The owners

Namaste,

Yoga is my passion and I would love to share its gifts with you. After six years of regular practice the longing for knowledge overtook me, so I followed my heart and went to the source spending six months traveling and studying throughout India and Nepal. In 2017 I completed my 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training at World Peace Yoga School in Rishikesh, and furthered my studies with Yogacharya Bharath Shetty in Mysore. I have been fortunate to return each year to Mysore and plan to for many years to come.

Yoga embodies so much more than physical movement – for me it is a true path towards inner peace. A peaceful heart and mind lead towards peaceful thoughts, which lead towards peaceful actions… with regular practice an overall sense of well-being begins to develop, allowing an experience of peace and gratitude to slowly unfold in daily life.

We wanted Eight Limbs Yoga to embdy all aspects of practice, while breaking down any barriers (actual and perceived) to make yoga accessible to everyone. Yoga is for every body, and our goal has been to create a warm and welcoming space for everyone to explore their own path. Physical fitness, overall health, peace of mind... whatever your motivation and level of experience you are most welcomed to Eight Limbs.

Lisa

Murray has been practicing  yoga in earnest since 2014 and completed his  200 hour Yoga Teacher Training at World Peace Yoga School in Rishikesh in 2018.  It is there he learned that yoga is far more than asana (poses).  His sincere and enthusiastic approach to teaching makes yoga accessible to people of all levels and abilities.

 JM is a Registered Social Worker. Her background in trauma led her to become a Registered Yoga Teacher 300hrs CYA- RYT. JennieMay enjoys teaching Hatha and Slow Flow yoga while promoting self-care and mindfulness. 

 Learning Taijiquan is the first step in coming into balance and harmony with the internal and external space we occupy.  Adrian's focus is on making movement accessible and deepening the personal and social experience of 'being in the body'.  Adrian has been  a student of Dave Baker in Oxford (UK) within the lineage of Chen Tin Hung (Practical Taiji, Hong Kong) since 1999. 

Adrian's journey in Qigong began at university in England in 1994 with standing meditation practices and listening to his Bavarian aunt describe the benefits of regular practice. Although, if you chat to him, one of his greatest influences is a TV show called 'Monkey Magic' based on a novel called Journey to the West.

His own person journey with the internal arts (including studying the I-Ching, Kashmiri Yoga, Gnostic Christianity and Tibetan Buddhist Mediation practice) has encouraged him to live and train in China, Europe and Thailand (where he also completed a month long training to be a Reiki Teacher).  After a brief pause to complete a PhD, Adrian is humbled by requests and is continuing to teach in the Orillia area and delighted to support Eight limbs Yoga.

Allie is a RYT200 yoga instructor and 350HR Foundational Shine OM yoga teacher. As a practitioner for more than 15 years, Allie understands the importance of cultivating a strong body, mind, and soul. It was while training as a competitive national figure skater that she was introduced to yoga as a means of conditioning and injury prevention, where she instantly recognized the benefits of integrating yoga into any fitness regime.  Combined with her passion for movement and fitness, Allie’s extensive athletic background has provided her with an understanding of the alignment and movement patterns within the body, as well as a keen eye for and attention to detail.  

As a recent YTT graduate, Allie arrives with a wealth of cutting-edge knowledge. Her classes transcend traditional practice boundaries, and focus on building strength from within. Join Allie in some fun-infused classes, where she’ll provide a safe haven in which to practice, laugh and get over yourself...literally!

 Hello, my name is Jessica.  As a wife, a mother of two and a budding artist, life is full.  In 2012 I was just starting the largest journey of my life, starting a family and my own business.  I had become the busiest I had ever been.  Juggling a house, my family, my business, my life and all the details.  I remember feeling like I was just holding my head above water.  I didn’t have the time to take care of myself.  Even on the most basic levels, eating and sleeping were out of the question.  I was physically and mentally exhausted.  I do believe I found yoga when I needed it the most.  My practise allowed me to find some space and perspective to take a step back and look at everything a little more clearly.  I realized that I needed to choose to make my practice a priority for my wellbeing.  With a dedicated practice, I was managing my chronic pain in my back and was feeling stronger that I had ever felt before.  I was sleeping better, eating better and physically moving with more ease in my day to day.  I was grateful and happy.  It literally felt as if a weight had been lifted.  Finally, I was able to focus more on what mattered to me.  I now wasn’t just holding my head above water, I was flying out of the water on rainbow Pegasus.  I was so intrigued, inspired and fired up about the profound effect these simple practices had on my mind, body and spirit.  I became a 200hr registered yoga instructor in 2017 and have been learning and teaching ever since.  My goal is to facilitate space for people to explore and create through yoga.  See you on the mat.  Namaste 

