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YOGA TEACHER BLOG TOUR #fvyogateachers

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Thank you so much for stopping by the blog today! I am excited to be starting off the Yoga Blog Tour and am looking forward to reading all of your stories.  Thank you to my sister Wendy, who has been a constant supporter of mine, for creating this blog tour.

As I was preparing to write this blog and tell my story, I realised that I have been teaching people how to move in their bodies for over 25 years!! Wowzas!! Time flies when you’re having fun!

I have been practising yoga since 1999 and teaching yoga since 2002. Keeping it real, keeping it safe and keeping it compassionate, I strive to inspire my students with humour, yogic wisdom and a “whatever works” attitude. I teach and practice yoga because I LOVE IT.

Over the years I have taught yoga to figure skaters, hockey teams, kindergarteners, senior citizens and everyone in between. I have taught yoga in the park, at a prison, in schools, hospitals and in hotel hallways.  Yoga is many things to many people and Yoga is for everyBODY. My classes are supportive, compassionate and offer variations and modifications for everyBODY. Yoga meets us where we’re at.  The very nature of the ancient yogic teachings recognise that we all approach yoga {and life} differently, so our practices {and lives} will be unique, varied and paradoxically, gloriously Universal.

I do yoga because of how it makes me feel. {Blissful, peaceful, energised, relaxed, bright} To put it bluntly, Yoga Makes Life Better. Yoga has been such a huge part of my life for so long it’s difficult to put into words how it has shaped my life.  Yoga {and meditation} has gifted me with Faith; a deeply-rooted sense of Universal Truth that everything is already ok and all is as how it is meant to be. It’s helped me recognise that who I am is beyond this physical body; that there is nothing that I need to do, change, fix or have. I am already Pure… already Free… Forever.  And here I must thank my teacher Padma {who I’ve been studying with for 10 years now} it is with her guidance and wisdom that I’ve come to understand who I really am.

These days, I am really interested in teaching yogic philosophy; specifically the Yoga Sutras and the Bhagavad Gita, especially to yoga teachers.  I found that when I first took my YTT’s, I felt lacking in the philosophy department and I feel that is still the case with many new teachers. This is not a criticism; it’s just the way it is.  Teachers in training are focused on learning how to get people into and out of poses safely.  Learning Yogic Philosophy is a life-long endeavour and the wisdom of yoga is revealed over time, with practice. Just recently I taught the 30 hour yogic philosophy portion for the Haven School of Yoga’s 200 Hour YTT.  Creating the content for this was like writing my Yoga Thesis, lol, and I am really proud of the course I created. I’m looking forward to working with studios and teachers to share the yogic teachings in a way that brings the teachings to daily life.  Looking to host a workshop? For a list of the workshops I offer, please email me: tracy@unisonyoga.ca 

I took my first yoga class in the fall of 1999.  I had been a BCRPA Group Fitness Leader since 1994 and the yoga teacher at the gym offered a free class to all staff.  I took the class and was instantly hooked; I was “home” and just kept going to classes.   I knew then that yoga would forever be a part of my life.

Summer Yoga

In the late nineties and early 2000’s Teacher Trainings were not offered everywhere like they are now and it was only  1997-1998 when the Yoga Alliance was created to create some kind of standards for yoga teachers.  In late 2001 I took my first yoga teacher training with Julia Shields, of Freespirit Yoga and Pilates in Maple Ridge.  In March of 2005, I completed a 200 Hour YTT completed with Hogan Poon and GeorginaVarveris of Open Door Yoga in Vancouver.  Funny story: both of these Yoga Teacher Trainings were the very first ones that Freespirit and Open Door offered.  In early 2002, while I was six months pregnant I took Pregnancy Yoga teacher training with Janice Clarfield of Urban Yoga in Vancouver.    In May of 2012, I became a Certified Meditation Teacher via my teacher Padma.

Since January 2003, I have been operating Unison Yoga.  It started out in my home, then had a couple of years in a retail space and then returned to my home in 2011.  I am honoured to have many students who have been coming to my classes for 10-15 years.  I still love teaching classes from my home studio.  We’ve created a cozy, tight-knit community in our classes, where everyone knows everyone and all are welcome.  I also enjoy getting out to corporate settings, sports teams and other studios, teaching as a guest teacher or sub and doing workshops.

Besides being a yoga teacher/studio owner, I am also an elected school trustee for Mission Public Schools and currently sit as the Board Chair.  I know right? Yoga and Politics?! How is it possible? Call it yin and yang, call it balance, call it crazy, but it works for me.  I’ve been married to my husband for twenty years {coincidentally I started doing yoga in 1999, the same year I got married…} I do my best to be a good mum to my 12 year old daughter and 16 year old son and they are both active in sports and school.  My life is crazy fun and crazy good, and it can also get hectic.  {My crockpot is my favourite possession. lol} Yoga has helped me navigate all the waves and phases in my life; helping me cope with the rough patches and enjoy the good times.  Like the breath, yoga is a constant companion, an intrinsic part of me, whether I am aware of it or not.  Namaste.

I guess that sort of sums it up.  Thank you so much for taking the time to read my story.  If you’ve got any questions for me or would like to connect please feel free to comment below or email me. tracy@unisonyoga.ca 

You definitely don’t want to miss tomorrow’s post by Olympia Komianos at https://thebackforty.ca/blog/this-is-me 


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