Our Staff

LANITA VARSHELL,
Studio Owner
Founder of A Gentle Way
Specialty: Meditation in Movement Style Yoga

Lanita is a GENTLE Hatha Yoga teacher, stress management expert, former missionary, and inspiring motivational speaker. She is known fondly as the "queen of relaxation" for her Yoga Therapy work with the very stressed and those in chronic pain, and for bringing students into yoga that never dreamed they could do yoga.

Traditional students of yoga will experience deep stretch with intimate body connection, and will learn how to experience traditional poses safely in her Meditation in Movement and Adaptive Yoga Classes. Don’t be deceived by the slowness of Lanita’s classes; this may be some of the deepest yoga work you have ever done!

Lanita began teaching yoga in 1995, after being diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia. She has evolved from a very sick "couch potato," who could not work, to a busy studio owner and teacher. Still challenged daily with body pain and limitations, Lanita is living proof that the many benefits of yoga can be experienced by anyone, any size, with almost any challenge.

Lanita has been interviewed by several yoga publications including L.A. Yoga and Yoga Journal, and has taught at the Yoga Journal International Health and Fitness Conference. She leads our Teacher Training and Yoga Therapy Workshops. Lanita has taught over 10,000 classes, and has trained many teachers. She has taught over 10,000 classes. Lanita served on the board of Y.E.S. (Yoga Teachers Education Society) for five years, and was the founder and director of the Yoga Hotline. She produces CDs and DVDs; trains teachers; teaches special workshops on Yoga for the plus sized and health challenged; and was a presenter at the International Yoga Conference 2002 in San Diego, hosted by IDEA and Yoga Journal. She has been featured in Yoga Journal (December 2000), The San Diego Union-Tribune, The Daily Californian, CBS News, KUSI Channel 51, and many other media outlets.

MARGUERITE TYRELL, C.Y.T. 500
Marguerite has been a dedicated student of yoga, fitness, and nutrition since the 70’s, teaching private and group sessions at exclusive health clubs in Boston, San Diego, and at the posh Golden Door in Escondido, CA. She teaches several different types of yoga, having studied with many respected teachers, including Donna Farhi, John Friend, and Judith Lasater. Marguerite teaches beginning to advanced asana, emphasizing conscious use of breath to facilitate the natural opening of the body, sometimes including Pilates into her classes to build inner core strength.

Her recent Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy Training has given her an even deeper layer of teaching and understanding the inner body.

PRIVATE SESSIONS AVAILABLE:
Marguerite is a registered dietitian offering Private Nutritional Consultations, Private Hatha Yoga Sessions, and Private Yoga Therapy.

WEEKLY GROUP CLASSES:
Saturdays: 8:00am –ACTIVE HATHA YOGA MIX
one of our most energetic classes.

Mondays: 7:30pm – HATHA YOGA MIX – For healthy beginners to intermediates: A slower moving class the favors the Iyengar method using props, with attention to alignment and detail.

BRI. DAMARA SHAMUGAN

American Hindu Nun, student of beloved Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, Damara is member of the Himalayan Academy, and has been a contributing writer for their magazine. Bri. Damara came into this world with many spiritual gifts that you will experience, feel or hear about when you have the privilege of studying with her. Her quest for truth, her travels and training in India make her a true light and joy to be around. Damara is a gifted teacher guiding our Teacher Training and special workshops in South-Indian Style Hatha Yoga, yoga anatomy, spiritual anatomy, yoga philosophy, and in-depth chakra studies. Damara co-leads our MIM Style Teacher Training with Lanita, and offers special workshops throughout the year.

SUNJE O'CLANCY, R.Y.T., M.A.
Sunje has been teaching yoga to students of all ages after being certified in the Indra Devi style of classical Hatha Yoga in 1998. Drawing from her experience with many different styles and teachers, she instructs her students to slowly flow through carefully selected asana sequences balancing strength and flexibility. Breathing, inner awareness, and a sense of peace and stillness play an important part in her challenging, yet non-demanding active classes. Her students describe Sünje as “enthusiastic, caring, and nurturing” and appreciate “the combination and variety of postures”, the “perfect blend of a good workout and relaxation”, as well as her “soothing manner”.

