It’s all going down February 17th – 19th at the University of Houston Recreation Center in Houston, TX! Check out all you need to know, below – from the TYC website:

Texas Yoga Conference

February 17th – 19th | Houston, TX

Want to learn more about the many different styles and lineages of yoga? Want to practice, a lot? Come to UH University Recreation and Wellness Center in Houston, TX on Feb 17-19, 2012 to enjoy and learn about the art of yoga at the 2012 Texas Yoga Conference. With over 40 presentations, you can take yoga classes with some of the top instructors in the world.

Manduka, Luna Bars, 002 Magazine, YOGANONYMOUS, Origin. Magazine, Kulae, Luke’s Locker, I Love Yoga, Prana, and Natural Awakenings Magazine are just a few of the sponsors participating this year. Shopping and yoga are in store for you! Be prepared to have a blast doing yoga, shopping, meeting new people, and simply taking in the bliss that the collective energy will bring.

Featured Presenters

Jennifer Buergermeister

Jennifer Buergermeister is the founder of the pioneering Houston yoga studio Jennyoga located in River Oaks since July 2007. In the same year Jenny organized Breathe the Cure, Inc. 501c3. The word cure comes from the latin word cura which means to bring attention to or to care for; to heal. The cura mission defines bringing attention to the breath and wellness. Cura felt more aligned with our not-for-profit vision as we expanded into other neighborhoods in Houston. In 2010 CuraYoga in Spring Street Studios opened near the Heights in dedication to building breath-centered communities. CuraYoga and the newly formed Cura Co-op in 2011 is a community space that offers all levels and various styles of yoga including donation classes for families, caregivers and patients/survivors of disease. Jenny is also the current president and originating founder of One Yoga USA, the Breathe the Cure (BTC) Conference, Texas Yoga Association and Texas Yoga Conference.

Sean Johnson

Vocalist and harmonium player Sean Johnson is the founder of the Wild Lotus Band. He’s been leading kirtan across the U.S. and abroad for the last fourteen years. His voice is equally influenced by vocal exploration of his ancestral Irish heritage as well as study in Indian vocal music and love of the path of bhakti yoga– the yoga of the heart. Sean is also the founder of Wild Lotus Yoga studios in his native New Orleans and Soul School, an interdisciplinary yoga and spirituality teacher training program. Sean is also one of a core group of founders of The New Orleans Healing Center, a 55,000 square foot community center in downtown New Orleans dedicated to creating healing and sustainability through culture, food, art, music, yoga, dance, ecology, education, and more. He has a Master’s degree from The Naropa Institute with a focus on teaching chant as spiritual practice. He shares the practice of mantra in an inviting and accessible way that taps into the universal spirit of life and music- weaving stories, myths, and poetry. Grammy nominated kirtan artist Jai Uttal says “Sean’s voice is a warm, soothing river of serenity.”

Leeann Carey

Leeann Carey is an acclaimed yoga instructor who has taught and inspired thousands of students and teachers worldwide. With over twenty years of teaching experience, Leeann’s deep knowledge of yoga is recognized at the local and national levels through contributions to national magazines and the news media. In addition to working with private clients and teaching group yoga classes, Leeann has brought yoga to the workplace in creating programs for corporate clients such as Sony Pictures Entertainment, Xerox Corporation and Simple Human, Inc.

Leeann has trained everyone, from championship athletes — including the 2000 World Champion Los Angeles Lakers and Eric Fonoimoana, the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games Gold Medalist in Men’s Volleyball — to celebrities; from students looking for a great workout and people on the healing path from injuries or chronic health issues, to individuals pursuing personal transformation at all levels — physical, mental, and spiritual. Yoga with Leeann is unique. Thousands of students have experienced her loving presence, her balanced approach to technical and organic instruction, and her ability to lead students through a clean and logical path of process, progression and realization.

Hemalayaa Behl

The daughter of Indian parents, Hemalayaa (Hema) is a yoga and Indian dance diva whose love for fitness began at home at a very early age. While learning meditation from her father as a child, she went on to intensively study yoga with leaders such as Jeffrey Armstrong (Philosophy of Yoga); various styles of Indian dance such as bhangra, bollywood and classical (with Sarala Dandekar); and has honed the latest moves from Indian MTV.

This unique combination of influences has culminated in three exciting classes, “Bollywood Vinyasa”, “Sacred Dance and Yoga” and “Kama Sutra Yoga Journey”, under the umbrella of the HEMA Wellness Program. The HEMA Wellness Program establishes a state of balance, health and well being with the HEMA tools of Healing, Empowerment, Movement (Yoga & Dance) and Ayurveda, integrating these practices sustainably into your life for real transformation!

Kurt Johnsen

Kurt Johnsen has spent a lifetime studying health and happiness. He is founder of American Power Yoga, host of Yoga for Life and is the official yoga instructor of the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders. His latest DVD was awarded “Best Yoga for All Levels” in Fitness Magazine (Feb 2010) He has over 7,500 teaching hours and is a master of Tibetan Kung Fu and trained in ju jitsu, tai chi, herbology and acupuncture. He is a master (5th degree Black Belt) of the Lightning Fire Mountain System of Tibetan Kung Fu and continues to train to this day. He also trained in Lama Yoga, Tibetan Heart Yoga, Needle in the Cotton (Tibetan Tai Chi), Chi Gong, acupuncture, herbology, Brazilian Ju Jitsu, and Tai Chi Chuan. He was certified as a personal trainer by the Cooper Clinic and he is a former student of some of the most well recognized yoga masters in the world, including Manju Jois, Beryl Bender Birch, Sean Corne and his personal favorite, Bryan Kest.

Click here to see the full list of presenters

Click here for more information and to register today!

Halloween is always a great time to find your inner playfulness, no matter what your age may be! Whether you are celebrating with costumes, candy, or none of the above, be sure to make some time for your yoga practice! We have selected some of our favorite yoga events happening all across the country this Halloween weekend – check ‘em out below, and get out there and have some fun!

Don’t see events listed in your city? Want to submit an event of your own? Email us at Submissions@yoganonymous.org and let us know the deal!

