Our Teachers
Who We Are
Don Francis
Paula Vintiner
Your Own Yoga Founder & Teacher
Flow ~ Yin - Kohā ~ Teens ~ Sensory ~ Teacher Training
"You will find me dancing barefoot on the grass, light with breath and carefree, with an unwavering knowledge that to move and to breathe and to find stillness in the spaces between, is to truly live a life."
Paula has been a student of movement since the age of 3, when she began baby ballet classes back in her hometown of London. She danced all the way through to adulthood and in 2013, discovered that Yoga was the key to fulfilling the urge to move, but with a consciousness and care that would honour her body through her mid-late 30s.
Through Yoga, Paula discovered the joy of bringing rhythm and the flow of breath into union and the many levels on which this could facilitate peace deep within, in the midst of the challenges of navigating this modern world.
Your Own Yoga was born in 2017 and is truly a reflection of the famous words spoken by Krishnamacharya, "If you can breathe, you can do Yoga!" as Paula wholeheartedly believes that Yoga is for anybody and EVERYbody, without exception, and should be explored with the personal wisdom that each and every Yogi holds of themselves, within themselves, to honour their sacred and unique bodies.
When she isn't on the mat (or barefoot on the grass), you will most likely find Paula at home baking bread, enjoying a mouth-watering meal cooked by her husband Andrew, or lounging in the garden with their retired greyhound, Fleurie.
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Lauren Albans
Your Own Yoga Teacher
Yin - Kohā ~ Cacao & Sound Journeys
"What is meant for you won't pass you by."
Originally from the UK, Lauren adore her adopted Hawke's Bay and has launched her brand of Yoga and Wellness, Jourenyin in and around our beautiful region. Lauren has a passion for Yin Yoga and in 2020 she completed her 100-Trauma-Informed Yin Yoga Facilitator Training with SomaPsych. Since then, she has taken on further training to become a skillful cacao facilitator, massage therapist, reiki practitioner and sound bath guide with Tibetan Singing Bowls.
Lauren's favourite yoga pose is reclined butterfly, which send her into deep bliss and her advice to her new yogis is: less is more, listen and appreciate your body and have the courage to be in charge of your own practice.
You can find Lauren on the mat every Thursday evening for a delicious yin practice, and once a month of a Sunday, for her stunning explorations of cacao, Yin Yoga and sound (singing bowls) when she isn't facilitating her wellness offerings, she enjoys being on the farm with her hubby and Labrador fur babes!
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Felicity Geard
Your Own Yoga Teacher
Hatha - Kohā
"Life is practice. Keep learning, keep evolving and keep returning to the heart no matter how challenging life gets…and of course have fun along the way."
Felicity applies her mantra to life both on and off the mat. Her connection to yoga goes back many years and as one of our recent graduates, she is now stepping into the realm of holding space for others to explore their practice.
Accessibility, safety and nurturing describe Felicity's practice and teaching and those three words also underpin her approach to life beyond the mat. Her absolute favourite pose is Viparita Karani which she believes is the key to bringing balance to busy lives with its healthful benefits.
Felicity's advice for new yogis is to listen to what resonates and leave behind what does not, while remaining curious to deeper self-discoveries.
When she isn't practising or teaching yoga, you can find Felicity on her farm embracing the beauty of nature amongst the flowers, her four-legged friends and her loving partner and daughters.
Tess Brown
Luisa Schreiber
Your Own Yoga Guest Teacher
"Go with the flow and embody the flow of life."
When she isn't flowing on the mat, then Luisa lives her mantra on the ocean waves, as a keen surfer. Luisa has a profound connection to the mindful aspects of Yoga and her love for the practice is rooted in her daily mediation and pranayama routines.
Our lovely Luisa graduated as a Yoga Teacher from our Jayayoga 200-hour training in Auckland back in 2020, and when on the teaching mat, she inspires her Yogis to let go of any former beliefs and thoughts they may have held about Yoga, encouraging instead a playful attitude so that they can explore more and more of themselves.
Luisa's go-to asana is child's pose, as it allows her to connect deeply to Earth and to feel safe, supported and held in the sacred space of her body.
Luisa lives by Ayurveda practices to support her mental, physical, emotional and spiritual health and growth and for her, Yoga acts as a beautiful complement, by helping her to relearn power and connection.
Although Luisa is based in Auckland, she has a love and close affinity to Hawke's Bay and she will feature as a guest teacher on her visits here.
