During those six months I spent in India, immersed in the richness of its culture, the vastness and diversity of yoga became apparent to me for the first time.  The yoga I had so far been exposed to in the USA showed only subtle traces of its complex heritage.

Toward the end of this momentous trip, I met Rouven, a dedicated yoga teacher with whom I eventually formed a family here in Germany. We founded a Yoga studio together in Esslingen thirteen years ago, the playground on which we evolved into the teachers we are today. This studio has given me the freedom to develop my personal teaching style and to assist diverse practitioners to discover their unique inner space on their yoga mat. 

Even after so many years of walking the long, winding path of Yoga, which never ceases to bend new corners, I am still deeply fascinated by its applicability in so many dimensions of life. As the indispensable asset that it has proven itself to be, yoga has given me the strength, resources, and discipline to cope with depression, trauma, and chronic physical pain. Yoga is the beacon in my life, and I love to share it with others.

• improves flexibility and builds strength
• encourages better posture, alignment, balance, and coordination
• facilitates spinal and articular mobility
• improves blood circulation
• helps keep the lymphatic system active 
• maintains a balanced autonomic nervous system
• encourages hydration and fluid circulation
• brightens your mood and relieves emotional stress
• helps develop awareness, both of self and the world around you

The most tangible way to understand how yoga can be applied in our everyday lives is through our bodies. When we practice a sequence of yoga positions, concentrating on deepening and lengthening our breathing, wonderful things start to happen in our bodies, not only in the muscles and connective tissue, but also in our organs, nervous system, and endocrine system. The body has a remarkable capability to find homeostasis and heal itself, and through yoga we strengthen that holistic self-care system. One great example is the activation of the vagus nerve through conscious breathing, which cues the body to relax on a deep level, relieving chronic stress. Likewise, the web of connective tissue, which performs innumerable functions and needs movement to stay healthy, benefits from a regular yoga practice. Much of the pain-relief we feel after a class is a result of mechanical inputs on the fascia. 

Other measurable benefits include a reduction of joint and bone degeneration, improvement of hormone regulation and nerve communication processes, a more effective lymphatic flow, pain management, correction of postural misalignment, faster healing process, improved fluid transport, more oxygen availability and absorption, and better sleep. 

The more subtle benefits of Yoga become apparent after longer periods of consistent, regular practice. It is precisely that constancy, repeatedly practicing the same postures (which feel different from practice to practice) which generates a process of transformation in both body and mind. Much of our history is stored in our body, sometimes apparently, like when we have a physical accident, and sometimes only in the body’s memory. All significant experiences, traumas, and prevalent habitual patterns (like sitting for long periods of time) leave their marks, and through the deepened body and breath awareness that we train during our practice, these “memories” are recognized, disentangled, often digested, and thus released. As we live and breathe, continuing to have experiences throughout our lives, there is no end to this process. The body and mind require constant “updates” to optimize our ability to adapt to change in life circumstances, and in the inevitable advancement of age. 

The versatility of Yoga is a two-edged trait that makes it simultaneously accessible and intimidating, but also adaptable to new demands. There’s something for everyone, from physical mobility to mental clarity through meditation, from singing beautiful Sanskrit mantras to challenging the intellect via philosophical discourse. It seems unlikely that so many topics can fit under one umbrella, but that is exactly what the word Yoga implies: unity of seemingly separate components of life, from diet to morality and social values, to a profound understanding of the connection between our psyche and our body. Yoga does not promote any easy solution; it primarily encourages discipline, both mental and physical. Though the claimed “goal” of awakening/enlightenment is supposedly already in and all around us, there is a necessary process to follow to attain this final recognition of the obvious.