Michael Barnes
Yoga found Mick 8 yrs ago. As a result of injuries and the ensuing problems Mick found himself trapped on the medical treadmill with the professionals sucking him dry financially with their promises of relief. A masseuse Mick had turned through utter desperation told him that only he could fix his ailments and suggested Yoga.

He spent the next 2 years struggling with Ashtanga. He just placed himself up the back of the room and with the loving, slow, patient guidance of his first teacher the love affair began. She was a no fuss teacher. 3 times a week she would go through the Sanskrit names of the asana and call the breath. Slowly slowly slowly my teacher began to adjust and assist and encourage and just as slowly space began to permeate my body and into my life.

Now I am a Jivamukti teacher. In the same style of my first teacher I try to love, encourage, nurture and teach the students who come to class. I believe you only teach what you yourself can do. Knowledge can be a dangerous thing which enslaves us and stops us progressing as teachers. It can rob us of our ability to connect to the source of all things. My message to students, find yourself a teacher and develop a relationship.

Benjamin Haynes
Benjamin has been a regular practitioner of yoga for over 10 years, and believes that our yoga practice is an opportunity to access and heal the hidden parts of ourselves that limit our ability to live free and happy lives.

Drawing upon both ancient wisdom and modern science, students are guided through a dynamic sequence that encourages them to befriend and focus the mind, re-connect with the physical body, and become truly present within each moment as it unfolds. Trained in the style of Power vinyasa yoga, Benjamin aims to challenge the ego, explore self limiting belief patterns, and invigorate your mind, body, and spirit!

Mikela
I was seventeen when my journey with Yoga began. It was at a small Shala located in the bush outside of Sydney with an old and very small Indian woman, who had a fierce wit, strong practice and taught me all about Tapas (heat/fire/austerity). I felt both challenged and nurtured by the experience; the resonance was strong. Soon after I met a teacher closer to home and have been on the journey for over thirteen years. I am blessed to have learnt from and practiced with some amazing and inspiring Yogis along the way.

It was ten years into my journey that I began sharing what I had learnt. It is important to me to explore and uphold the ancient traditions of Yoga and also to revel in the feeling of it- whether it a feeling of bliss, or challenge. It's the being- in yoga that allows us to transcend the masking qualities of the mind. For me, Yoga is not about gaining, but rather stripping away what is not serving (which is not always easy!). Through teaching and sharing Yoga, I witness transformations, and even in the simplest forms it's a joy to see someone who once sat in states of discomfort sit with ease.

My teaching is a dynamic style of flowing Hatha Yoga with pranayama and meditation intertwined throughout the practice to rejuvenate the body and spark the divine within.

Marita
As a gymnast from a young age, I realised early on that I’m happiest upside-down – and when I found yoga, it was love at first Downward Dog.

More than 10 years after that first class I still find joy within each practice. When teaching, I aim to instil that same sense of happiness and peace within my students. By both challenging and nurturing, I teach people to stretch and strengthen their muscles, but also to breathe, to stand tall, and to move beyond perceived limitations. It’s my hope that my teaching can have an impact on people’s lives off the mat as well as on.

Jan
In 1999 I wanted to find out if yoga was a way to relieve my lower back pain. What started off as a practical solution has in the last ten years grown to an essential part of my life. And the back pain is history!

Yoga is like a rough diamond. To recognize its true perfection and imperfection you have to view it from all sides. Hold it against the light to see that every ray of light presents different shapes and angles to the diamond. But without light you see nothing and the diamond is just a hard, cold stone. In my classes I hope to offer every individual diamond its true glow and depth, and to let them experience that peaceful feeling of joy, pleasure and life.

In 2007 I started teaching yoga. After finishing a four-year course of Hatha yoga, I also studied Kids’ yoga. Wanting to find out more about Ashtanga yoga, I completed a nine-month training course in Ashtanga yoga in 2010. In finding my true path in yoga and becoming an inspiring teacher I let myself be inspired by my students and other teachers like David Swenson, David Williams and Sarah Powers. I love the combination of the warming ‘physical’ flow of Ashtanga and the calm approach of classical Hatha yoga. It is challenge for me to seek and find the perfect balance between these two.

I think yoga is a healthy challenge that enriches and explores each individual’s inner strength by training their body, mind and soul. My way of teaching is with a down-to-earth, open, practical and friendly approach. The most important intention is to experience the joy and pleasure of yoga.

Sophie
When I was 19 I bought a newspaper that came with a free yoga DVD. I'd been an active teenager: I jogged, I swam, I played tennis and netball. I wasn't particularly good at any of them; I did them to give myself a break from study and use my mind's energy some other way. I approached the 45-minute yoga DVD with the same idea. I moved my body as instructed and my thoughts calmed down. But there was more to it: yoga brought with it a sense of support and quiet strength that I hadn't found elsewhere. I was hooked.

Over the years my relationship with this ancient practice has developed into something far more complex, especially as I began to teach yoga to others. I turn to yoga to calm down, to re-energise, to express things I feel but am not sure how to articulate otherwise. I'm also a writer, and I feel like yoga allows us the space to listen to our own stories -- be they physical, mental or emotional.

In my yoga classes I try to find a balance between activity and gentle quiet, and to help my students find a space where they feel safe to just be with whatever they find in themselves.