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Houston, TX

Saturday, october 29th

Get ready for the 2011 Breathecure Conference at Rice University in Houston, TX this Saturday! Breathecure is an organization dedicated to bringing awareness to the public about the benefits of breathing techniques, meditation, and yoga, and it was founded by our friend Jennifer Buergermeister!

BTC Conference supports the illness-to-wellness community using a platform of educational lectures and classes for professionals and the general public to use as a means of enrichment. Our nonprofit Breathe the Cure is dedicated teaching that proper breathing is a complementary treatment to disease and a tool to transform mindbody.

Click here for the Full Scoop!

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Los Angeles, CA

Saturday, October 29th – Sunday, October 30th

Green Festival, the nation’s largest, most trusted green living event comes to Los Angeles October 29-30.

Where else can you rub elbows with eco-celebs like actor and green activist Ed Begley Jr., Jesse Carmichael of Maroon 5 and CSI: NY’s Hill Harper? Meet and hear renowned authors and visionaries. Participate in DIY workshops. Enjoy films, fun kid’s activities, organic vegan & vegetarian cuisine, local beer & wine, music & art and a diverse marketplace of green businesses & organizations. This weekend-long festival is brought to you by Green America and Global Exchange and kicking off the event will be an Opening Ceremony with Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and a special performance by the Morning Star Foundation.

Click here for the Full Scoop!

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Del Mar, CA

Saturday, October 29th

Don’t miss Simon Park at Bindu Yoga in Del Mar! Simon will be teaching his ‘Surfing the Vinyasa Wave’ workshop from 2pm – 4:30pm on Saturday afternoon.

A shaktified dynamic interplay between Simon Park, an electrifying asana soundtrack, and you! Explore new and empowering dimensions in your practice, as you journey through radical, fluid asana infused with Bhakti Devotion. This alchemical fusion incorporates energetically-aligned spiraling and circular movements, creative namaskars, arm-balancing, deep hip opening, and liquid backbends to pranify your soul.

Click here for the Full Scoop!

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Chicago, IL

Saturday, October 29th

Join Allison English for a very special Breast Cancer Awareness class at Equinox Lincoln Park on Saturday, October 29th.

Do your Poses in Support of Pink with Allison English! Come to this special event and down dog, chest open and breathe in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. This donation-only class will generate funds for the non-profit organization Be Bright Pink and is co-sponsored by Zobha. Suggested donation is $15. OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

Click here for the Full Scoop!

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Philadelphia, PA

Saturday, October 28th – Sunday, October 29th

Join Anusara yoga teacher, Zhenja la Rosa at Dhyana Yoga in Philadelphia for a weekend of workshops!

The gift of life offers a double boon to the yogi: the invitation to receive and love ourselves just as we are; and the challenge to imagine a self that is more than just the self that was given. Yoga invites us to seize upon the particular opportunity of what it means to be YOU and then create the self of your imagination. You become the person you practice being, and so at any moment you can step into the self you want to become. Put that self into practice!

Click here for the Full Scoop!

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Wishing you a very Happy Halloween Weekend!

With LOVE,

YOGANONYMOUS

Breathecure is an organization dedicated to bringing awareness to the public about the benefits of breathing techniques, meditation, and yoga, and it was founded by our friend Jennifer Buergermeister! More information about the conference below from the event website:

Breathecure Conference 2011

The conference will be held at Rice University in Houston, Texas in the Barbara and David Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center.

BTC Conference supports the illness-to-wellness community using a platform of educational lectures and classes for professionals and the general public to use as a means of enrichment. Our nonprofit Breathe the Cure is dedicated teaching that proper breathing is a complementary treatment to disease and a tool to transform mindbody.

We believe that change comes from a healthy mind, body and planet and support deep breathing techniques and mindfullness as a healthy lifestyle and a tool that alleviates many symptoms of disease.

Presenters

Nicolai Bachman: Open Heart, Clear Mind, Healthy Body: Ayurveda and Heart Sutras for Life

Angela Caughlin: Journaling Through: Unleashing the Power of the Authentic Self

Laura Kupperman: Yoga for Survivors™

Larry Payne: Be the Change Houston (Pacifica Radio – Interchange & Dialogue Houston)

About Breathecure

Breathe the Cure (Breathecure), a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, educates adults and youth of the benefits of breathing techniques, meditation, and yoga as preventative and complementary treatment of cancer and other illnesses. Our programs provide support and mentorship to children diagnosed with cancer as they cope with their disease.

Our Vision:

~That the FUNdamentals of breathing will be introduced into schools and businesses on a local and eventually national level to teach people of all ages the importance of proper breathing.

~That our Breathecure Curators will mentor children and adults who are dealing with illness to teach them how breath is one of the most powerful and natural ways to cope with symptoms of disease.

~To see graduates of our mentoring program return as mentors to those who are new to Breathecure’s programs.

~To promote education, outreach, and research of breathing, meditation, and yoga in the medical community.

~To increase the level of collaboration between the yoga and medical communities to make the treatment of illnesses a more comprehensive and whole mind-body experience.

Click here to register today!

Click here to learn more about Breathcure

We hope that you are ending the month on a high note, and just in case you aren’t, we have some extra-special pick-me-ups (totally legal) for ya right here – check out this week’s weekend picks below!

Don’t see events listed in your city? Want to submit an event of your own? Email us at Submissions@yoganonymous.org and let us know the deal!

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Houston, TX

Friday, February 25th – Sunday, February 27th

The Texas Yoga Conference is this weekend! From February 25th – 27th, the University of St. Thomas campus in Houston will be home to some of the country and the world’s best yoga teachers as they join forces for one of the greatest Yoga events of the year – hosted by our dear friend (and conference presenter!) Jennifer Buergermeister!

Want to learn more about the many different styles and lineages of yoga? Want to practice, a lot? Come to the University of St. Thomas, Jerabeck Athletic Center in Houston, TX on Feb 25-27, 2011 to enjoy and learn about the art of yoga at the 2011 Texas Yoga Conference. With over 72 presentations, you can take yoga classes with some of the top instructors in the world.

Click here for the Full Scoop!

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Palm Springs, CA

Friday, February 25th – Sunday, February 27th

Spend a weekend relaxing at the beautiful Parker Palm Springs while immersing yourself in the first ever Desert Yoga Fest!

