Featured Alumni: Laura Snebold
Yoga has taken me to the power of my breath, spine, and heart. When I connect with my breath, lengthen my spine, and open my chest and heart I feel energy shift and boosts of clarity and action. I’m grateful for body and mind connections and how they influence how I move, act, respond, and create. These moments also make me aware of times I’m physically closed off – shoulders curled, hips turned in, my mind moving faster than my breath – and how this state takes me out of sync with my own rhythm, and is often times associated with delayed responses, doubt or frustration. Yoga teaches me how my body’s physical expressions connect with my mind, and continues to help me learn what my body telling me when it feels or moves a certain way. Finding integration inside and with what’s around you through your breath and with your body’s movement is a constant practice and exploration. I love teaching yoga and guiding others to find this connection within themselves. Some of my favorite asanas for reconnecting with the breath, lengthening the spine, and opening the heart are down dog, child’s pose, puppy pose, and Savasana.
Both my 200 and 300 Hour Yoga Teacher Trainings have impacted me beyond the studio and training requirements. Earning my teacher training certification while working full time allowed me to integrate Yoga with how I care for myself, recharge and recenter, and make decisions throughout the day. As I finish the 300 Hour YTT I see the impact of teaching regularly as I develop my own style of Yoga preparing sequences, creating a pre-class routine, and learning to work with all that’s within and around me for each class.
My first Yoga class experience was in Baltimore, MD over 10 years ago. I remember the scents and warmth of the room, and breathing easily when I walked in. The class was hard. It grounded and energized me at the same time. The mix of challenge, energy, and ease in the same moment and joy of finding the relationship between your breath, body, and mind to balance these experiences is a part of what keeps me moving with Yoga today.
