Ted Cox

"Ted, you have become such a wonderful presence and influence for so many people in your community, our community and beyond.  When students speak of you they light up and are clearly touched by you, who you are as a person and as a teacher.  It is teachers like you who inspire me.  I am grateful to have you in my life.  You are living your dream - rock on!" - Baron Baptiste

Teaching professionally began for me in 1982, in Houston, Texas, upon graduating from Indiana University. For 22 years I taught music, from beginners to young professionals; most recently at the University of Oklahoma for ten years. Then, in 2004, my wife Martha and I opened our own yoga studio, Spirit House Yoga Center and I switched from teaching music to teaching yoga. My passion for music continues as I am a member of the Oklahoma City Philharmonic, a position I’ve enjoyed since 1992.

My first class with my teacher, Baron Baptiste, (one of the world’s master yoga teachers) was in February of 2004 at a Personal Revolution Weekend held in Dallas, Texas. My connection to Baron, his teaching and philosophy was immediate and I signed up that weekend for his teacher training in Mexico in May of 2004. In July of 2006, I became a
Certified Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga Teacher.  (click on this link to go to Baron's web site)  It's an honor to be the first and only Baptiste teacher in the State of Oklahoma. Since my first class with Baron back in 2004, I’ve made it a priority to continue working with Baron every year.

My first class with John Friend, (founder of Anusara Yoga) was in October of 2006. From that very first class with John, I knew I had found a brilliant, amazing yoga teacher that I wanted to learn more from. For me personally, I love the philosophy taught in Anusara Yoga, The Universal Principles of Alignment and the supportive, loving community. I find the Anusara and Baptiste methods of yoga blend and complement each other in a beautiful way; perhaps because both Baron Baptiste and John Friend studied with B.K.S. Iyengar, (a true living legend). Both Baptiste (Power Yoga) and Anusara Yoga are two of the twelve major styles of hatha yoga recognized worldwide. For me, there are far more similarities than differences between the two styles, as both philosophies work towards realizing our true nature and living to our fullest potential.

Since my first Anusara Yoga class, I have completed nearly 500 hours of Anusara study; over 100 hours of training with John Friend, including his Advanced Therapeutics Training and Creation of Form Intensive; the Anusara Yoga Immersions with Todd Norian and Ann Greene; Teacher Training with Desiree Rumbaugh; 20 Anusara Yoga workshops and both Grand Gatherings.

With the thousands of yoga classes that I have taught and more than 1,000 hours of trainings and education I’ve received in Anusara and Baptiste yoga over the years, my teaching has evolved into something unique. Calling my classes "Empower Vinyasa Yoga" is an attempt at reflecting that uniqueness in my teaching.  I want my classes to be fun, challenging and empowering; but most important to me is keeping everyone in my class safe. I offer modifications for all the yoga poses I teach so that everyone can find their own pose in any of my classes. I focus on alignment in my classes, the foundation, the engagement and celebration of every pose, with emphasis on the breath. If you are moving and working so hard in a yoga class that you lose the awareness of your breath, you are no longer doing yoga, as the breath and the posture are equal in importance in yoga. My level 3 classes are heated, to about 90 degrees. Working in a warm room can be a very challenging environment for most people. The largest organ on our body is the skin and through sweating we cleanse and detox this amazing organ from the inside out.

There are three archetypes of yoga students; one is the “athlete”, the students who come just for the “workout.” A second type of yoga student is the “scientist/engineer”; those are the students who love the details of alignment. Finally, the third type of student is the “poet/mystic”; these students love all the yoga philosophy and history. Ideally I believe we need to be a balance of all three archetypes, and this is how I approach teaching. It is my sincere desire that the students who attend just one of my yoga classes have some sort of awakening about something they are doing either on or off the mat that may help shift them towards a more beautiful life.

John Friend, Ted and Baron Baptiste

Martha McQuaid is a Certified Anusara© Yoga Teacher, Certified Massage Therapist, specializing in Thai Bodywork, and is also an Advanced Practitioner of iRest®. www.anusara.com www.irest.us

