It is with great respect and gratitude that I introduce you to these very talented teachers!

Lisa Benner

An actor, mover and dedicated breather, the moment I was introduced to yoga, I knew it was for me. I came to yoga shortly after I discovered pilates, and found I was able to use both to correct and/or improve different physical issues, including chronic headaches. While I still practice both, yoga won my heart. I graduated from Sonic Yoga’s Teacher Training program at the 200 hour level, and am currently working on my 500 hour certification. I teach in the Vinyasa style, creating each class on a theme, and incorporating pranayama, chanting and meditation. Strong attention is given to alignment. I am greatly honored to be able to share the transformations yoga brings, to teach and to continue to learn. Many thanks to my precious teachers, including Johanna Aldrich, Will Duprey, Lauren Hanna and Jonathan Fields.

Rian Bodner

“I didn’t come to yoga because it was easy for me, I came because it was now.” Coming from a long line of martyrs, Rian spent much of his life recycling phrases like “Not this time”. Both his body and his mind suffered in this deep well of unworthiness.
Like the space in the eye of the storm, yoga allows the clarity needed to overcome the narrow-minded view we have of our lives.  This beautiful space we can create, allows us to peacefully observe ourselves and be witness to all that moves around and through us. Only then can that space open to expansion. Combining asana with theme, Rian’s classes create the space for tangible, visceral, blissful, grounding, and unexpected opening. Rian is a believer that there is only one body type made for the practice of yoga; the human body. So if you happen to possess one of these, all that is needed to allow yourself this opening to grace is simply choosing to show up.

Rian is a 200 hour certified yoga instructor from Sonic Yoga.  As well as assisting Elena Brower and Johanna Aldrich, he is currently working towards his 300 hour certification in Shiva Rea’s Prana Flow from Sonic.  As well as a yoga instructor he is also a member of One Healing Arts Company, a graphic designer,  creator of the Sockenstein Creature Lab and Sahaasam Yoga Mat Bags.

Shawna Emerick

Shawna Emerick knows first hand the importance of movement for the body. From injury prevention and rehabilitation, to the building of strength and flexibility, as well as continually developing confidence and an increased sense of self-awareness, Shawna uses her many years experience in teaching yoga as well as her B.S. degree in Dance, to “help others create more happy, healthy, confident lives.” Shawna began using yoga as her vehicle to accomplish this goal after acquiring her first 200HR Eclectic Hatha Yoga Teachers Certificate. She now holds the Karma Kids Yoga teachers certificate, the 200HR Prana Yoga teachers certificate, and is certified in Thai Yoga Massage and Reiki. Shawna is alignment oriented yet is supportive toward each individuals journey within their own bodies through a sense of freedom, fun, and exploration, all the while holding true to her mantra, “Breathe and Believe!”

Stacey Linden

Stacey Linden has been practicing yoga for twelve years and teaching for two. She received her 200-hour certification from OM Yoga in NYC in May 2008. Stacey has also studied with Baron Baptiste, Gurmurkh Kaur Khalsa, and Bec Conant. Stacey received certification from Karma Kids Yoga, and she teaches with the Bent On Learning program in the New York City public schools. Stacey is continually grateful for the physical and spiritual practice of yoga. And she is thrilled to be able to bring it to the Inwood and Washington Heights communities, where she resides with her wonderful seven-year old son.

Ola Ahmad May

Practicing yoga since 1998 and teaching since 2005 to students of all ages, Ola gained her Yoga Alliance teaching certifications from Integral Yoga Institute, OM Yoga Center, and Karma KidsYoga. Believing that “truth is one, paths are many,” Ola’s classes draw from various traditions that encourage students to courageously and compassionately be their fullest potential to better serve themselves and others. She especially enjoys teaching mommies-to-be and new moms with their babies and is delighted to be sharing this aspect of her teaching with the Bread & Yoga community. She extends much appreciation to those many beings, animals and humans alike, who have inspired her to grow. She also wishes the deepest gratitude to her husband, Ben, who helps keep her childlike spirit sparkling, and to their cats Elvis, Satya & Buttons who are yogis in their own right.

Shaka McGlotten

Joanna Nobbe

Joanna originally comes from Santa Barbara, California. She has a diverse background of experience in movement arts, including dance, theater, gymnastics, martial arts, and Qi Gong. Joanna began to study yoga in 2000 in California. Within a short time, yoga became a practice that carried over beyond the yoga studio and into her heart, so that she carried it with her through years of great development and transformation. After years of personal practice and study, Joanna went to Nasik, India to study Hatha and Ashtanga yoga and obtain her certification as a yoga instructor. Joanna finds teaching to be a rich supplement to her personal practice and she is grateful for opportunities to learn from her students and teachers. She is currently pursuing her Master’s at Columbia University in Motor Learning, as well as her certification as a Feldenkrais practitioner. She also continues to direct, facilitate and perform in various performance art and contemporary dance projects.

Nancy Preston

Nancy is a Certified Iyengar yoga teacher. She has been immersed in Iyengar Yoga since 1995. She is inspired by the artistry and articulation of the teachings of B.K.S. Iyengar and honored to have studied directly with the Iyengars in Pune, India in 2008. Nancy has studied Yoga, Sound, & Vedanta over 14 years with Ramanand Patel, Pandit Mukesh Desai, & Swami Dayananda Saraswati. She has a love for Vedic chanting thanks to the teachings of Swami Vagishananda. She has traveled twice to Rishikesh, India to study with these esteemed teachers. She believes that the same principles in asana practice can guide us toward conducting our daily lives in harmony.

Amy Soucy

As a busy actress/singer/musical theater performer, Amy found herself drawn to the practice of yoga after attending a class at the New York Integral Yoga Institute twelve years ago.  She earned her first hatha yoga teacher certification with Integral Yoga in 2005.

Looking to deepen her practice and understanding of this ancient art, she discovered Anusara Yoga®, a style of hatha yoga that encourages students to explore the vast potential of their own bodies, minds and hearts.  Amy completed an Anusara Yoga teacher training in 2009, and has since become an Anusara Inspired® instructor.  She is deeply committed to offering accessible, inspiring and transformative classes to yogis of all levels and backgrounds, steering each student toward a recognition of their own unique gifts and greater levels of strength and freedom inside and out.  In addition, Amy adores teaching Mommy & Me style, family-friendly classes to toddlers and their parents as a Certified Itsy Bitsy Yoga Facilitator.

Amy gratefully acknowledges the brilliant teachers, past and present, who’ve deeply inspired and influenced her teaching, studentship, and life including John Friend, Dr. Douglas Brooks, Elena Brower, Mark Whitwell, Kali Morse, Helen Garabedian and Eric Stoneberg.

When she’s not on the mat, Amy nourishes her soul by singing, creating songs, and playing the guitar… an instrument, like the bodymind, of infinite possibilities.

Jen Taylor

Jen Taylor is a professional actress, singer, & dancer who appeared in the Broadway production of The Apple Tree at Studio 54 and across the country in the National Tour of The Drowsy Chaperone. She has also performed in New York at Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, The 92nd Street Y and regionally at Paper Mill Playhouse, Goodspeed Opera House and North Shore Music Theatre. She graduated cum laude from NYU with a Bachelor of Music. She has studied Pilates for 12 years as an accompaniment to her dancing, and was certified as a Pilates Mat Instructor through Linda Farrells LindaFit Program during the summer of 2007. She also teaches classes at Roy Arias Studios, Reforming NY, and at New York Health and Racquet Club. www.pilatesbyjentaylor.com