During her pregnancies, Sünje was fortunate to experience the benefits of prenatal yoga first hand, and therefore added it to her schedule in 2000, tailoring her classes to the specific needs of expectant moms. “My prenatal yoga classes are definitely a highlight in my week. It is a very special experience to practice yoga with a room full of pregnant ladies. I enjoy watching their bellies grow and it is an extraordinary joy to meet the babies after they have been born.”

Sünje holds a Masters of Arts degree in German Literature with a double minor in Dramatic Arts and Education from the Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Germany. The happy mother of two boys, she is also the founder of Yoga Rascals, a popular yoga program for children. www.yogarascals.com

TEACHING WEEKLY CLASSES:
Thursdays: 9:00am - Active Hatha Yoga
Wednesdays: 7:30pm - Prenatal Yoga

HELEN SCHURIG, R.Y.T. 200
Mere words cannot begin to express the inspiration that Helen is to all of us (teachers and students). Challenged with metastatic breast cancer, she is living proof that there can be much joy in the journey. Busy mother of two amazing sons, Helen is a great mentor and teacher. She began her yoga journey in 1989 under the guidance of Katy and Yogiraj Behramji, authors of “Yogasanas for Health”. Helen received her yoga certification through Kathy Lee Kappmeier at YogaWell’s Institute of Progressive Therapies. Helen teaches “classical-eclectic” Hatha Yoga, often incorporating vinyasas, to both beginner and advanced students. She also trained as a Laughter Yoga leader and holds Laughter Yoga Workshops, a wonderful way to enjoy life and have fun with your fellow yoga students and teachers. Currently training to become a “Meditation in Movement” teacher, Helen is looking forward to offering AGW students a form of yoga, which is less about physical asanas and more about the emotional and energetic body.

Available for nutritional counseling, Helen has studied with Ellen Tart-Jensen, Ph.D., D.Sc and continues her studies in nutrition at the School of Healing Arts.

TEACHING: Private Sessions at our Center
WEEKLY CLASSES:
Tuesdays: 4:00pm - Hatha Yoga for the Fit Keeping Fit
Thursdays:4:00pm - Hatha Yoga for all levels - great for beginners!
Fridays: 9:00am - Hatha Yoga for all levels - great for beginners!

Anna Noah, Ph.D., RYT, Certified Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy Practitioner

Anna is a wonderful classical hatha yoga teacher and our Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapist, teaching vinyasa style group classes and providing deeply effective private sessions to our students of all levels. She offers one-on-one yoga therapy sessions and teaches restorative yoga workshops. Anna began a home yoga practice in the early 1980s using yoga instruction books. Over many years, she has practiced several styles of yoga and meditation, receiving certification in the Indra Devi classical yoga style. She is a certified Relax and Renew© trainer and has completed advanced training in therapeutic applications of restorative yoga. Crediting yoga for her recovery from several chronic health problems, Anna’s teaching emphasizes the health and emotional benefits of yoga. She describes her classes as ideal for those whose vision is to age gracefully and healthfully in a manner that is gentle and respectful of the body. Anna’s classes include a variety of seated, standing, and reclining poses that develop muscle flexibility and strength, bone density, balance, and flow and are accessible to most students of average health. Pose modifications are taught so that students with some physical constraints can receive full benefit. Prior to coming to a Gentle Way, Anna was a yoga and meditation instructor at UCLA. She is forever grateful for the inspiration, wisdom, and guidance of Paramahansa Yogananda, Charlotte Joko Beck, Ram Dass, and Max Strom.

