About Dana

​

It is hard to say when my yoga journey began. The first classes I ever took were in 2005 at a small studio in Washington, DC that was walking distance from my house. After class I’d stroll home with this sense of peace and lightness, like I was walking on clouds. That sensation alone was enough to ignite my love for yoga and never look back. About a year later I started traveling and living in Central America, which turned my practice from one at the studio to one wherever and whenever. I’d practice on the beach, in hostels, in the trees, parks, boats, bus stations, rooftops…It was the one thing that kept me centered and grounded; creating a home within my heart, within myself, at a time when I had no physical home. I took classes whenever I could, picking up pieces, tools, and skills to add to my basket. I had grown up as a dancer. Ballet, tap, jazz, and theater were all part of my youth. But yoga was different. My breath and the sensations within me became the guide. My internal pulsation became the rhythm and movement.  Most of the time I would practice outside; the natural world creating a soundtrack and added awareness that taught me to listen inside and out.

​

I had also grown up in the outdoors. My first backpacking trip was two days in second grade. Although I cried for most of it, something kept me going and I spent every summer for the next ten years going camping, canoeing, kayaking, rock climbing, backpacking for longer and longer lengths of time. I felt a freedom within my spirit and a sense of awe and humility from the vast landscapes I adventured in. Quiet time spent in nature- breathing, listening, reflecting, just being, was meditation only I did not know it at the time. Leave not trace ethics, taking into consideration my impact on the earth when exploring the outdoors, was building the foundation of mindfulness that yoga also teaches. Step by step, breath-by-breath often becomes your sole focus when summiting a 14,000 foot mountain, where you have no choice but to be present.

​

So in a sense, my yoga journey began before I even knew I was practicing yoga. Slowly I began to weave all my passions together, teaching, yoga, outdoors. In 2007 I began working as a guide, leading youth in outdoor education, adventures and conservation. I would always include elements of yoga in our lessons from quiet meditative sits to physical fluid movement practices to breath centered exercises. An incredible experience to watch students relax, shift and become more attuned to themselves, one another and their environment. In 2008 I was certified as a Street Yoga teacher where I shared the gift of breath and body awareness with homeless and at-risk youth. In 2012 I completed 200 hour registered yoga teaching training at Yoga Union Community Wellness Center in Portland, Oregon with Annie Adamson. In 2017, I advanced my studies with Mark Stephens in a plus 300-hour course. In between my more in-depth studies were days, weeks, months filled with classes, workshops, immersions with teachers around the globe like Barney Chapman, Sianna Sherman, Kofi Busia, Eoin Finn, Darren Rhodes and many more. Throughout the years I became more and more interested in the roots of yoga. Looking beyond the physical, studying philosophy and history has become a foundation for my views, ethics and moral compass. Yoga is a study that lasts beyond a lifetime and I have only scratched the surface. I am committed to growing through this practice as both teacher and student.​

​

The word yoga translates to yolk or unite, which is truly where I see myself, here to help build connection to oneself, to others and to nature. In class I offer breath focused, fluid movement with alignment cues that explore anatomy, personal development and discovery of the self. I ask students to slow down, breathe, listen and feel. I hope to make yoga accessible to all, from the physical to the ethereal, for one second to every possible moment in every day