Just two hours outside of Los Angeles, you’ll feel like you’re a million miles away as you enjoy the unique spiritual atmosphere that only the desert can offer. With classes available to suit any level, there is something for everyone.

Desert Yoga Fest: Yoga. Redefined.

Click here for the Full Scoop!

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Cannon Beach, OR

Friday, February 25th – Sunday, February 27th

A health and wellness destination, as well as a natural scenic treasure, Cannon Beach, OR will host the first Cannon Beach Yoga Festival, February 25-27, 2011. The small coastal town welcomes yoga students of all levels for a weekend of yoga, meditation, music, art, food, massage & body work, shopping, and celebration.

The esteemed faculty of yoga teachers are Alan Finger, South African Tantric and Kriya Yoga Master, founder of ISHTA Yoga and cofounder of Yoga Zone, Be Yoga and Yoga Works.  Sarah Platt-Finger, director of the ISHTA Yoga Teacher Training program.  Julie Gudmestad, PT, a certified Iyengar Yoga teacher and a licensed physical therapist, director of Gudmestad Yoga Studio, and author of Yoga Journal’s anatomy column for seven years.  Tiffany Cruikshank, directs her own yoga teacher training program, teaches yoga classes, retreats and workshops worldwide, and is the acupuncturist at Nike World Headquarters in Oregon.

Click here for the Full Scoop!

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Hailey, ID

February 25th – 27th

Do not miss out on this amazing weekend with Nicki Doane and Eddie Modestini – 2 of today’s greatest yoga teachers! Nicki and Eddie will be at the Hailey Yoga Center all weekend long!

Eddie and Nicki have developed their  approach to yoga that is intent on serving the Individual student.Yoga is spirit in action, and as Eddie and Nicki teach, they inspire people to find a place of spirit inside themselves, recognizing the profound connection between the self and spirit.

Click here for the Full Scoop!

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New York, NY

Sunday, February 27th

Head over to Pure Yoga for a fun afternoon with Ari Kassman and Buddha Xtreme!

Laugh, sweat, dance, breathe and find your flow with BuddhaXtreme. Taught by yogis, b-boys and martial artists, this series combines the energy and movements of breakdancing and Vinyasa Yoga to create the unique ‘BreakFlow’ workout. Fuse flavor and flow in this invigorating workshop.

Click here for the Full Scoop!

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Wishing you a fun and fabulous weekend!

With LOVE,

YOGANONYMOUS

Don’t see events listed in your city? Want to submit an event of your own? Email us at Submissions@yoganonymous.org and let us know the deal!

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Edmonton, AB, Canada

Thursday, October 21st – Sunday, October 24th

This is the real deal, my friends! Spend 4 full days (7 workshops!) with Nicki and Eddie, creators of Maya Yoga, at the Yoga Loft in Edmonton, AB Canada this weekend!

Join Eddie and Nicki in a uniquely holistic mind-body experience. The group meets twice each day: a 3 hour vigorous morning practice, fusing Vinyasa flow with basic alignment principles, accessible to all levels. Lunch break followed by a 2.5 hour afternoon session emphasizing Svadyaya, the principle of Self-study. Their unique approach to vinyasa yoga strengthens all aspects of your being through dynamic structural alignment, conscious breathing, and practical yogic  philosophy; helping students find the deeper life of yoga.  Eddie and Nicki strive to teach each student that yoga is about being fully present in the moment and discovering that we are truly all One.  One Love.  One People.  One Heart.  One Destination – Our Higher Self.

Click here for the full scoop!

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Houston, TX

Sunday, 10/24

Don’t miss this fantastic Sunday Immersion, coming up on October 24thwith the beautiful and amazing Sadie Nardini at CuraYoga for Cool Sequencing: The way you link your postures and in what order can help you reach – or block – your goals.

Learn to put your poses together in super effective, new and fun ways, and discover a 3-step process to doing each single pose optimally to help you gain more benefits, like weight loss, core strength, total body sculpting, detox, flexibility in much less time on your mat! Sadie shares her tips and guidelines for building poses and the art of Vinyasa Krama, or principles of sequencing the most powerful, intelligent and safe at-home or class poses and flows that will give you tools to use to get more from the time you spend on your mat, amplify your creativity and give you one heck of a workout too!

Click here for the full scoop!

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Chicago, IL

Friday, 10/22 – Sunday, 10/24

We are so excited that our main man, Simon Park, will be presenting as a part of the Smith Events Yoga series this weekend in Highland Park!

The unique focus of SEY is to introduce our local yoga community to the creative talents and styles of yoga teachers from all over the country. Each weekend, SEY will welcome a new instructor who will lead students of all levels through an invigorating and challenging yoga practice. We invite you to join us for a class or a full weekend of classes; the choice is yours!

Click here for the full scoop!

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Philadelphia, PA

Saturday, October 23rd

Yoga + Wine? Um…Yes, please! Don’t miss this incredible workshop with the lovely Jennifer Pastiloff THIS Saturday at Dhyana Yoga (Old City location).

Find focus in a world of distraction with this intense 3 hour workshop designed to help you release any fears that are holding you back in your life. Play with handstands and other inversions, arm balances, deep twisting and lots of back bending. There will also be guided meditations designed to help you get clarity on what you want to be manifesting in your life, on and off the mat. Expect sweat, laughter and good old fashioned fun, with a chance to enjoy Organic wine afterward!

Click here for the full scoop!

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Cape Cod, MA

Sunday, october 24th

Don’t miss the beautiful and amazing Coral Brown at Dharma Connection this Sunday, 10/24! Coral will be teaching her Prana Flow Immersion Workshop – the Fire Element – it’s going to be awesome, you want to be there!

The seat of the Self is thought to be located in the third chakra, the Manipura. Often the ego is viewed as a negative element of our make-up. In this yoga practice we explore creative core cultivation to burn through negative attachments and re-establish our relationship to the Self in a healthy balanced way.

Click here for the full scoop!

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New York City

Saturday, October 23rd

Don’t miss the next segment in Jason Ray Brown’s Happy Healthy Series! This is a great opportunity to expand your anatomical knowledge with a true expert. Whether you are a yoga teacher, student, or simply are curious about how these body parts work, you will definitely benefit from this workshop!

