ZEN: Contemplative still mind, pinnacle of achievement, inner peace.
KOZEN: To achieve a child-like contemplative state of mind, a place of serenity, an island of tranquility.
THE KOZEN YOGA TEACHERS
**All teachers are YTAA - Yoga Australia accredited**
Whitney Lang - Studio Manager Hawthorn & Ashburton
Whitney has been practicing yoga for over eight years and is internationally accredited with Yoga Alliance (RYT200) and registered with Yoga Australia. With a professional background in Organisational Psychology and management consulting, Whitney was originally drawn to yoga as a way to improve physical fitness and manage the stress associated with a corporate job. However, she quickly discovered that yoga was so much more than just a great workout and it soon became a way of life! This led Whitney to complete her Advanced Diploma of Yoga Teacher Training at Australian Yoga Academy, and continue on to undertake yoga teacher training in India.
Whitney is driven by a passion to share her experiences and knowledge with others and the desire to help her students experience the many benefits of yoga, including improved overall well being, increased focus and ability to manage stress and a busy lifestyle, improved physical fitness and mental health, and greater fulfillment on and off the mat.
Whitney teaches a dynamic class, which emphasises flowing vinyasa and using the breath to guide and deepen the practice. Her classes aim to build strength, flexibility and balance of both the body and the mind. Whitney also has a long background in the exercise and fitness industry, and loves helping students use yoga to support other sporting activities, such as running and cycling, to improve performance and prevent injury.
Sally Meredith
Sally has always felt a deep underlying connection to Yoga. In July 2009 she completed her Advanced Diploma on Yoga Teaching with the Australian Yoga Academy. She feels honoured and humbled to have practiced with some amazing teachers in various locations throughout South East Asia, where she discovered a lot about the art and science of Astanga Yoga and AcroYoga. And she looks forward to taking her practice even further in India at the end of this year (2010). The aims of her own personal practice are to gain a body of optimum health and strength, control over the senses, a clear, calm and well disciplined mind; a heart full of unconditional love and compassion; and a life filled with peace, happiness and contentment. Sally hopes to share these values with her students.
Clare Monahan
Clare has had a passion for yoga and its benefits for over 14 years. She was introduced to yoga as a teenager through the influence of her mother, and over the last few years decided to develop her passion by completing her yoga teacher training at the Australian Yoga Academy. Over her years of yoga practice, Clare has discovered not only the physical benefits of yoga, but also the emotional and energetic benefits that a consistent practice can bring to your life – including a sense of balance, a calm mind and a strong will. Through her teaching, Clare is excited and grateful that she can now share her learnings and yoga’s benefits with so many people.
Lisa Allwell
Lisa is a passionate yogi who has practiced yoga for over 20 years in a variety of styles including classical, ashtanga and whatever was on offer at her local gym. She took the plunge into teacher training in 2009, wanting to deepen her own practice and to connect with the beauty of yogic philosophy, never really imagining that she would end up actually teaching. She probably should have known, that once you set out on a yogic path, all kinds of wonderful things happen. Now she can’t imagine not teaching. Lisa’s favourite yoga asana is the smile, and she encourages her students to strive for lightness, vitality and balance, both on and off the yoga mat. Her philosophy is to sincerely try to meet each student at where they are at in their yoga, helping them to get the most from each pose, each practice. While teaching firmly in the power flow tradition, Lisa likes to mix it up, integrating other modalities such as Kinesiology and Chinese medicine into the practice to enhance yoga’s benefits. Lisa is a health professional by background, and when she is not teaching or practicing yoga, she works in youth mental health at the University of Melbourne, and before this at beyondblue: the national depression initiative. This background gives Lisa a passion for what yoga can achieve for mind and spirit as well as the bleedingly obvious physical benefits. Lisa’s ambitions are to raise happy, healthy compassionate children, to speak fluent Sanskrit and to be the first yoga teacher in space.