 Cat O'Connor, YTT500, mom, writer, life lover… the gift of practicing yoga for the past 20 years, teaching for 10 and offering yoga retreats for 5, as well as sitting several Vipassana Meditation courses, writing and simply living a life with a curious & open mind, has led her to the realization, that it's really ALL yoga.
Our life is our practice.
Cat is beyond grateful to be able to share her gifts and passions with others; all with the intention of bringing yoga, creative expression and a higher level of joy & awareness to as many people as possible.
Her primary style of teaching is Vinyasa, however she has come to love the practice and offering of yin and more restorative forms of yoga as well.
Cat is also a Realtor with B.J. Roth, Century 21, helping her to continue her mission of bringing people home… To themselves, each other and to their dream house.

Liz's fitness journey started seventeen years ago, as a decision to improve over-all health after quitting smoking. Liz quickly realized that fitness is her passion and became a Can-Fit-Pro Instructor in 2007.Liz has since continued as a certified instructor, accomplished three half marathons, completed Surfset Certification (5 years) as well as becoming a Reiki teacher.

After losing her son, Liz expanded her scope of well-being with several trainings so dear to her heart including Yoga Fit Warrior (focused on Post Traumatic Stress Dis-Order), Integrative Stress Management with Dr. Gerald Levine, Mindful Self Compassion with Tanya Armstrong & Elizabeth Levine, ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Training), Safe Talk Suicide Alertness, and most recently a Stress Resiliency course. Liz is proof that one can emerge from darkness; she is a bright light influencing many along her path.

Liz looks forward to bringing you an After Work Workout focusing on stabilizing, strengthening and toning to improve physical, mental and emotional health.

Joy has been teaching traditional yoga and associated yoga philosophy since being certified in 1985 at which time she became an active teacher in the Himalayan Institute of Canada situated in Toronto.  Since 2010 she has volunteered a few months each year at the Himalayan Hospital in India to guide students, staff, faculty, and patients through yoga sessions.

Over the  34 years of teaching Joy recognizes that a sensitivity to class participants continues to grow - all of which substantiates the fact that teaching broadens the teacher's learning and consequently the ongoing ability to give back to class participants. All individuals are welcomed to participate in the 10am - 11am sessions at the eight limbs studio.

 In these surreal and chaotic times, a desire for inner peace seems not only necessary, but urgent. Maja’s journey from Balkan war refugee to practitioner of mind and body healing provides a unique foundation for managing the current flux of the human condition. Combining her life experience with her knowledge of yoga and pilates, Maja hopes to impart a mindful approach to achieving core strength and stability. With a measure of discipline and open-mindedness, she believes we can learn from every experience while aiming to achieve the goals we set for ourselves. Maja is ready for a challenge, the only question is, are you? Maja is a certified Pilates instructor and 200hrs yoga teacher. 

 Kyle Kanstein worked in emergency services for over a decade when he discovered the benefits of yoga. What started out as a journey towards fitness and alleviating physical pain quickly turned into an opportunity for self-exploration and reinvention. In 2019, Kyle took a leave of absence and travelled to Rishikesh, India and became certified as a 200 hr YTT after successfully completing a Holistic Yoga Teacher Training program. Kyle sweats it all out with his practice of hatha, vinyasa, and Bikram method yoga. He brings a blend of these various styles to his teaching with the support of his education in yoga therapy. He believes in finding the ease in the effort, the strength in the surrender, and building an epic community around the yogic lifestyle. 

  Berni is a certified Yoga Instructor with 30 years of practice and 5 years of teaching here in Orillia. While bringing her own style and voice, Berni's classes are rooted in the mind body spirit connection that yoga offers. Through a series of gentle but strong postures aimed at releasing tension, you will leave your class feeling uplifted and connected. 

Bio coming soon.

Alli is passionate about offering yoga to kids, encouraging mindful practices and meditation as a means of managing everyday stressors that most kids are up against. Alli received her 200 hr yoga certification in 2017, and started teaching yoga to kids shortly thereafter. Alli is an Occasional Elementary Teacher employed with the SCDSB, and loves her time in various classrooms across Simcoe County. Alli is also a wife and mom to 3 amazing kids under the age of 12. In her spare time, she loves to bake, read, spend time in nature, and attend yoga classes. She looks forward to spending Saturday mornings at Eight Limbs Yoga Studio offering her kids yoga class in the new year!