The Happy Healthy Series is a series of workshops geared toward yoga students, yoga teachers and other movement professionals who are interested in learning more about musculo-skeletal anatomy, repetitive strain injuries and how to prevent them, and strategies for cultivating physical balance and wellbeing in the body through the skillful practice of yoga asana and supplemental exercises.

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Sunday, October 24th

Join the YOGANONYMOUS Teacher of the Month, Kay Kay Clivioon October 24 at Pure Yoga. Kay Kay has teamed up with Zobha to bring you this amazing event for Breast Cancer Awareness. ALL of the proceeds for this class go towards the Libby Ross Breast Cancer Foundation. So many of us have been affected by this disease, either directly or indirectly, please come and support the cause, together we can make a difference!

Pure Yoga and Zobha invite you to a special open level class to benefit the Libby Ross Breast Cancer Foundation Pose for Pink Yoga Program. All attendees will receive a limited edition Zobha Breast Cancer tank. Led by Pure instructor and Zobha Circle of Grace member, Kay Kay Clivio. The suggested donation is $40 made by cash or check payable to ‘Libby Ross Foundation’. All proceeds will benefit the expansion of the Libby Ross Pose for Pink Yoga program.

Click here for the full scoop!

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Sunday, October 24th

Ignite your inner fire with Joan Hyman at YogaWorks! Details below from the studio website:

Core & Bandhas are common terms in yoga classes today. What are they and how do we find them? Everything comes from our core. When we learn to access this area the poses seems lighter and the physical effort is minimal. Bandhas are energy locks in our subtle body which help regulate the flow of prana (life force). When engaging these locks, energy is forced to spread throughout these pathways to help us lift off the ground and take flight! In this workshop we will focus on the center of our torso in all directions using breath work and asanas that will help us engage our core and find our bandhas! All levels welcome.

Click here for the full scoop!

And for you night-owl party people yogis, be sure to check out  AM Only’s bad ass CMJ party going down Saturday night (all night long) at Le Poisson Rouge – check out the deal HERE

Wishing Everyone a Safe and Wonderful Weekend!

Archetypes, Empowerment, and Vinyasa Yoga Studies

The Archetypes of Yoga, Empowerment Program and Deep Asana Study: Explore the various emanations of the Goddess Shakti and Lord Shiva along with other representations of the Divine in this extensive exploration into metaphor, asana, meditation, and vinyasa flow yoga. This program is a self-improvement/empowerment program designed to awaken the spiritual being having a human experience that teach how to be yoga rather than practice yoga.

Jenny considers herself a yoga activist for the betterment of yoga as a way of life and finished her graduate work in Transpersonal Psychology specializing in Health and Wellness. Through movement, breath, and transpersonal practice, we will learn how to find bliss and release fear. To see the change we must be the change. Lidieth Velasco will assist this year in the asana study portion of the program and help the participants breakthrough obstacles by learning how to be present with each pose, letting determination lead one toward liberation. Each pose can be explored and revered through understandings in the physical body. As the mind opens and heart expands, all fears and illusions begin to melt way, and the human body develops into a temple for your spirit to reside.

**Other teachers who contribute or have in the past contributed to the training are Catherine Allen, Asha Devarakonda, Robert Boustany, Gopala Amir Yaffe, and Hemalayaa Behl.**

The Course Covers the Following Topics:

*History of Yoga and Spirituality

*Shakti/Shiva Studies

*Archetypes and Myths

*Bhagavad Gita Study

*Asana Study: Hatha, Kriya, Ashtanga, and Tantra

*Anatomy/Physiology: an in depth look at the human body

*Emotional Health and Well-being

*Asana Study: Vinyasa Sequencing Part I

*Pranayama

*Energy Anatomy: Chakras & Chanting, Vibration & Sound Studies

*Asana Study: Vinyasa Sequencing part II

*Energy Anatomy: Healing and Meditation, Guided Visualizations

*Asana Study: Power Vinyasa Sequencing

*Asana Corrections and Alignment/Assisting – Preventing injuries and getting the most out of our practice.

*Ayurveda/Nutrition and Energy Medicine

*Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP)

*Energy Anatomy: Quantum Theory and Applications; Applied Kinesiology

*Energy Anatomy: Therapeutic Touch and Hands on Healing Techniques

*Community Building and Activism •Writing a Covenant, and fun, creative projects

*Discussion on Living Sustainability, Ethics and Codes of Conduct as a human being on Earth

Click here to register!

Don’t see events listed in your city? Email us at info@yoganonymous.org and let us know the deal!

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:: Toronto, Canada ::

Friday, 10/1 – Saturday, 10/2

Oh, Canada! Don’t miss this opportunity to practice with our dear friend and amazing Prana Flow teacher, Simon Park. Simon will be teaching 3 workshops over 2 days at889 Yonge in Toronto, Ontario CA.

Workshops: Surfing the Vinyasa Wave, Fluid Power, and Liquid Flow Yoga

Click here for the full scoop!

:: Vancouver, Canada ::

Friday 10/1 – Sunday, 10/3

Don’t miss Maria Garre at the Vancouver Yoga Conference + Show!

Maria E Garre, M.Ed, ERYT-500, is a Senior Teacher and Director for Shiva Rea’s Samudra School of Living Yoga offering Prana Flow, an energetic and transformational expression of Vinyasa Flow Yoga.  In addition to assisting and studying with Shiva Rea for over 9 years, Maria leads workshops, teacher training and retreats world-wide.

Click here for the full scoop!

:: Houston, TX ::

Saturday, 10/2

Release your shoulders with Planet Yoga’s Chrys Kub at JennYoga! Planet Yoga Method: Unburdening our Shoulders, Discovering New Awareness and Release Many of us suffer from shoulder and wrist pain in our yoga practice and daily lives. Learn how to strengthen, release and open your shoulders throughout your asana practice.

Through the use of dynamic and therapeutic arm asanas and pranayama, you will discover and explore how to transform and vary your practice to create muscle balance in this area of your body.

Click here for the full scoop!

:: Raleigh, NC ::

Friday, 10/1 – Sunday, 10/3

Don’t miss this opportunity to practice with Prana Flow® teacher, Coral Brown! Coral is coming to Evolve Movement (Five Points location) for 3 days of workshops next weekend!

