Kate O'Connor

Namaste. Shanti means peace in Sanskrit, the ancient Indian language; My aim is to guide students to discover their own shanti through yoga.

I've been practicing yoga for over 20 years and teaching for 10 years. I studied at Sahaj Yoga/Yoga for Life in Toronto where I recieved my Hatha Yoga Teaching Certificate. The program was recognized by Yoga Alliance as meeting the criteria for the 500-hr level teacher training.

I teach prana flow, vinyasa yoga, hot yoga, pre and postnatal yoga, and restorative yoga at Fusionmovement Yoga Studio (www.fusionmovement.ca) in Cambridge, Ontario.

My influences are: Shiva Rea, Yogi Vishvketu, Rodney Yee and Gurmukh. My approach to teaching is to encourage practitioners to find the prana (vital life force) within. While technique is important, the goal is to be guided by instinct. Students learn health and balance through pranayama, asana, sivasana, meditation and chanting.

At the primary level, students learn where tension exists in their bodies. The focus is on learning to relax and how movement connects with breath. As you develop in your practice, you becomes aware of the chakra system (energy centers within the body) and how yoga influences its development.

Serenity and bliss are experienced as you learn to release unneeded thoughts and emotions and improve alignment and mobility in your body.

A practice becomes advanced, not when the practitioner is able to perform advanced poses, but when the yogi experiences them on deeper levels.
Hari OM