Ali McGhee, RYT

I went to my first yoga class three years ago and never looked back. My experience on my mat in that Vinyasa class was unlike any other – I felt challenged, I felt like I got a workout, but, most importantly, I felt like I had come home. Yoga was exactly what my life needed – as a PhD candidate in Literature, my mind is constantly moving, but sometimes the rest of me gets left behind! Yoga gives me back to myself.

I completed my 200-hr teacher training at Breathe Yoga in Pittsford, and I feel blessed to be part of such a strong and connected yoga community here in Western New York. I am especially passionate about (and I teach) the Power Vinyasa style of yoga, but I am also deeply influenced by Anusara yoga and its philosophy of openness and grace. I try to bring all of my influences to bear on my teaching, and I strive to create a safe, playful environment where you can build your own unique practice and have a lot of fun at the same time. I am the eternal student and I soak up knowledge wherever I can get it, particularly when it comes to yoga philosophy and history, anatomy, and assisting. I love bringing yoga to the community and I have taught for the 108 Yoga Challenge and the Seva Challenge (“Off the Mat, Into the World”).

I take my yoga off the mat by constantly feeding my imagination and my sense of curiosity. I am an avid cook and traveler, as well as a creative writer. I have a BA in English and Religious Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, an MA in English from the University of Rochester, and I'm working towards my PhD at the U of R, where I teach freshman composition and literature courses. I am also completing the Assistant Training Program at Breathe Yoga.

Tammy Giunta, CYT

I started taking yoga 12 years ago while living in Boston. I was looking for a new way to stay fit, and figured I would give it a try. It was immediately clear that yoga is more than just an exercise for the physical body. The tools I learned in my yoga practice began to benefit me in all areas of my life. I came away from that first class addicted to yoga, and knowing that I would always want it to be a part of my life.

I believe that everyone can benefit from yoga, which is why I decided to become a teacher. It is my wish to help people discover all of the wonderful things that yoga has to offer. My classes are designed to introduce the basic yoga poses with modifications, in order to make them welcoming to different levels of student. I like to encourage my students to find a balance where they feel challenged, without negative thoughts, and enjoyment at the same time. Just as life can be a struggle at times, our yoga practice can also test us differently from day to day. Learning how to take something positive away from it is the key to finding success. It is a privilege to share my passion for yoga with others.

I have completed Levels 1 and 2 with the YogaFit Training Program, and look forward to continuing my education to complete the 200 hour RYT program.

Kristina Powell, RYT

Kristina spent her early adulthood as a miserable, stress-aholic, until she figured out that if she didn't do something soon, she would never get the chance to actually live. Beginning the search to learn how to simply "Be Kristina", she stepped into her first yoga class in 2004. With the helpful guide of a teacher, during that very first class, Kristina found herself in headstand. That moment, a profound shift happened. The thrill of flipping upside down exposed her fears and allowed doubt to clear away. To get her feet above her head, Kristina had to BELIEVE it was possible.

Every headstand from then to now has been a journey to find a place of confidence, living for each moment, and ease within life. Kristina's ultimate goal is to give every single person she teaches that same confidence and clarity. Truly anything is possible, but sometimes we have to get out of our own way. Expect to breathe, sweat, laugh, and be challenged to flip upside down in Kristina's classes as we open to the world of possibilities.

Kristina is a graduate of the Breathe Yoga 200-hour teacher training and Yoga Alliance registered.

Christi Joseph Tumminelli

Teaching yoga is how I stay honest, mainly honest with myself. It is through Yoga I can connect and tune in with myself and others. I believe Yoga should be accessible to all. The best teacher is one who doesnt put words in the mouth of their student, but guides them to their heart to find their own words.

Christi is the founder of Tru Yoga in the South Wedge. She has trained with Baron Baptiste, Seane Corn, Rodney Yee, Gregor Singleton, and Claire Este-McDonald.

Samantha Jones, RYT

Yoga has steadily grown as a passion in my life since dropping in on my first class at my local YMCA in 2003. Today, practicing yoga has become an essential tool for me to balance my life by staying physically fit and spiritually grounded. Taking what I have learned about being present and mindful into my everyday life has made me a better yoga practitioner, wife, mother and friend. For me, what happens off of the mat is equally as important as what happens on the mat.

I am a 2012 graduate of the Breathe Yoga 200 hour teacher training and Yoga Alliance registered. I also recently studied in Toronto with Baron Baptiste at a Foundations in Action weekend program. I am grateful for all that my past teachers have shared with me and am excited for future experiences with new teachers.

Joanne Gillooly

I had tried yoga several times over the years, but it wasn't until settling in Rochester that I began to practice yoga. I had been a runner for years, but my body began telling me that if I wanted to keep walking, I should stop running. I began looking for and trying every gym and indoor type of exercise in the area, without much success. After about a year of searching, a yoga drop-in card was given to me as birthday gift. Yoga, I thought, was great; someone else tells me what to do for an hour and I reap the physical benefits simultaneously. Gradually, I began to realize that yoga was more than exercise. Yoga is a safe place: a place to learn and let go; a place of no boundaries or limits; a place where inner freedom reigns. Yoga has actually been the place where I learned to hear and listen to my own voice. Yoga has made me stronger: physically and emotionally. Yoga reminds me to breathe, believe and trust.

I have completed my 200 hour teacher training with breathe yoga and will participate in two more teacher trainings with Karma Kids Yoga, NYC ~~ Yoga for Kids in February and Yoga for Teens in March. (Each are 30 hour programs.)