JJ

JJ grew up in Montgomery, Texas, and first lived in Austin from 1991 to 1996, graduating from the University of Texas with a degree in Biology. After moving to Manhattan for a few years, she returned to Austin in 2006 and knows this is where she belongs.

JJ believes God brought her to yoga as an answer to many prayers, not knowing at the time what a major impact it would have on the rest of her life. “I love that yoga allows me to slow down, feel, breathe, and notice the wonderful and beautiful things about this earth, people, and God.”

From the moment she took her first yoga class in 1998 at her church in College Station, Texas, JJ knew yoga was something that would always be part of her life. “I felt at home, as if a missing link had been connected in my life.” JJ completed Yoga Yoga's 200-hour Hatha Yoga Teacher Training program in the spring of 2009. She now enjoys teaching classes at Yoga Yoga and at a local chiropractor’s office, as well as introducing friends, families, and new students to the benefits of a daily yoga practice. She believes “the power that made the body heals the body.”

Students in JJ’s classes can expect a combination of Anusara- and Viniyoga-based styles in conjunction with her own personal touch and training. She offers well-rounded classes with warm-ups, smooth sequencing, a restful savasana, and brief pranayama and meditation. She teaches mindfulness of breath, awareness of the group point of focus, and unique personal intension for the class. JJ is always inspired by those students with whom she is blessed to share yoga, and by their physical, emotional, and mental transformations. “Each time I teach I am refueled and inspired from the interactions with those who decided to come to their mats that day.”

Inspired by her own spirituality as well, JJ knows there is no end to this journey and the possibilities of what yoga can bring to her life and to others’. Her prayer and hope is to inspire people to take that journey. JJ has studied with Donna Farhi, Gary Kraftsow, Seane Corn, Leslie Lytle, and Dr. Robert Svoboda. JJ’s biggest yoga teacher influences include Yoga Yoga’s Jess G., Prema, Ana Pilar, and Sadani.

JJ loves being outdoors, jogging, being near the water, and working in the garden. She loves to travel, local and abroad, and to relax, spending time with family, friends, and her two cats. She is grateful to God for all the blessings in her life. “I am inspired by the openness I feel in my heart each time I practice and by new physical and emotional sensations that never cease to amaze me. I love that while I’m practicing nothing else matters for that moment except my connectedness to my mind, body, and spirit. On good days, I take that with me off the mat.”