Andi Johnson attended her first yoga class in 1999 for the same reasons many people do: to get in a good workout. She discovered right away that the asana (pose) practice came natural to her, but beyond that thought everything else was unreachable unless you lived on a remote mountaintop and meditated at least 12 hours a day. Not one to turn down a challenge, Andi continued to keep an open mind about all aspects of her practice. She finally experienced her "Aha!" moment after a meditation session where she wasn't just thinking about how much her nose itched. In any case, the importance of the mind/body connection became apparent but she soon found that this was just the tip of the iceberg.

Andi became a yoga instructor in 2004 through the YogaFit training program focusing on safety and alignment, and absorbing as much influence as she could in locations ranging from Birmingham, AL to Denver, CO and in between. Her training continued with any extra workshops she could find, with instructors including Shiva Rea, Cora Wen, Chris Coniaris, students of Dharma Mittra, and pretty much any instructor from whom she could draw inspiration. Her style follows a Vinyasa (Flow) influence emphasizing the use of pranayama (breath) to guide the postures info deeper physical awareness working towards an emotional and spiritual connectedness. Since taking over ownership of Yoga Elements in 2006, she has shared her practice in many different classes such as Level 1 Hatha Yoga, Vinyasa, Hot Core Vinyasa, New Moon Salutations, and much more. Her two amazing babies have fed her interest in Prenatal/Postnatal Yoga and Kids' classes as well. She uses her Pilates Reformer Training, Swim Team Coaching, and former EMT skills to draw from when focusing on body movement and importance of core strength, but acknowledges she wouldn't have gotten to where and who she now without the love and support of her amazing husband.

Carey is Yoga Alliance Certified in Power Vinyasa yoga through Core Power Yoga. Having a fitness background and a BS in Exercise Science, Carey uses a lot of core work to compliment her yoga classes. "As a runner, I realized the effects of running on my body and the power of yoga to heal those injuries and calm the mind. I began my yoga journey in Washington DC, where I managed several Corporate Fitness Center for the government, and then moved to Colorado and got into power yoga." Carey aims her classes to be challenging yet educational at the same time. Her teaching has an emphasis on Vinyasa Flow, while incorporating elements of Restorative Yoga. Recently, Carey has had the pleasure of planning and leading amazing retreats and most importantly, making a positive difference in the lives of others. She enjoys sharing her passion for yoga, running, biking and having an active balanced lifestyle in a non- competitive environment. Carey’s company, Greater Denver Yoga North, specializes in bringing private yoga classes to you—work, schools, private sessions. www.greaterdenveryoga.com

Catherine became certified to teach yoga in 2001, through the Ananda Institute of Expanding Light in northern California. She has been helping people to find their own light ever since. She appreciates how yoga can guide us back to our truest and best selves, bringing balance, strength, and flexibility to all levels of our being - physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.
Because Catherine has had her own share of back and neck pain, she is interested in the therapeutic aspects of yoga, and has patience and compassion for others going through similar difficulties. She studied Structural Yoga Therapy with Mukunda Stiles in Boulder, Colorado, and continues to add to her knowledge of therapeutic application of yoga. Her approach to yoga gives time for awareness --of breath, of bodily sensation, and of emotions that may come up. Most of all, Catherine believes yoga should feel good while we do it and leave us feeling even better when we're done. Yum.

Charity Heggestad is certified in the Day-Star Method of Yoga, a gentle style of Hatha yoga. She also specializes in Yin Yoga, her favorite way to deeply stretch the body, yet relax and enjoy the breath at the same time! Charity enjoys sharing yoga with children as well as adults. As both a yoga instructor and a mother, she believes that introducing yoga to children in a fun environment provides a foundation for building a life-long practice.

Yogeshwari Cindy Lawrence CYT, CMT teaches with heart, precision and enthusiasm. She is a well-trained yoga and healing massage professional with over 25 years working in the healing arts. She is a registered Integrative Yoga Therapist, Certified Partner Yoga teacher and skilled Body worker. Authentic and passionate, Cindy makes yoga accessible for all who are interested with nurturing enthusiasm. She listens to the individual needs of her students, incorporating requests to support healing and build strength. She understands anatomy and alignment in motion and in stillness. Everyone feels welcome and honored by her unique teaching style and welcoming ease. Her classes are holistic, deeply healing, creative and invigorating. She offers private lessons, group instruction, meditation classes, and spiritual mentoring. Students consistently report feeling welcome, embraced and honored by her grace and wisdom. There is something magical about the quality of her teachings that sparkles with life and is contagious!

Yogeshwari’s name was given to her by her beloved teacher, Rishi Mahamandaleshiwar Shambhavananda, and means "goddess of yoga or keeper of the wisdom of yoga."

Yoga Instructor, owner and founder of Lotus Petal Yoga Eliza Bicknell is a creative and inspired instructor. She has completed long term (400 hour+) teacher training and through years of personal practice has developed a strong and diverse background in yoga and meditation. Eliza has a passion for travel and has been to over 40 different countries, receiving inspiration from each one. These experiences and explorations she integrates into her creative teaching style. She continues to find her voice as a teacher and is committed to sharing yoga with those who have the interest in expanding their mind, refining their body and freeing their inner voice. Eliza is committed to building balanced health, body awareness and a deepened sense of self awareness. In addition to yoga instruction, Eliza is a new mother, teaches biology part time at Broomfield high school, writes children's stories, and is an avid rock and ice climber.

