A Little More About Me
The world is intense and it makes it that much harder to find our balance. I feel like I have trained my entire life for this moment. Together, we will find tools to create a balance between active and peaceful.
In 2003 I found myself switching gears from the fast-paced, high intensity world of finance to the slower paced but equally high intensity world of a full-time parent of a learning disabled child and his 2 siblings. I’d discovered in my career that taking exercise classes on my lunch break really helped with the stress. So, I sought out the local gym and quickly became a regular. At the urging of one of my instructors, I got certified and started teaching my own fitness classes. It was fun and I got to work out... A LOT.
That high intensity, competitive work ethic kicked in. I got more certifications - cycle, kickboxing, personal training...and taught more & more classes. I started a boot camp. I loved it so much that 7 years of teaching class at 5:30am flew by! I was fit, I was strong, but I was still stressed out. I dropped all the boot camps and classes and focused on my own fitness. CrossFit, Bikram...the more intense the better. I threw in a little yoga here and there, but it just wasn't my favorite thing (because I didn’t feel completely drained after). Unfortunately, the day came when overwork turned the nagging pain in my back into an excruciating pain in my back and I had to stop it all.
When you’re a gym rat and a high level performer, being forced to sit it out is not fun. I gained weight, I gained stress, I was having a really hard time. I started paying attention to similar stories around me and thought...there has to be a way for me to get back into it without surgery. I went back to yoga and talked to my teacher. “Let’s take it slow and see what you can do.” Umm..what? Slow? But guess what...it worked. YOGA FIXED MY BACK. But more importantly, yoga showed me the other side of the coin. The side where being kind and listening to my body creates a state of calm and a clarity of mind that helps me deal with all the other stuff. It made me a better athlete, better parent, better partner.
My transformation accelerated one spring in Costa Rica when I gave myself the gift of a yoga retreat. What a gift this was! Spending an entire week digging deep and doing work on MYSELF in a space of love, acceptance and support. I decided then and there to become a yoga teacher. I absolutely LOVE teaching this practice, sharing the information, knowledge, wisdom and peace. My clients are like me - focused, driven and want to do it RIGHT. I love teaching the details of the asanas and how the body should feel in the pose.
I like to say I’m entering into the 3rd phase of my life. Patti 3.0...and I love her! I want to show people that this methodology, this yoga, has a place and a purpose in everyone’s life.