I began my practice of yoga in 1999, with the intention of learning to live more in my body and less in my head. Like many people, I approached yoga as exercise, but quickly learned that there was a deeper purpose to the practice. I began teaching in 2000, completing a 200 Yoga Teacher Training in Oklahoma City in 2001. The interesting thing about teaching is that you begin to see how much you don’t know, and your students actually become your best teachers. I am indebted to all of my students through the years who have inspired me to keep learning and exploring the depths of my own heart. I discovered Anusara Yoga in 2004 when I attended a workshop with John Friend. At the risk of sounding cliché, this event literally changed my life. This elegant and extremely well designed system brought me deeper into my body and my heart than I had ever been, and I knew from that moment in which direction my path lay. I was fortunate to find and study with Todd Norian, and completed his 300 hour Yoga Teacher Training in 2006. Todd has remained a steady, deep presence and influence in my life and I am fortunate to have taken many trainings and workshops with him since. I have had the good fortune to be able to travel all over the country, and as far as Thailand to study Anusara yoga. I have completed almost 1,200 hours of training, including Teacher Training, six Therapeutics Trainings and three Teachers Intensives with John Friend, assisting Todd Norian and Ann Greene with the Anusara Immersions, Teacher Training, and Advanced Teacher Training, assisting Martin Kirk’s Anatomy and Therapeutics training, and have attended many workshops with John Friend, Desiree Rumbaugh, Martin and Jordan Kirk, Christina Sell and Andrew Riven.

In 2000, I discovered Thai Massage and began my studies with Jonas Westring, who is also a Certified Anusara© Yoga Teacher. I completed my training with Jonas in 2004, and travelled to Thailand in 2005 and 2006 to study with Master Pichest Boonthame and Therdchai Chumpuphong, respectively. Traveling to Thailand helped me to understand the cultural and philosophical underpinnings of Thai massage and yoga, and was a deeply meaningful experience for me. Thai massage blends beautifully with yoga, each modality has informed and deepened the other, and is the foundation for my practice of Therapeutic Yoga.
My work has most recently taken me into a new practice, Integrative Restoration® (iRest®) Yoga Nidra with Richard Miller, PhD, a clinical psychologist, author, researcher and yogic scholar. This practice is currently being utilized in VA hospitals, military bases, hospitals and clinics, hospice, homeless shelters, community programs, and schools. It is also being used very effectively at Walter Reed Army Hospital for the treatment of PTSD. I have completed both Level 1 and Level 2 iRest® training, and am intrigued by the numerous applications of this practice. I look forward to integrating it more fully into my life and work.

I offer my heartfelt gratitude to all of my teachers, and honor their influence, wisdom and guidance on my path.

"Martha represents Anusara well.  She is keen minded and a bright spirit to the students that she interacts with.  Martha is able to teach all the important elements of an excellent Anusara class.  Since she owns a successful studio in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, I see her as a leader, bringing Anusara to that as yet untapped area."   - Jordan Kirk, Certified Anusara Teacher

 

Holly Bray
Like many others, I came to yoga in search of healing and freedom in my body.  After years of dealing with terrible tension headaches and migraines, a doctor suggested that I try yoga.  I immediately loved how yoga made me feel and how it gave me control over the tensions in my body.  I began to find myself changing and becoming more balanced, calm and loving.  I began to care about the food that I ate and I was able to let go of bad habits with ease.  In 2007, I received my 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training at the Shambhava School of Yoga.  In April of 2008, I opened a private and small group studio called "Yoga for You" where I worked to build my clients a yoga practice to address their individual needs.  My passion for teaching lies in the therapeutic benefits of yoga.  I recently became a Certified Prenatal Yoga Instructor from the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health.  In October of 2009, I traveled to Scottsdale, AZ for a week long training in Anatomy and Yoga Therapy with Anusara teachers, Martin and Jordan Kirk. http://hollyogi.com/

Kelly Cowan

I discovered yoga nine years ago while driving home from work.  A giant yellow sign said YOGA and had a phone number.  I had heard of yoga before but thought it was something celebrities did.  Well, it turned out to be the best thing to ever happen to me.  After many years of on again, off again practice, I finally got serious about this thing that seemed to help me out of those sometimes rough times in life.  It has been helping me find balance ever since.  In the Fall of 2006, I completed a 200 hour certification at Samadhi Center for Yoga in Denver, Colorado.  My classes involve awareness of breath, flowing movement guided by breath and laughter when things get out of balance.  My teaching is influenced primarily by Anusara yoga and I have completed the 105 hour Anusara Immersions with Todd Norian and Ann Greene as well as numerous Anusara workshops.
Yoga helps me to remember who I am, especially when I have lost sight of that person.

Shea Dahl
My yoga practice began in 2008, hoping it would help me to heal my back and strengthen my core. My initial experience was learning yoga through videos and books. I met my first yoga teacher, Martha McQuaid, two years ago through a series of remarkable events. She helped me to understand the benefits of having a yoga instructor who was knowledgeable in yoga and anatomy. We worked together modifying poses to specifically target and heal my body; it took less than a year for my bulging disks to go back into place! Through careful guidance and support of my teachers, I was able to complete my 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Certification in the fall of 2011 with Certified Anusara Yoga Teachers, Todd Norian and Ann Greene. I teach yoga so that I can help others break free from pain, to find peace and healing within their bodies.