Fiona Stang

Fiona draws from 26 years of yoga experience. Her passion in teaching is making yoga a “practice for life” with her attention focused on healing the body, mind and soul. Fiona first journeyed to Mysore, India in 1999 to study with the Jois family. Fiona continued to study with her teachers to receive their teachings of devotion, grace, faith, compassion, patience, and yoga. In 2000, Fiona was authorized to teach ashtanga yoga and founded a Mysore program in Vancouver. In July 2009, she was in the first group of 40 students worldwide to receive Level 2 Authorization from KPJAYI.

Fiona has been inspired by many ashtanga teachers throughout the years. She has studied under Sharmila Desai, John Scott, David Swenson, and Tim Miller. All these teachers have greatly influenced her understanding and teaching of Ashtanga Yoga.

Fiona is grateful for the community of teachers at AYV that support her daily practice and keep her teaching fresh and innovative. When not at the shala, Fiona is seen volunteering on the ski race course, tennis courts or hiking in the mountains and woods with her two children, Ambrose & Viveka, her husband Julian and their dog Aspen.

Fiona also teaches workshops in other countries. Please visit Fiona’s schedule page for her international engagements.

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Maria Whittaker

Maria is KPJAYI Authorized Level I and teaches the Ashtanga method according to the Sri K Pattabhi Jois Institute. She’s travelled annually since 2014 to study in Mysore, India. She plans to continue to deepen her study under the guidance of her teacher/KPJAYI Director, Sharath Jois. In 2012 she participated in an intensive study with David Swenson and Authorized Level 2 teacher Jeff Litchy and Certified Teacher Harmony Litchy. Upon successfully completing this program she received her RYT-200. Soon after, she continued living and travelling throughout Central America and Mexico. Apart from her love of travel, she studied food and nutrition at the University of British Columbia and has been pursuing her interest in Ayurvedic nutrition during her time in India.

Maria feels most at home at Ashtanga Yoga Vancouver and feels blessed to learn as both student and teacher under the guidance of Fiona Stang. She draws inspiration from the community of practitioners among her and you can oftentimes find her smiling and laughing outside of the Shala.

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Saori Moue

TSaori was introduced to Ashtanga yoga following the 2011 Earthquake/Tsunami in her hometown of Fukushima, Japan. The stress and fear led her to a major life shift because at that time, she was becoming seriously unhealthy due to her long hours and expectations from her job. Saori met teacher, Mae Yoshikawa, and credits the subsequent practice for helping her regain control of her breath and for improving both her physical and mental states.

In 2012, Saori experienced her first Ashtanga yoga teacher training with Ken Harakuma and in the same year received instruction from KPJAYI Director, Sharath Jois, in Tokyo.

While visiting Canada in 2015, Saori was introduced to Fiona Stang while practicing at Ashtanga yoga Vancouver. The AYV community was a major factor in Saori's decision to choose Vancouver when she moved in 2016. Since then, she has completed an apprenticeship under the guidance of Fiona and continues her own practice and ever learning while teaching at AYV.

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Sarah Kozlowski

Sarah was taught yoga and meditation as a child to help relieve her anxiety disorder. With a desire to share how yoga helped her mental health, Sarah completed a 200hr teacher training program with Karma Teachers.

Sarah was first introduced to ashtanga yoga by Fiona Stang of Ashtanga Yoga Vancouver. She had the honour of studying with R. Sharath Jois in in 2016. She plans to continue to study with Sharath Jois.

Sarah guides students to use asana as a tool to cultivate a stable body, and a steady mind. She is currently apprenticing with Fiona Stang at Ashtanga Yoga Vancouver.

Sarah loves to travel and find new forms of creative expression. She is feels fortunate to learn under the guidance of Fiona Stang.

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GUEST TEACHER

Natalia Correa

Natalia is an Authorized Level 2 Ashtanga yoga teacher, from KPJAYI, India. Certified Holistic Nutritionalist with a Diploma in Herbal Pharmacology from the Institute of Holistic Nutrition, Canada. She is fascinated by the healing properties of yoga and herbs.

Natalia’s holistic journey began in 2010 with her first trip to India when she discovered yoga as a holistic practice. Devotion to the practice brought awareness towards her old unhealthy patterns and enabled her to look deeper for a different approach to life. This began her studies in yoga, holistic nutrition and the underlying causes of those old patterns. She travels to India regularly to study with her teacher, Sharath Jois and shows her devotion to the lineage by daily practice and by teaching at Ashtanga Yoga Vancouver and recently in Squamish, B.C. Heading to Squamish, BC. practice Ashtanga w Natalia. Visit her website: http://www.nataliacorrea.cl/

She will be always grateful to her teachers.

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GUEST TEACHER

Brittany Morgan

Brittany spent 10 years experimenting with body movement as a dancer/acrobat. Always intrigued by kinesthesis disciplines, she began practicing and studying yoga in 2010. Brittany quickly acquired a yoga mentor that introduced her to the Ashtanga method. It was through this discipline that she began to discover the deep connection between breath, body and mind and the many ways in which they interdepend on one another to help “oneself” reach their true Yoga potential.

In 2013 Brittany travelled to Europe to participate in Lucy and John Scott’s teacher training program. She is currently practicing and apprenticing under the direction of Fiona Stang and Tanya Salas. Her teachers and the community of people at AYV are a source of constant inspiration. She is thankful for their dedication, support, wisdom and openness. She hopes to show gratitude by sharing her experiences with all who would like to listen.

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Apprenticeship

The apprenticeship program is a rare opportunity to develop a unique relationship with the teachers at Ashtanga Yoga Vancouver. In the intimate setting of “Mysore style” classes lies the heart and soul of ashtanga yoga. The apprenticeship allows for a different perspective than one’s individual practice and invites you to understand the deeper mind-body-spirit connections that the practice embodies.

We require interested students to have at least 3-5 years yoga experience and/or an established “Mysore style” practice under our guidance for a minimum of one year before applying for the program. Once a relationship is established with our studio, you are welcome to apply to the apprenticeship program.

Slowly, with the guidance of a senior teacher, you will integrate into the room. By assisting us daily in class, you will gain a better understanding of the heart of ashtanga yoga, tradition, lineage, and the energetic body.