Coral’s teaching style fuses the energetic, creative energy of the Prana Flow® yoga method with her experience as a Holistic Counselor. Her integrative yet lighthearted approach invites students to unite mind, body, and spirit to transcend physical asana and create space for conscious evolution. By honoring the breath, students are drawn into the “river of prana,” connecting with the universal life force and increasing their own capacity for compassion and self-revelation.

Click here for the full scoop!

:: Reston, VA ::

Friday, 10/1 – Sunday, 10/3

Spend your weekend with the incredible Nicki Doane! Nicki will be coming to Beloved Yoga this weekend, and teaching 4 workshops over 3 days.

Intro to Maya Yoga Vinyasa Fusion, Wake Up and Flow, Taking Time to Look Within, and Backbends to extend the spine and expand your Consciousness!

Click here for the full scoop!

:: New York, NY ::

Saturday, 10/2

Join anatomy expert Jason Ray Brown for the next segment in hisHappy Healthy Series – Happy, Healthy Elbows and Wrists - taking place at the Newly renovated Zenyasa Yoga and Wellness Center!

The Happy Healthy Series is a series of workshops geared toward yoga students, yoga teachers and other movement professionals who are interested in learning more about musculo-skeletal anatomy, repetitive strain injuries and how to prevent them, and strategies for cultivating physical balance and wellbeing in the body through the skillful practice of yoga asana and supplemental exercises.Each workshop is 3 hours long and includes a brief anatomy lecture, experiential exercises and some yoga asana practice.

Click here for the full scoop!

:: Boston, MA ::

Friday, 10/1

Check out Dave Romanelli’s Yoga and Chocolate Party at Still Studio!

Dave will teach a 90 minute vinyasa flow yoga class set to great music (ranging from the Grateful Dead to Frank Sinatra). The class will focus on how much has life has changed since 1994. That’s the year most of us got our first email address and first cell phone. Since then, we’ve become glorified extensions of our machines spending vast amounts of time typing, texting, deleting, and filing. In the process, we’ve lost touch with what it means to be a human being…to touch, smell, listen…to truly enjoy life.

Click here for the full scoop!

For those of you who do not know about Jennifer, she is an absolute sweetheart – entrepreneur, scholar, teacher, friend, and also the founder and director of Houston based studio JennYoga, organizer of the Texas Yoga Association, producer of the annual Texas Yoga Conference, and inspirational spirit behind organizations OneYogaUSA and Breathe the Cure. Like we said – she is busy man!

Jennifer is an amazing spirit and a shining light for all of us on the path. Get to know her in her own words – what she is up to and how it all started –  below:

“I began practicing yoga in 1994. I remember taking DVDs around with me while I toured with my then tennis player boyfriend. I spent a lot of time alone while he practiced tennis.  I would practice sun salutations or watch a VHS yoga class from time to time while he was away. In college, I became curious about mind/body subjects thanks to two brilliant professors, Dr. Roger Maley and Dr.  Michael Doran. They opened my mind to new concepts and ways of looking at Psychology and could be considered my first gurus.  I finished my undergraduate work at UH in 1999 with a double degree in Psychology and Journalism cum laude with minors in Anthropology and Speech Communication. I really didn’t get seriously into yoga classes until later after I met the man of my dreams.

I married Thorsten, or Tossi as we called him, a beautiful German man in December 1998 and would drag him around to a few yoga classes with me in Houston. When he unexpectedly died in 2001, I really “found” yoga. Or maybe it found me.  It was very strange how I developed a deep relationship with the practice. I think we all have stories about how we found yoga and they are all so amazing.

I rarely slept when my husband passed away from a heart issue; as anyone who has ever lost a loved one can attest, sleep is impossible. It’s too painful and too shocking.  Unable to sleep at night for at least 6 months, I often took naps in the afternoons. One afternoon I felt my eyes tiring from reading a book and in that space between waking and sleeping, I heard an older woman’s stern voice clearly say, “Get up and go to yoga, NOW.” It scared the hell out of me. I jumped off the couch in bewilderment, maybe even horror.  I remember thinking to myself, “Great! Now I am hearing voices.”  At least one that I could clearly understand!

As if it wasn’t already bad enough to be in heartbreak hell from losing my best friend, I was suddenly hearing demands from someone who I couldn’t even see!  And why would she tell me to go to yoga?  That was the last thing I would have ever expected a voice from beyond to tell me to do. She didn’t yell at me, she spoke with conviction, like she knew something I didn’t.  After the horror subsided, I found myself walking into the kitchen to find the phone book.

That really was the beginning of my great journey. I went to the phone book and opened it to yoga. Being only a dabbler, I felt that I hadn’t really experienced its essence at the gyms where I had practiced.  I saw Bikram’s Yoga College of India and decided that it would be a nice place to experience yoga. I had no idea it would be so damn hot and I think I nearly died the first couple of times I tried it. I am not sure that I fought the fact or even cared that I was having a near-death experience right there on my mat.

I was very thin at the time. Losing Thorsten was a near-death shock itself and I literally couldn’t swallow. That made it very difficult to consume enough calories to rigorously practice or exert myself in anything. With grief the weight had just fallen off.  Luckily I began craving Gourmet Jose Fresh Salsa and chips. They had unfortunately discontinued carrying the salsa at our local grocery stores so I had to order it directly from the company. They were so kind to have it dry-iced shipped overnight to me. I later convinced Fiesta to restock it which only lasted a few months.  I suppose I was lucky to have craved anything at all, this yummy salsa being fresh and full of antioxidants.

The first six months as a young widow were extremely difficult. There were days I seriously thought that I could die from the pain in my heart. I later learned that I had broken-heart syndrome. My heart changed rhythms and suddenly I had a murmur which was revealed in an exam nearly two years after his death.

Death has a way of making life real. And the pain that I felt was very real. It was also a very huge awakening of my spirit. I had crystallized the energy around my heart as one “seer” who I met claimed. Losing someone that close slices deeply through the layers of superficiality and can leave one feeling what I would describe as raw. Pain can shadow the work that is being done at a deeper level when we feel raw.  I can say that in that rawness, and through the pain, the opportunity for yoga to become my guide swiftly blew into the cracks of my broken heart. Yoga helped me rekindle my soul and gather a few understandings that only a dark night of the soul can awaken one to journey. I remember reading during my grieving process a book by Rav Berg that told a story of a Rabbi who spoke of heartache to the children in his class. He said that only when our hearts break can G-d’s tear slip inside and feel it with love and compassion.  Only then can we in turn help someone who is similarly bereaved.  Understanding his statement so clearly, I wanted my heart to mend and it did as I found healing in helping others.

