Aliki St. Denis

Contact Information   
Santa Barbara, California 93110-1413
United States
Email: Abodeofahimsa@aol.com
Phone: (None)


Schedule  
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Events  
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Professional Background  
Teaching Anusara Yoga is the optimal synthesis of all my past training and experience and my lifelong devotion to spiritual growth. In my first career as a professional ballet dancer, I learned the physical discipline necessary to express the joyfulness of embodiment through the art of classical dance. I loved performing, but wanted to be of deeper service to others, so I moved on to studying various healing arts and became a California Licensed Acupuncturist. I worked in private practice, taught at the Santa Barbara College of Oriental Medicine, and supervised the Intern Clinic. The more deeply I came to understand the process of healing, the more I was drawn to teach my patients yoga, as I knew from my own practice that it offered a complete and balanced approach to the health of body, mind and spirit. I completed a 500 Hour Teacher Training in 2003 and over the next few years taught private and small group classes. During that time, my creative outlet was choreographing for children's theater productions at Open Alternative School and Santa Barbara Summer Stock. I discovered I had a gift for customizing movement to suit all levels of ability and still express artistic content. This talent has served me well since I started teaching yoga at the YMCA four years ago. My classes grew quickly to fill the studio to capacity and the mixed levels of experience represented in each class requires the flexibilty to modify poses and sequences to challenge the ongoing students while encouraging the newcomers. "Discovering" Anusara Yoga three years ago brought everything together for me. Because of the brilliance of the Universal Principles of Alignment for therapeutic application, I now rarely utilize acupuncture. Because of the license to modify poses to artfully express qualties of heart, my creativity is continually inspired. And because of the uplifting Tantric philosophy of intrinsic goodness, my spirit is constantly nurtured by the teaching as I share it with others. We have continued to add classes at the Y to accomodate the growing kula, and between the large group classes there and the private classes at my home studio, Abode of Ahimsa, I have a very full teaching schedule. Life is good!



Yoga Background  
The majority of my yoga experience from 1990-2009 was in the Iyengar tradition. I studied extensively with many fine teachers and in 2003 did a 500 Hour Teacher Training at Sunrise Yoga Studio, which focused primarily on the Iyengar Method. My teaching was informed by these studies and the dedicated daily practice that I have maintained for many years. When I was introduced to Anusara Yoga in early 2010, I discovered that it resonated for me on every level. I jumped right in, taking classes with Tiffany Frasier in Los Angeles, workshops with John Friend around the country, and attending the 2010 Grand Gathering at Estes Park. That event was a smorgasborg of the finest Anusara teachers of the time, and I got to take classes from Sianna Sherman, Amy Ippoliti, Christina Sell, Martin Kirk, Todd Norian, and Noah Maze. I then did the Immersion in Boulder CO with Amy Ippoliti (brilliantly assisted by Julieta Claire) and, the following year, a truly transformative teacher training, over a five month period of time, with Jim and Ruthie Bernaert on the Big Island of Hawaii. I continue to study therapeutics with Martin Kirk via his outstanding webinars. Every day I learn more and I am so grateful for this amazing practice. I am honored to be licensed as an Anusara Inspired teacher, as my teaching is truly inspired and guided by this beautiful system of hatha yoga.


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