Shortly after the birth of her first child in 1999, Heather discovered the healing properties of Ashtanga and Kripalu yoga at a studio near her home. During one of her first classes, she was amazed to discover that one shoulder was higher than the other. What started as a once-a-week "mommy time" class blossomed into much more. Three years later, she received her Raja Ashtanga teaching certification from Focal Point Yoga in Maynard, Mass. During the training, she realized her calling was to teach a more gentle style of yoga, which has evolved into a blend of Kripalu and Hatha styles that focuses on body alignment, awareness and relaxation. More recently, she has studied with Kofi Busia, an Iyengar teacher and loves to incorporate props into her practice. Her teaching philosophy? Go slow or go home!

Jackie is Anusara-trained and 'flowing with grace' towards full certification in this school. As an aging athlete, she has found the physical benefits of an aligned asana practice key to maintaining flexibility and achieving injury recovery and prevention- plus, going upside down with friends is so much FUN!! As a recovering construction engineer, the intellectual and spiritual practices of yoga have brought a sense of balanced expansiveness to her life. Jackie's lives her yoga through teaching as well as devoted studentship, and strives for joyful play in all her practices. She's committed to nurturing the kula (community) at Yoga Elements.

Jackie Nelson has practiced yoga for the last 30 years and is a registered teacher of Hatha Yoga, Kundalini Yoga and Meditation. She received her yoga training in Los Angeles, CA, Austin, TX and in Boulder, CO where she lives with her husband and daughter.After practicing Hatha Yoga for most of her life, Jackie discovered Kundalini Yoga in 2004. Crediting Kundalini with changing her life, Jackie became a registered Kundalini Yoga teacher in 2009. Jackie plays the gong as a regular part of her Kundalini Yoga classes and can often be found playing the gong in workshops across the state.

Jen has been studying Yoga since 1998 and teaching since 2003. She received her 500 hour advanced training in NYC in ISHTA yoga. ISHTA stands for the Integrated Science of Hatha Tantra and Ayurveda, and is a beautiful blend of Astanga, Iyengar and Viniyoga combined with the study of Tantric philosophy, breath work, and the science of life. Jen currently studies Anusara yoga and is gently working towards become certified. She has been formally trained in Anjali Restorative yoga and has spent countless hours studying with Douglas Brooks, a Tantric philosopher and Hindu myth story teller. He has provided her with rich meaning, symbolism and story for the dance we do with our bodies through asana. Jen weaves all of this together in hopes of inspiring others to delve deeply into their own truth through the practice of yoga. Jen received her MA in Counseling Psychology and her MA in Education from the University of San Francisco and is committed to equanimity in education and wellness. She currently teaches public classes and workshops, company classes, and co-directs a student affairs office at CU Boulder. Jen hopes to empower her students to take the practice into their lives and she teaches her classes with humor, energy, alignment, and much joy, sharing with her students often from her own life experience. Jen is always and forever in honor of dancing the Lila- the beautiful dance of life!

Mahmoud Hosseini Asheghabadi was born in Iran. After he received his high school diploma in Natural Science in 1977 he travelled to America for his college education. He received a Bachelor degree in Psychology, and a M.A in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Colorado- Denver. His academic research revolved around Medical Anthropology, a branch of Cultural Anthropology focusing on Traditional Medicine. Mahmoud’s Graduate research was conducted in Tibet in 1993 to study the "Transformation of Tibetan Medicine", and the clash of Tibetan culture under the influence of Chinese occupation to Tibet. Mahmoud has been teaching Hatha and Ashtanga yoga in several locations in Boulder County since 1991, as well as conducting workshops in Ayurvedic Medicine and Yoga therapy to meet individual's health and illness needs. He currently is teaching Yoga at CU Boulder Recreation Center, Athletic Health Clubs in Boulder and Broomfield, and a few Yoga Studios. He teaches Level one and Level two yoga to children 3-12 years of age. He is also a Cardiac ® Yoga Therapist and has worked with Cardiac patients in Mapleton Community hospital in Boulder. In addition, he has earned a Black Belt in Tae- Kwon-Do in 1987.

Makaan Burt, CYT, is a quintessential teacher who has combined many forms of yoga and teaches a refreshing new one called Nature Stone Yoga. This form allows the student to drop deep into their own mind-body experience. Makaan has studied yoga for 35 years, including on his two trips to India. He studied intensively with Richard Freeman (8 yrs) and Mukunda Stiles(4 yrs): from whom he was certified in structural yoga therapy. He has completed 14 solo wilderness yoga retreats. He has healed his own maladies including conditions of back pain, torn ligaments, whiplash and scoliosis. Makaan offers ayurvedic massage, yoga privates and teaches yoga workshops in nature stone yoga, hot stone, back care, knee care, anatomy study, spinal curvature and stone yoga for teachers.