TEACHING:Weekday Private Sessions & Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy

ERYNN PIERCE, 200RYT, has come to A Gentle Way Yoga after extensive training and teaching, most recently in New Mexico. Raised in rural Washington, the remote South Pacific, and finally landing at SDSU where she studied Biology and Zoology, she first experienced Ashtanga yoga more than a decade ago right here. A lifetime athlete, she was hooked by the challenging Primary Series-- but something told her it was not all about the “great workout” it seemed to provide (although her arms never looked better). The physical practice of yoga was a doorway through which could be seen a deeper meaning to it all, and an awareness was sparked that changed the way the world was viewed forever. Erynn is at her best teaching yoga from a blend of styles; Ashtanga, vinyasa, and yin being among her favorites. A solid understanding of anatomy and alignment mark her descriptive instruction, so beginners and advanced yogis may gain new perspective on the practice of yoga. Be that as it may, what is most loved about her teaching is the way little gems of yoga philosophy and ayurveda are seamlessly woven into the fabric of the class, and her love for yoga radiates with positive energy for all those who arrive on the mat.

Teaching: Weekly Classes and Private Sessions -Active Hatha Yoga

Classes: Mondays at 9:30am; Wednesdays 5:30 and 7:00pm;
and Sundays at 8:30am

Diane Ambrosini, MA, ERYT-500

Yoga Teacher, Personal Trainer, and Biomechanics Specialist. Co-Author of Instructing Hatha Yoga with Kathy Lee Kappmeier. Diane was the co-owner of YogaWell's Rancho San Diego Yoga Center from 2004-2006. She now travels to students’ homes teaching Private Sessions, and teaches Weekend Workshops at AGW and is part of our Teacher Training Staff. Through yoga she has recognized that the mindfulness and realization inherent in yoga practice is an absolute necessity to remain as graceful and sane as possible while being a parent, a spouse and a friend! It is important to her to help others recognize and experience the joys and personal discovery that yoga practice affords. She speaks and teaches internationally at IDEA Health & Fitness Conventions, and also writes yoga related articles for Examiner.com.

TEACHING: Private Sessions at your home.

WEEKLY CLASSES: Thursday 7:30pm Active Hatha Yoga

Carolyn Wheat
Carolyn is our newest teacher and staff member. Trained through A Gentle Way in Gentle Yoga, and the Deepak Chopra Center in Meditation, Carolyn has been a seeker of truth for many years, and credits yoga for opening her up to great awareness and balance.
Carolyn is an award-winning mystery writer, author of 6 books, editor, and anthologist. Two of her Cass Jameson legal mysteries were nominated for Edgar awards, and she's won the Agatha, the Anthony, the Macavity and the Shamus awards for her short stories. Wheat, a former attorney, worked as a public defender in Brooklyn and taught mystery writing at the New School in New York City, and at the University of California, San Diego.

TEACHING: Thursdays 1:30pm Chair Yoga

Jen Edwards, 200 RYT, was trained by Lanita at a Gentle Way Yoga. Jen likes to be active. She enjoys hiking, biking, jogging, at going to the gym. She has done many different kinds of yoga for nearly 10 years. Jen finds Gentle and Hatha/Gentle Yoga to be a good compliment to the other daily activities she enjoys.

Deeply caring, with a beautiful voice and manner Jen helps guide people so they can go deep within to awaken their own profound healing, and calmness. Jen's love of yoga philosophy and care for her student's individual concerns shines though in each of her classes. Jen likes to research issues that people are concerned about may it be physically or emotionally. Jen is an avid reader who loves to read as many inspirational, yoga/spiritual, meditation, cutting edge science and medical, alternative health, and physiology books she can get her hands on.

Some of the comments she has received from her students are:

(From at mother of two young children) "It was like getting a massage at a super low price! It was very relaxing, and stress relieving. Jen has a hypnotic voice that's very calming. I was so relaxed that I fell asleep even though I had plenty of sleep the night before."

(From a middle aged woman visiting her class for the first time)

"Jen's yoga class was a joyful journey of inspiration, peace, safety, well-being, and confident intent."

Jen believes that by taking the time to slow down and stretch, and breathe we all can tap into the centeredness, intuition, and peaceful way of interacting with our world that's always available within each of us.

TEACHING:

Gentle Yoga: Tuesdays - 11:30am

Gentle-Hatha Mix: Wednesdays - 10:00 am

Last Saturday of the month at 3:00 pm every month she teaches the Gentle Yoga Newcomer's class.

Jen's website: http://www.tranquilstorm.ca/index.html