Teachers

Ríonach began practising yoga in Paris in 1997 at L’Ecole Francais du Yoga, where her primary teacher was Philippe de Fallois and the ethos of the school was to explore several different styles of yoga.

On her return to Ireland in 2000, Ríonach discovered Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, through her teacher, Marianne Jacuzzi, who is a direct student of the late Sri K Pattabhi Jois. She developed a daily practice under Marianne’s guidance and subsequently trained to teach at Les Aisles du Yoga in Paris and with David Swenson in Edinburgh. 

A certified (500hr) Yoga Alliance Teacher, Ríonach has studied with many leading Ashtanga teachers worldwide, including Richard Freeman, Graham Northfield, Mark Darby, Danny Paradise, Nancy Gilgoff, Lino Miele and Manju Jois, and she regularly travels to continue her yoga studies. Her style of teaching is non-dogmatic and she encourages students to maintain an open mind as they develop their personal practice in a way that works for their unique body and stage of life.  As a teacher of Ashtanga, Rionach hopes to facilitate students to discover the life-long benefits and joy of this powerful and transformative practice.

Orla began practising yoga over 10 years ago and it quickly became an integral part of her life. With the help of a wonderful teacher, Marianne Jacuzzi, she developed a daily Ashtanga practice. It was through this practice that Orla experienced the truly transformative power of yoga. Along with health and fitness benefits, yoga helped her to find balance and tranquility in her everyday life.

As an acupuncturist and herbalist, Orla was aware of the body's ability to heal itself. Yoga, however, helped her to deepened her understanding of the importance of balance in body and mind. She is a certified Yoga Alliance teacher. Her classes are dynamic and flowing and with a focus on breath and cultivating awareness, she hopes to share the truly wonderful and unique benefits that yoga can bring to anyone who wants to practise.

Síona started practising yoga over ten years ago in London as a way of helping her through the demands of a busy career. It wasn't long before she started to feel the benefits of her practice in all areas of her life and she found herself embracing yoga as part of her daily routine.

Her desire to deepen her practice and understanding of yoga has led her to become a certified Yoga Alliance teacher. She has studied with teachers from a variety of different yoga lineages and this experience along with a firm belief that yoga has something to offer everybody is reflected in her classes.

I took my first yoga class about 6 years ago in my local gym. As an avid gym bunny back in those days I was not interested in the spiritual world but slowly and surely I began to warm up to the idea that as well as keeping you fit, yoga can have an extraordinary effect on the mind. The lovely calm that I felt after a yoga class and the way my stress levels reduced was simply magical.

At first, I tried different styles and studios but hadn't established a regular practice until in January 2010 I took an Ashtanga beginners’ course. I was instantly hooked! To my great delight, soon after I got started with Ashtanga, a beautiful local yoga studio in Greystones was opened, offering led Ashtanga classes as well as a 6 day a week morning Mysore programme.

I am always excited to attend workshops and grateful for the opportunity to study with a brilliant teacher like our own Luke Jordan; as well as Suzanne Brennan and world class Ashtanga experts David Swenson, Hamish Hendry, Manju Jois and David Williams. But teaching yoga would probably have remained only a sweet dream if it hadn’t been for the loving encouragement and support of my own teacher, Rionach O’Flynn.

I  recently completed the Union Yoga RYT 200h Teacher Training course in France under the guidance of Brian Cooper, who has practised Yoga himself over 40 years. Brian encouraged me to be myself and to always remember it is one’s own practice which is the greatest teacher.

I try to keep my classes fun as well as physically challenging and relaxing. I hope to pass on my knowledge and the happiness I have gained from yoga to others and encourage my students to really enjoy their practice each time they step on the mat.

Originally from Cape Town, I arrived in Ireland in 2001 by way of a few years in London. My yoga practice began with Hatha Yoga, and after obtaining a Hatha teaching qualification with Marie Quail at the Yoga Therapy and Training Centre in Dublin, my practice evolved and so began my initiation into Iyengar yoga with (amongst others), Greg Walsh at the Samadhi Studios. I have a lot of respect for the thoroughness, depth and accessibility of the Iyengar method, and this led me to do a further teacher training course with Gordon Austin, a Senior Iyengar yoga teacher from the UK. I am a certified Iyengar Yoga Teacher and registered with both IYA(UK) and DIYI. After teaching in Dublin at the Samadhi Centre and other venues in the city as well as privately for a few years, I moved to Wicklow in 2011.

My natural curiosity resulted in me exploring various styles of yoga, and I’ve therefore also practised for several years with Marianne Jacuzzi ( a direct student of the late Sri K Pattabhi Jois) in the Ashtanga method. Over the years, I have attended many workshops and courses with wonderful, inspiring teachers from all traditions and all corners of the globe. I hope that in my classes I manage to pass on all that yoga has given me- not only a flexible stronger body, but a flexible and more contented mind. I really believe yoga has all the tools to lead us through life with a healthy body, a happy heart and a balanced mind.

Iyengar is a method that, with its emphasis on correct body alignment, allows people from all stages of life to practise yoga safely, without feeling intimidated, or sustaining injuries if practised correctly. Classes are therefore suitable for couch potatoes and sports enthusiasts , the young and the young at heart and anyone in between, all equally welcome. I try to understand and support the needs of each student, and although you may find the classes challenging, you will come away feeling not only stronger, but relaxed and energised.

At the age of 22 I realised that the corporate world in which I found myself was a million miles away from the kind of work that I wanted to be doing and at something of a crossroads my career path was joined with my love for touch! In 2009 I began studying Holistic Therapies full time and completed two years' study, qualifying with honours in several modalities of massage. In 2012 I furthered my studies when I was fortunate to be able to train with Louise Kleu in the beautiful and sacred art of Hawaiian Lomi Lomi Massage.

I am passionate about the effect that touch therapies can have on a person and I feel it is a privilege to work with people in such a personal way, helping them to restore balance. I love the opportunity that working as a massage therapist offers to constantly learn about myself and other people, and through a regular yoga practice I am witnessing the transformative effect that this can bring to every part of a person's life.