Marlene has been a teacher of yoga and movement for over 25 years and focuses on Yoga therapy and rehabilitation. Marlene has a Dance/Kinesiology Degree from CU Boulder and a Maste'’s Degree in Body-Psychology from Naropa University. She is a certified Hatha Yoga Teacher and is a certified MedX Spinal Rehabilitation Specialist.

Marlene listens to your non-verbal body ques while specializing in helping you achieve efficient movement and function. She also focuses on injury prevention and effective physical rehabilitation. Other areas of Marlene's expertise involve correcting dysfunction and body imbalances, teaching accurate anatomical alignment, and restoring overall health. Marlene is like a car mechanic for body's – all makes and models.

Contact Marlene directly for questions, CD's, and private sessions: marlenesyoga@earthlink.net or 303-543-9150.

Melissa Williams has been practicing yoga since college when she was studying Communications and Exercise & Health Science at the University of California- Santa Barbara. She fell in love with vinyasa, but quickly expanded to other styles, including Iyengar, Ashtanga, and Restorative. No matter what style, she found that yoga helped her connect with her body in a positive way. After graduation, she and her husband, Steven stayed in Santa Barbara for a few years, allowing Melissa the unique opportunity to receive her yoga training at the renowned Santa Barbara Yoga Center where she was able to study with such teachers as Erich Schiffman, Anne Van De Water, Paul Grilley, and Scott Blossom. During her training, Melissa realized her calling was to work with women, specifically prenatal/postpartum women, as well as with children, and decided to receive extra training in both specialties, including studies with Janice Clarfield and receiving her YogaEd. Certification. Melissa has been teaching since 2004, and has taught in a variety of environments from gyms and recreation centers to elementary and high schools and yoga studios. Her current goal is to reach as many new mothers as possible. Melissa currently teaches prenatal, postnatal, and yoga birthing workshops at Yoga Elements. She lives in Louisville with her husband and 1 1/2 year old daughter, Sena, who's favorite yoga pose is adho mukha svanasana.

"Mira dove heartfirst into the yoga tradition 17 years ago when she became a full time resident of Shoshoni Yoga Retreat. Thirsty for spiritual growth and understanding, she spent many blissfully long days engaged in seva (selfless service) and the focused practice of hatha yoga, pranayama, and meditation. Slowly the apple ripened, as she continued imbibing the wisdom of yogic and Vedic philosophy, and gaining practical knowledge about Ayurvedic cooking and bodywork. Shortly into her ten year stay there, she completed Shoshoni's Shambhava School of Yoga teacher training certification, teaching yoga and meditation to staff and retreat guests, and eventually went on to assist with yoga teacher trainings and become staff manager. Shambhava Yoga is a heart-centered and joyful approach to hatha yoga which draws on the rich philosophy of Kashmir Shaivism and the grace of a living Siddha lineage. Mira enjoys teaching many types of yoga including foundation, flow, and prenatal. She often incorporates Ayurvedic principles into her classes, which have been described as 'both grounding and playful'. A founding member of Shiva's Garden, she has been a kirtan leader in the Boulder community for many years. She maintains a private integrative bodywork practice "Quiet Touch Massage" in Boulder and Lafayette. Mira may be reached through her website: www.everyonedeservesmassage.com

Sarah teaches yoga because she loves to share a practice that makes people feel good in so many ways. She completed her initial teacher training in 2001 at the Shoshoni Ashram, followed by various Vinyasa Flow trainings with Shiva Rea. She has also studied Yin Yoga with Paul Grilley and Sarah Powers. Her teaching is inspired by her Vipassana meditation practice, which these days consists of not so much time on the meditation cushion but instead the daily practice of mothering. Sarah is a graphic designer and owner of gaiacreative. She lives in Louisville with her husband, 3-year-old daughter, and soon-to-be newborn.

Shelley Coughlin came to yoga in 2001 after a knee injury to find an alternative, low-impact form of movement. As her relationship with yoga grew, Shelley realized the healing and transformative power of yoga. Shelley began her journey as a teacher while in the California, studying under Anirudh Shastriji, a beloved Bay Area hatha yoga teacher. Her studies continued under Dharma Mittra, with his Life of a Yogi teacher training and in Colorado with Shannon Paige Schneider. Shelley's classes provide a nurturing, yet challenging environment from which the practitioner is encouraged to explore and uncover that which wants to be discovered, to honor boundaries and limits, and to move from a place of deep compassion and courage. Shelley believes that yoga is an art form, which gives each practitioner the opportunity to express his or her creativity from a place of truth and love.

Trent has been practicing yoga since 1997 and teaching since 2002. His primary course of study includes Iyengar and Vinyasa yoga. He obtained his teacher certification from White Lotus Foundation in Santa Barbara, CA, where he studied with Ganga White and Tracey Rich. His primary mentor was Paul Cabanis in Los Angeles, CA. Trent has been a group class and private instructor in California, Nevada and currently teaches near Boulder, Colorado. Although the physical benefits first drew Trent to yoga, he has remained an avid student and practitioner as a result of the applicability of yogic philosophy to life beyond the physical practice. He hopes to share the valuable lessons that yoga has to offer, both on the mat and in everyday life.