Ingrid Jolley
Ingrid discovered Yoga at the age of seventeen and quickly found it to be an essential part of her life. Yoga assisted her to process significant life events, address health issues and manage the challenging demands of working in the Social Work profession. Over the past eleven years Ingrid has been committed to practicing Yoga from a range of teachers and styles, including: Anusara, Iyengar and Ashtanga. She completed Yoga Teacher Training at the Australian Yoga Academy and is currently undertaking a Graduate Certificate in Yoga Therapy. Ingrid recently left her work as a Social Worker to dedicate more of her time to teaching and sharing the benefits of Yoga. Ingrid encourages students to embrace difference and practice asana (postures) in a way that supports and challenges their unique mind and body. Ingrid has a dynamic approach to teaching Yoga and incorporates flowing movement with breath to bring about a sense of mindfulness and ease. Ingrid endeavours to teach and practice Yoga as a way of life.
Amy Coghlan
Amy discovered Yoga at the age of 18, a time in her life she felt she was lacking any real direction and purpose. She fell completely in love with the practice, but it also made her aware of the type of life she wanted to lead. Amy left university and completed her 12 month Teacher Training at the Bhava Centre, School of Yoga all thanks to the encouragement and support of Lisa Matthews, her teacher of 4 years. Yoga helped Amy realise how truly blessed we are to be given a physical body that can move in such a beautiful way through asanas, it encouraged her to start living a more positive and healthy lifestyle, and after losing over 20kg's she knew she wanted to help people discover their true potential through physical movement and healthy living. She then completed her Cert 3 & 4 of Fitness at the Victorian Fitness Academy, and quickly became a very busy and successful Personal Trainer and now runs her own business, helping her clients lead happy and positive lives. Yoga has benefited every aspect of Amy's life, to live with purpose, show kindness and compassion toward others and to know her body from the inside out to complement her training. "
Edwina Black
Edwina found her personal yoga practice around 7 years ago, initially to complement her love of running and playing sports. It wasn’t long though before the transformative power of yoga took over and she became hooked. She began to realise the full physical, emotional and spiritual scope of the practice and she has enjoyed the strength, flexibility and mental cool that has ensued. In 2011, Edwina decided to deepen her study by undertaking an Advanced Diploma in Yoga Teaching at the Australian Yoga Academy. She believes in ‘yoga practice’ not ‘yoga perfect’ and she has learnt to work with her limitations and accept yoga as a lifelong journey. Edwina is excited to share her passion with the Kozen community and to learn and explore new things with each practice.
Lucy Cormack
Lucy has been studying yoga for over 10 years. In November 2009 she completed her Accredited Diploma on Yoga Teaching with The Life Centre’s Yogacampus. Moving to Melbourne in February 2010, she began teaching regular classes as well as continuing her own dedicated practice and attending workshops. She believes that yoga is accessible to all of us and through regular practice we can experience profound changes in our mind and body. With a background in Vinyasa, Lucy’s yoga style is heavily influenced by the flowing movement of the breath, and her relaxed approach to life gives a soft but focused quality to her teaching.
Megan Richardson
Megan was drawn to yoga in Queensland 6 years ago and found it to be the perfect practice to help her balance out a busy corporate role in Environmental Engineering and writing a thesis. She soon found that her time on the mat became her sanctuary, a place where she could finally let go, feel at ease, be nourished and leave the mat empowered and at peace.
In 2010, she was inspired to move to Melbourne to undertake her yoga teacher training with Dominique Santana Salerno at the Australian Yoga Academy. Loving any opportunity to learn more, she completed further Power Yoga teacher training in 2012 and looks forward to more yoga training and development as a teacher in the future.
Megan teaches a beautiful and challenging power flow as she combines flowing movements in and out of postures and works strongly with stillness in others. Megan encourages conscious breath awareness throughout the class, serving as a form of moving meditation, honouring the spiritual aspect that is yoga.
Her classes aim to help you to develop and deepen your personal practice, always asking you to honour your body and to take into consideration how you feel on that day. The classes encourage you to stay open to the present and discovering what honestly serves you best in that moment. Megan truly believes in the power of yoga and its ability to transform lives. Yoga creates a path that helps you reach your full potential in health, in body, mind and spirit. Her classes will remind you that a regular yoga practice helps you to develop strength and comfort in your physical self, creates space in your mind and facilitates growth and positive changes in your life. It opened her eyes to her true self and she hopes to share yoga with you on the mat soon!
