If you know me personally, you know by now that I have embarked on a personal journey of becoming a certified yoga teacher. My best friend introduced me to hot yoga back in 2009 and the rest is history after that. After my very first class I was hooked. I found an outlet for my passion and for the first time I felt like I was headed in the right direction. The choice to start this journey so late, while “competing” or more like being compared to so many others who have been doing this for decades, was a very difficult one. I had to muster up all the courage inside of me to start and not fear any judgement while giving it my all even if my progress wasn’t up to par with every one else in this profession. You have to start somewhere right? I also figure, if I’m going to compete with others it might as well be with the best.

For the past 6 years I practiced yoga on and off but really implemented daily and weekly practices 2 years ago when I got fired from my previous job. Getting fired forced me to look at myself and realize that I had to make changes and take action in order to take my practice further. It was during that year that I realized how strongly I felt about yoga. Yoga helped me deal with the loss of my job by keeping me healthy and distracted. I couldn’t afford to spend hundreds of dollars on yoga classes (as we all know yoga has become quite expensive) so I started yoga hopping. I would go to a different yoga studio every month and buy a new student introductory unlimited pass. This gave me an opportunity to try different styles of yoga to see which style best suited me and I also got to learn from different teachers and get accustomed to various teaching styles. After all that I learned I started applying the lessons to my own practice at home and mastered quite a few postures and actually taught myself more advanced postures.

After realizing the benefits of yoga and that many of the teachers today are not equipping students with the right tools to practice yoga properly, I thought it was important to share my knowledge with all my family, friends and my community. By becoming a yoga teacher I will have the expertise to explain the science and health benefits of yoga and be more credible. I will also gain valuable contacts by networking with industry professionals thus, allowing me to gain a foot in the door into the alternative health care industry so that I can eventually pursue my real dream. I still have quite a way to go, but, I promised myself that I’m going to embrace every moment of this journey before it’s over. So, wish me luck, I can’t wait to become a certified teacher so that hopefully I can see you in one of my classes!