I am blessed. I lost a lot of fear in the grieving process mainly because during that time I was also given many gifts. A plethora of transpersonal experiences and awakened skills led me to where I am today. I attribute my initiation to the esoteric and philosophical teachings of spirituality and yoga to my guru husband from the other side.  He, the universe began to show me many things.  The process felt like what many have referred to as shaktipat. It was a shock of transition into the shakti of life.

Spending the time alone continued to teach me. In silence I found the golden nuggets of another reality that spoke to all levels of my being beyond the person or physical. It was truth that I had never felt before!

Several occurrences over the first year helped me realize a few important esoteric things about energy. We really never die. We simply change form. What was shown to me helped me lose fear. The experiences were the things people write movies about such as The Sixth Sense or What Dreams May Come. When you begin to really see the “learnings” and what is all around you clearly, maybe for the first time in your life, the order is by no chance coincidence. It will change you.  We die every moment at some level of our being, but losing someone close to you is a real eye opener to how you are living your life and whether your eyes are really open or closed. We need all three eyes, not just two, to really see the beautiful world around us!  Beauty unfolds as you let the heart reawaken, even after it is broken.

The struggle is often part of the plan, I guess. One evening I was invited to a disastrous dinner only a month after Tossi’s death to a Mexican restaurant with all couples. They meant well, but sitting there as the only person not a couple, and being a new widow, I simply lost it. I barely made it to my car and as soon as I did, the turbulent river of my tears broke through the dam of my pride and resistance to accept the impermanence of life in this form.  I cried the whole way home uncontrollably.  I had never cried that hard in my life. I could not breathe.

That was the day the deepest of grief kicked in and when I got home, I walked into the house and locked the door from the inside with the key. I then fell to my knees with my puppy Henry, the Shelti I begged my husband to buy for me. He licked the tears as they fell from my swollen face.  I remember saying out loud on the floor that if there was a hell, I was already there. I thought that all the demons and evil in the universe couldn’t hurt me more than I laid there suffering in that moment.  And that night I had a dream that clearly showed me how fear attracts more to be afraid of. We manifest and project that which is inside of us, even in our dreams.

After finding enough courage to get up off the floor, I went to bed. Then something remarkable happened. I used to have a reoccurring bad dream where I could not wake up and it was always the same thing – I would hear people walking around my room, opening and closing things. A few times I could feel something touch me or hear people talking. I would always become completely paralyzed and unable to awaken even if I prayed. It felt like I was sinking into something and I would desperately try to wake up with little success. The more I feared it, the worse it got over the years. At one time I thought maybe I had epilepsy. However it only happened when I felt tired or was about to fall asleep. Whatever it was, I knew it was probably just a dream but it scared me.

This night was different. Defeated, I made my way to bed expecting to lie awake once again. I began feeling a similar vibration that always came with the dream when it was about to reoccur, and instead of fearing it, I basically stepped into it as if saying, “Come on, show me what you got, because I am already there!” Then something happened as my energy went from fearing it to moving into it with fierce grace.  The vibration totally shifted. Then as if I were one big eye, I began seeing very vibrant colors and began traveling from the ceiling of my room through to the rest of the house and then back into the bedroom. I remember there were a pair of purple shoes in the doorway of the master bathroom and then I woke up. Everything appeared normal as I lay there with my eyes wide open in disbelief that I had shifted the dream to something really sort of cool. After a few moments I jumped out of bed to see if there were by some strange chance a pair of very fancy purple shoes in the doorway of the bathroom. There were not. The purple shoes never existed. Or did they? Metaphorically I can see they were symbolic of immanent magic that was on the horizon.

I never had another bad dream. Something that I have lived with for 15 years was now gone, just like that! And all I did was acknowledge that there was nothing to fear. I was raw enough to finally realize that I created those bad dreams by fear and shifted it by moving with love! I now believe anything is possible and enjoy saying yes to life. There are only possibilities and the key is to gain love and lose fear! That is grace in action.

The keys that I locked myself into the house with that night had totally disappeared and were never found the next day. I had to find an extra set, Thorsten’s, to unlock the door. I looked everywhere, including the trash. To this day, those keys have never been found. A series of items began to disappear then reappear over the next year inexplicably and sometimes with others there to witness. Radios and other electronics had quite the relationship with me in the field. Lights would blow out in rooms that I would walk in, pictures would fly off walls, and other very strange occurrences would happen all around me. My life became anything but normal so I went all the way with where it was leading me. I did not fear it. Instead, I was awed by it.

Many of the experiences I have had led me to ask many questions about life, deeper psychology, personal myth, nature, energy and patterns. Eventually I came across the teachings of the Qabalah and Qi Gong, chakra theory, past lives, quantum physics, the understanding of light and the wave/particle duality, singularity and dimensions, studies of the cosmos and how we are all connected. It has been a journey that to this day leaves me breathless. What a beautiful universe we live in. How cool is it for us to be here together. I love what I see happening with consciousness and truth. Yoga is spreading like a wild fire across the world. The next great awakening is here and be a part of the collective energy contributing to reaching the tipping point for a global transformation.

I began teaching yoga after one year of a solid practice to a group in Tomball, TX where I had purchased a little farm that became my sanctuary during my grief work. I basically raised farm animals as pets and studied yoga and transpersonal psychology for three years. I taught yoga on the side and privately began seeing clients to do more esoteric work. I think there is something truly special about being a conduit for energy and understanding your dharma.  In 2009, a colleague and friend gave me a Vedic Astrology reading and said that with my moon in Mula, double cancer, I am a catalyst for change. And the Goddess associated with my chart – Kali. I wouldn’t understand the significance of this chart until the pieces began to later come together.