Susan Mould
Susan has been practicing yoga since moving to Melbourne in 1999, and is internationally accredited with Yoga Alliance (RYT200). With a professional background in Marketing and Advertising, Susan was drawn to yoga to create a work/life balance. After attending an array of schools in Melbourne and retreats in Byron Bay and Thailand, it was time to complete teacher training in 2009.
Since completion of the initial 200 hours, training has not stopped. With completion of Level 3 with Power Living and various workshops with Yoga Synergy (Sydney) this additional training has enable Susan to share her passion and experience within her classes. Her classes are dynamic, and focused on strength and flexibility - which are the perfect marriage for yoga, plus most importantly fun.
Sally Bryan
Sally was first drawn to yoga about 6 years ago and explored many different styles. Sally’s passion for yoga lead her to complete a Yoga Teacher Training at the Australian Yoga Academy and the hopes to share the wonderful healing benefits of yoga with as many people as possible.
Sally loves the balance of inner peace and relaxation that is created in a class, while at the same time, stretching the body and building flexibility. Sally believes a yoga class always leaves a person feeling more energised, while the joy of bringing awareness to the present moment creates a more happy and fulfilled life.
The chosen path of yoga has introduced Sally to many beautiful people and fantastic opportunities and hopes to travel to India next year to further her studies and learn more about this beautiful, ancient philosophy.
Louise Fitzroy
Louise FitzRoy completed her yoga teacher training with the Australian Yoga Academy in 2008. She began teaching at the Australian Yoga Academy and Bridge Yoga in Melbourne. Louise joined the Kozen team from its inception in 2010 and since then has used her anatomical love to train AFL athletes and specialising in injury prevention, core strength and flexibility training. Last year, Louise spent several months in Italy studying and practising Satyananda yoga in the north east region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia.
A country girl at heart, Louise has a strong passion for sport, health and fitness. She writes about health and wellbeing issues for a variety of publications, including Australian Natural Health. Louise’s enthusiasm and passion for yoga is evident in her teaching methods, ensuring each class is adapted to suit individual needs. Maintaining a present state through the practise of yoga has enabled Louise to develop not only as a teacher and student, but in everyday life as well.
Paul and Lauren Vercoe
Husband and wife team, Paul and Lauren Vercoe have a combined 10 years of experience in yoga and are passionate about sharing yoga with everyone they come into contact with. Coming from very different paths before finding yoga, Lauren was originally from a dancing background and Paul had 26 years of soccer under his belt (explains those tight hamstrings!)...and it was because of some serious adductor injuries that he discovered the amazing healing properties of yoga. Paul and Lauren also have a combined 17 years of experience in sales, marketing and public relations and together are the creators and back bone of Kozen Yoga.
Paul's teaches with an energetic, challenging and fun-filled style and yet nurturing with love and compassion. With a background in soccer, cycling, gym and running, he is passionate about (and has a soft spot) for teaching the elite athlete through to the weekend warriors of team sports, runners, rowers and cyclists (or any sport really!). Paul is all about the 'light' side of yoga, keeping it real and assisting students to realise that yoga is a journey and not a destination.
Lauren teaches with a beautiful creative flow and her classes can be challenging, gentle, cheeky, humourous, deep, philosophical....and all within the space of 75 minutes. She has a passion for both pre and post natal yoga and understand first hand the strength that it provides to ladies who are pre natal and the healing powers of yoga in post natal stage.
They teach the flowing style of Power Flow Yoga, the beautiful grounding nature of Yin Yoga and beginner friendly yoga that caters for the absolute beginner through to the experienced yogi.
Lauren and Paul believe that adhering to a consistent and 'sincere' regular yoga practice is not only a statement of personal empowerment, it gives you the potential to be in control of your own life and consistently develop endurance, strength, flexibility and determination in body AND mind, which then becomes a way of life and is prevalent in all other parts of your life, work and relationships.
