Cara is a registered yoga instructor and has been called the Mary Poppins of yoga, as she brings a cheery, positive, vibrant energy to her classes. Her initial study and practice of yoga began in 2003 with Annie Smith, in Tucson, Arizona. She has been teaching yoga since 2008.She received her Hatha Yoga 200 Hour Teacher Training from Yoga Oasis, under Darren Rhodes, Sam Rice, Stephani Lindsey, and Bruce Bowditch and holds the designation of E-RYT 200 (Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher) certification from the Yoga Alliance, a professional association for yoga instructors. Her additional experience includes certification as an instructor of Les Mills BodyFlow and completion of training in Pilates, under Becca Franks, at the Animas studio, in Tucson.
Cara has been an educator for two decades. She received her B.A. in Elementary Education, from the University of Arizona, with a minor in dance; and her M.Ed., in Educational Leadership, from Northern Arizona University. Currently, she teaches yoga and dance at The Gregory School for grades 5-12, and she instructs classes at several yoga studios throughout Tucson.
Jilian comes from an extensive background of Training and Competing in multiple sports. She has been successfully competitive in dance for 10+yrs, professional since she was 16, and teaching ever since. She also had spent 4 years Coaching for a Nonprofit "Girls on The Run", State Champion 300&100 Hurdles, and first female to ever receive the Personal Fitness Award at her High School. She study Biomechanics and Dance throughout her Undergrad and Masters at the University of Arizona. As well as, has her Personal Training Certification through ACE, Pilates Mat Certification, and Yoga Certification. All disciplines she to this day is continuing studying to help her refine movement principles and conditioning for climbing.
Neti
Passion, purpose, persistence, and pause; some of the greatest allies in my yoga practice. I began practicing yoga as a child, around nine years old. Yoga practice and culture has always been an integral force in my life growing up, and has further developed in adulthood through exploring and experimenting with various types of yoga, studios, and teachers (especially with my family and teachers in India!), I completed my 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training at YogaOasis here in Tucson, Arizona, and I am also certified in teaching YogaHour. My aim in class is to provide a nourishing environment for students through music, alignment postures, and breath; I feel very passionate about helping people relieve themselves of pain. In my free time, I love to travel, explore the outdoors, read books, and try new recipes!
Shannon RYT 200
I grew up in Northern California and had the great fortune of moving to Tucson in 2009. I came into yoga about 18 years ago following a knee injury due to skiing. I was told that I would require knee surgery before I turned 25 and was given a handful of physical therapy sessions and a prescription for pain medications. I expressed a desire with my physical therapist to be able to go without the pain medications and asked for any recommendations for pain management and he suggested yoga. For the first few years my practice was all about managing my pain and strengthening my joints. Slowly however, I began to develop a deep mind-body connection. It not only helped me manage my injury to the point where I no longer needed surgery, but I started to understand myself better. I learned how to tune into my breath and how that affected me both on and off the mat. Yoga is about connecting breath and movement, power and stillness. In 2018 I studied yoga under Darren Rhodes at Yoga Oasis. There I received my 200 hour certification in hatha yoga and yoga hour. I came to yoga simply to manage pain and ended up developing a deeply spiritual practice. My goal in teaching yoga is to help guide anyone within their own journey of healing, or to simply offer the joy of movement and stillness.