After a while the work that I began in Houston was beginning to blossom and I soon found myself in a beautifully strange opportunity to open a studio in River Oaks, a very central and upscale area of Houston. I sold the farm in 2005 and was already living centrally in Houston again. I felt ready to open the studio and promote yoga in a different way, something that had nurtured me through a transition that basically changed the course and intensity of my life path. Everything that I began to do somehow was wrapped around the discovery of how to help people using yoga and breathing techniques. But I soon began to realize that teaching yoga and running the business of yoga are two completely different animals.

My students convinced me to call it Jennyoga after a few weeks of trying out new names, none of which really seemed to click.  I think that my approach to yoga is an amalgam of all of the things that I have learned over the last 11 years, personally and professionally, so I decided it was ok to name the studio after myself. I had to accept that I was worthy of stepping into my power and be Jenny that shares the y with yoga. Why? Because yoga became such a huge part of me when it entered into my heart and captured the moment to be here now with life more awakened! And it all began with a voice. I later found comfort about the voice from that afternoon by reading The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Rinpoche Sogyal. I highly recommend this book for anyone ready to make sense of a few things that have seemed unusual in their life.

Experience and time, life’s MBA, helped me get through the first few years as a young studio which were not easy ones. But they were very magical.  I am huge believer in client comfort and satisfaction. I am always happy to accommodate them!  But any new business has growing pains. And all I want to do is share my love and the gifts I have been given.

I would say that I live a pretty synchronistic life.  Every day I see the magic.  It helps me as I am learning to let go and not worry so much. Things ALWAYS work out so I am learning to trust my relationship with the universe.  I have attracted some of the most beautiful people to my studio and I feel safe to now let things flow as they are and focus on my other projects. One of my teachers told me recently that I was probably the most relaxed boss she has ever had.  It is difficult for small business owners not to be too controlling.  However, I learned that expectations seriously have a way of muddying the waters of reality.  Expectation is control and how funny is our universe to show us just how much we are not in control!  I am learning this delicate and fine line to managing people and a business still in its infancy.  It isn’t easy sometimes.  Harmony takes skill and great sensitivity.

The last few months have been more stressful than usual. Studios and yoga training programs were served in Texas by the Texas Workforce Commission in January 2010. We were given the option to become licensed career schools or shut down. It would cost small yoga programs thousands of dollars to become licensed as a career school with no real added benefit.  I geared up, began interviewing programs that were already served the year before in Austin, gathered a few allies and formed the Texas Yoga Association. We were ready to march in an effort to prevent the state from regulating yoga so that the intimate programs could remain untainted.  www.texyoga.org

I had already dreamt of a Texas wide association to unite our beloved cities to promote yoga at large. The TWC letters simply jumpstarted my effort. And it all happened right around our premiere of the Texas Yoga Conference that I founded in 2009. Our first conference was a huge success. It was an amazing, and synchronistic, platform for us to get the word out to the community about the issue of regulation in our state. I learned a lot about politics and how those who work close to politicians move their pawns and survive in such an environment. It isn’t very yogic. I have had to toughen up a bit to handle some of what I experienced and witnessed. During the first few months of 2010, I’m sure that I unknowingly began channeling Kali for the first time. Things were in such chaos! Though I would much rather  express one of Shakti’s more beautiful and graceful forms, I began channeling one that often wreaks havoc  so that things settle down in better order for the highest good. I have learned quite a bit about Kali and now have such deep reverence for her. On my 40^th birthday I wanted to paint my body blue. I had my demon heads ready to wrap around my waist.  A red Popsicle was waiting in the freezer to redden my tongue just before the party. I would be fierce celebrating my 40th!  I was ready to rip the heads off some demons and shake it!

The party never happened. That morning my father died. How about that for expectations? Life has a way of making things very real with death.  I later reflected how strange it was that my husband and father would both die in my birth month of July – two weeks and one week prior to my 31^st and 40^th birthday respectfully.

My father was always saying things were good. My pappa bear knew how to simply be in the moment.  This heart-break encourages me to let grace rekindle some of the softer forms of the feminine as I once again face grief.  I left for Lake Tahoe to be on the water a week after my daddy’s passing and is where I am now writing this.  How nice to let all windows open so that I can hear the sounds of the small waves hitting the shore and rocks. We went sailing a few days ago and the water intensely reflected my mind as waves of consciousness. The water ripples the memories that come and go. Water is the element that I most cherish to be near when I am reflecting and feeling the need to go inward.

I have been giving my life path a new focus. I am teaching now only a few classes per week and trying to focus on my graduate work. I am in my third year of my Ph D program in Psychology and am really enjoying the enrichment that the program has given me. It has helped me develop Breathe the Cure, Texas Yoga Association and One Yoga USA. They are three projects that I feel are my contribution to seva and to making the world a better place through giving back and building community.

Breathe the Cure came to me in a shower, the beautiful water element again there to facilitate an inspiration!  I had spent already three years working with cancer patients at MD Anderson Cancer Center. I am a “facilitator” of yoga in the Integrative Medicine Program at the Place…of Wellness.

It took two years for Breathe the Cure to become a 501(c)3 and we are currently producing a training program that I initiated with Alejandro Chaoul, Ph D, and publishing children’s activity books called the FUNdamentals of Breathing. Crow Collection of Asian Art Museum sponsored the printing of the first book. I collaborated with Beth Reese, founder of Yoginos: Yoga for Youth after meeting her at the conference in 2010. I thought there was great synergy. We wove the story of Ganesha into our first activity book and used many of Crow’s art pieces to fill in the story. I am interested in threading nutrition through the second book.  Plus, I feel it might be time to introduce the various forms of Shakti to our readers. Shakti is the bringer of ideas into manifestation. Building community, which she births, is simply a good idea!

One Yoga USA is a project to unite the United States with seva in 2012!  SEVA 2012 is but one project initiated by One Yoga USA. We are collecting ambassadors in each state to stand as One Yoga.  Sean Johnson, Swami Maharaj, Hemalayaa, Ricky Tran and Alison West are standing with me so far and representing their states. I have about 43 more states to go! Basically each state will represent one week of seva beginning in January 2012 and all the way through the end of the Mayan calendar in December 2012.  We are looking for sponsors and journalists to help us make that happen.  Imagine all 50 states rocking in the year 2012 as we ride the wave of global transformation and the “great shift!” Isn’t that what we are all anticipating and excited about as we watch yoga make a huge splash in our communities?  www.oneyogausa.com

Other plans with One Yoga USA are to offer difficult to obtain benefits for our members and a yoga training that unites all variations of yoga using experts in each form through a tiered platform that encourages oneness, life experience, transpersonal training and resume building.