TESTIMONIALS
Emma Gee, stroke survivor, Kozen Yogi
I came to Kozen Yoga feeling a bit tired and not very relaxed. The calming presence and peaceful space cleared my head. I was guided through a beautiful class of exactly what I needed. The instructor really paid attention to my needs and abilities that night, and I left feeling so happy and centred. The yoga practice at Kozen Yoga is just wonderful. It's meaningful, calming, energizing and blissful. It's a class I would recommend to anyone who wants a positive and happy yoga experience and really wants to do something amazing for their body.
I started practicing Yoga at Kozen six months ago when I was very ill with depression and anxiety. At the time I was learning about Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Mindfulness as a way of understanding the link between my thoughts, feelings and behaviours. Yoga at Kozen complements these therapies by facilitating connections between the mind, body and spirit. It helps me to soothe and control my active mind, strengthen and relax my body and enrich my spirit through meaningful relationships with Lauren, Paul and other devotees. Initially I was just going to give it a try, but now that I have invested time and energy into this ancient practice I find it much easier to manage my illness, even on a bad day. Thank-you Kozen for providing me with a safe environment to relax, smile and practice gratitude for my wellbeing. See you at the next class!
Angela R, Hawthorn.
My experience at Kozen Yoga has been nothing short of fantastic. I thought getting up at before 6am every Tuesday would not last for very long, but now, three months down the track, the alarm going off doesn't even bother me.
The classes are well paced and designed to cater for all, from beginner to the more advanced, which is always comforting. Once the class is over I feel energised yet calm and prepared perfectly for the day ahead. Friends and family have noticed positive changes, not only in my mood but the tone in my body which makes it all the more worthwhile and rewarding
Emily Dale, Hawthorn.
Being fairly new to yoga I have found the encouragement and enthusiasm of Lauren and Paul at Kozen Yoga outstanding. I have been a regular at Kozen classes now for the last few months and have noticed the difference in my body, with increased flexibility and definition in places I didn’t know I had! The variations in each class gives me a full workout for both my mind and body and I walk out of each class feeling refreshed and energized. I would recommend Kozen Yoga to anyone, beginner to advanced, and especially for people wanting to try a new fitness routine that really does make a difference in all areas of your life. Thank you Lauren and Paul for introducing me to a whole new world of yoga and I look forward to our next practice.
Kim Mastrowicz, South Yarra.
Lauren & Paul are not only outstanding Yoga teachers,but outstanding people. and Being new to Yoga per seafter having been introduced to KOZEN Yoga by Danica,the manageress at LULULEMON ATHLETICA in Camberwell(who quite frankly adores both of them !!),I have truly realized how genuinely empathic, warm, friendly & caring these guys are. Their classes throughout February at the Store have been so popular,that it will be sad to see them go,for in my mind, they have again been a type of fixture that we all have looked forward to twice every week.This was vindicated by Lauren's last Sunday morning class attracting over 50 people (a record in itself !!) & with Paul & Lauren being named as Ambassadors to the Camberwell Store,which,in its own right(& in my mind)is a huge honour & greatly deserved.To conclude,anyone aspiring to do Yoga with such nice people,including those who actually go there,MUST check out KOZEN Yoga first off----mediocrity obviously doesn't sit well with Lauren & Paul !!----.
Louise FitzRoy completed her yoga teacher training with the Australian Yoga Academy in 2008. She began teaching at AYA and Bridge Yoga in Melbourne. Louise joined the Kozen team from its inception in 2010 and since then has used her anatomical love to train AFL athletes to aid injury prevention. Last year, Louise spent several months in Italy studying and practising Satyananda yoga in the north east region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia.
A country girl at heart, Louise has a strong passion for sport, health and fitness. She writes about health and wellbeing issues for a variety of publications, including Australian Natural Health. Louise’s enthusiasm and passion for yoga is evident in her teaching methods, ensuring each class is adapted to suit individual needs. Maintaining a present state through the practise of yoga has enabled Louise to develop not only as a teacher and student, but in everyday life as well.