We each play a role in this process of becoming one. Nothing is by chance. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” Promoting seva, sustainability and “we” consciousness is exactly how we can be the change…together.

I love it when people on the same wave length unite to make change happen. Giving up is fear-based and is not what I wish to align myself with. There really are only possibilities when great minds come together and lead with integrity.

The Texas Yoga Conference was a community effort that was inspired by my vision for Houston. In 2009 after I called a meeting of roughly 12 yoga community leaders to do something annually together, we formed the conference. It was so amazing to see people come together to do this project. We shared ideas and four studios participated in the organization of the first year.  Houston’s YogaOne and Jennyoga are the owners of the Texas Yoga Conference.

We anticipate an even greater turnout than the first year on February 25-27, 2011 at the University of St. Thomas in the Jerabeck Athletic Center.  We are kicking off the event with a Bhakti Bash on Friday night!  MC Yogi, Sean Johnson and The Wild Lotus Band, Duncan Wong, Sadie Nardini and many of our amazing Texas yogis and yoginis from all over our great state are in the line-up for 2011.  www.texasyogaconference.com

So…In a nutshell, that’s it!”

Thanks for sharing Jennifer – you truly are an inspiration!

Stay tuned to YOGANONYMOUS for updates on Jennifer, the Texas Yoga Conference, OneYogaUSA, and all of the amazing things that she is up to!

Don’t see events listed in your city? Email us at info@yoganonymous.org and let us know the deal!
—-

:: New York City ::

2 Workshops with Jill Miller at PURE Yoga

Saturday, July 24th :: 4pm – 6pm
Yoga Tune Up
A workshop in conscious relaxation with Jill Miller

Sunday, July 25th 11:30am – 1:30pm
Yoga Tune Up – Organic Dynamics
Essential full body moves to augment your practice

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..and in case you’re feelin’ the need to dance your ass off (like us)…TRANCE DANCE!

Join Jeffrey Duval this Saturday Night, July 24th at Sonic Yoga for 2 hours of  beautiful and liberating Shiva Rea inspired trance dancing!
Sonic Yoga :: 754 9th Ave. NYC :: 6:30pm – 8:30pm

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:: Texas ::

Sadie Nardini, founder of Core Strength Vinyasa, as she teaches 2 workshops at JennYoga in Houston on July 23rd and 24th.

The Core Master Class with Sadie :: July 23rd 6:30pm – 8:30pm

Sadie’s Core Strength Vinyasa Yoga: the Core Immersion :: July 24th 10am – 5pm

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:: Vermont ::

Saturday, 7/24

Join Liberate co-founder and kick ass teacher Jane Jarecki and DJ HyFi as they rock out at Evolution Yoga in Burlington, VT

:: Philadelphia ::

The Jaguar Path – Vinyasa Practice with The Shaman Ray Christ at Dhyana Yoga

Saturday 7/24 1:30-4:30pm @ Dhyana Yoga (West Philly)

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:: Colorado ::

Denver: Yoga Rocks the Park – Sunday, 7/25

Check out this Sunday’s Yoga Rocks the Park with Jen & Phil of AcroYoga Colorado!

PS – bring the little ones for the camp yoga rocks program with Storytime Yoga’s Kathy Del Mia!!!

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:: Los Angeles ::

3 Workshops in SoCal with our boy “YeahDave” David Romanelli

Friday, July 23rd :: Exhale Center for Sacred Movement :: Venice, CA

Saturday, July 24th :: Yummy Yoga :: Silver Lake, CA

Sunday, July 25th :: Akasha Restaurant ::YOGA for Foodies – Los Angeles, CA

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As always, stay tuned to YOGANONYMOUS for the hottest Yoga events happening around the country…have a great weekend!

More About Jen…

Jennifer is an established and experienced speaker and writer about the art of yoga to adults and children. She recently taught yoga to roughly 100 second graders at Robert’s Elementary School in Houston and has presented on ABC’s Great Day Houston several times, featured in the NY Times, and lectured or presented a workshop at various schools and conferences including Emery Weiner, The Jewish Women’s Federation, The Yoga Month Health Festival 2008 in Austin, Total Body Magazine (cover), Flavorpill’s Yoga at the Great Lawn in NYC and the Texas Yoga Conference. She also taught for three years at The Houstonian and The Good Space in Houston’s prestigious Tanglewood area, and instructed at Tomball College, Hadassah and Beth Israel.

Jenny teaches workshops and trainings:

*Advanced Yoga studies of archetypes and self-empowerment for leadership and change: Finding the warrior to be yoga*

*Yoga For Fertility: the Fertile Soul of Yoga*

*Intense Shakti Vinyasa, Yoga for the heart and soul – channeling grace to find the flow*

*Red Hot Yoga*

Jen is the go-to person for all things yoga in Texas, and her studio is the place to go to for your daily asana kicking.

Jennyoga Studio

3641C Westheimer

Houston, TX 77027

Phone – 713.839.9642

Click Here for a complete class schedule

*Breathe the Cure*

In addition to everything else that she is doing, Jen somehow found time to start the non-profit organization Breathe the cure (Breathecure®). Breathe the Cure is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to bringing educational awareness to the general public about the benefits of breathing techniques, meditation and yoga. These methods are
used both as prevention and complementary treatment of cancer and other illnesses to cope with symptoms of dis-ease and to provide wellness techniques to the general public. We also educate kids and teens of all ages about the importance of a quality breath. In 2009, BTC collaborated with local artist Jeremy Robards and graphic designer Jessica Dunegan, Yoginos: Yoga for Youth and The Crow Collection of Asian Art Museum to create the educational pieces and activity booklets for Breathecure’s FUNdamentals of Breathing Program published and released in the summer of 2010.

For more information about Jennifer, go to www.inner-realms.com or www.Curayoga.com. If you are interested in having Jennifer speak at an event or to publish an article on yoga or the healing arts, email Jenny at info@curayoga.com.