Imagine, A Yoga Studio

Four years ago when I took my first yoga class, I found myself quickly transformed by the many benefits including focused awareness, increased flexibility and a strengthened body and mind.

Yoga became such a positive force in my life that I left my “day job” and pursued my teaching credentials at yogaview. I knew in my heart that I really wanted to open a studio, and after I moved to Rogers Park I realized I'd found the perfect neighborhood.

My classes represent who I am and how I like to practice. I offer challenging but approachable moves set to stellar tunes. All bodies are different and I find inspiration in each student that comes to my class. My goal is that at the end of my class, you will be 95% ready for Savasana (the final resting pose) but still 5% ready to keep on going.

Yoga has been such a blessing for my life - I wish everyone could do more yoga!

Beka

I came to yoga a few years ago at the encouragement of my mother when she recognized I was struggling emotionally following a divorce. Even at that first practice, I felt as if my little ship was no longer caught in a frigid ocean storm being tossed on raging tidal waves; yoga had guided me to a safe tranquil harbor. Only a few years later, I left Detroit for California to pursue my teacher training at YogaWorks.

In my personal asana practice, I have felt moments of grace and peace. The philosophy inspires me to live consciously, to stay in the present, and to find contentment. In my classes, I hope to create a practice that allows students to experience their own peace and grace. The practices I guide are more about slowing down, focusing, and encouraging a calm mind, while still offering a physical challenge. In my yoga, the poses are the journey, not the destination. Success is measured in the effort, not the outcome.

Rachel

I embrace yoga as a way to explore fearlessness and the endless possibilities that we all have inside of us. I received my certification through the Temple of Kriya Yoga.

I enjoy teaching a wide variety of people, and in addition to teaching at Imagine, I travel to high schools and downtown offices teaching yoga for my company Yoga Break Chicago. Working with everyone from teenagers to corporate executives has taught me so much. It is my hope that when you come to my class you will feel powerful and realize that everything you need is already available to you.

Gina

I have been practicing yoga for almost twenty years. Like many people, I started taking class as a way to alleviate severe back pain. I never dreamed that the practice would transform my life in so many other ways as well. Over the years, I have moved from a traditional hatha practice to the physicality of ashtanga to a joyously free-wheeling vinyasa flow.

My classes combine the rigor (and sweatiness--don't forget your towel!) of power yoga with precise attention to alignment and a playlist more likely to include James Brown than Krishna Das. When not teaching or practicing yoga, I teach American history at Northwestern University.

Lane

I was first introduced to yoga as a teenager. I began to practice regularly during my graduate studies in Physical Therapy and grew to appreciate yoga’s ability to help maintain physical strength and reduce stress.

After completing my clinical doctorate, I began working full-time as a Physical Therapist at a small community hospital in Chicago. Wanting to find a way to help promote wellness and preventative medicine, I received my teaching certificate in Vinyasa Flow from yogaview. I enjoy creating a moving meditation with my practice in order to develop rest and stillness, and I strive to incorporate this style of peace into my classes.

Meghan

For me, yoga is about sustained joy and a journey into self-awareness and generosity. During the past 9 years, it has been the main lens through which I see the world. Looking at myself, my relationships, my environment, my past, present and future through the optimistic philosophy of yoga has helped me change significantly. Yoga has taken me to study in India twice and embrace the teachings in their origin.

The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali, considered the cornerstone text in Yoga, is an important component of my classes - from breath awareness at the beginning, to the flow of poses, until we reach a more internal and meditative state at the end of class.

Lucia

I discovered yoga in 2003 and quickly realized there was more to the practice than the physical benefits. Through the combination of breath and movement, I found the potential for creating more space and a calmness in the mind and in the body. I was hooked.

I credit these, as well as many other strengths discovered through my own practice of yoga, as a guidance through my two pregnancies and births. I continue to rely on yoga physical practice and its benefits everyday, especially as a mother of two young boys. Excited to share these discoveries with others, I decided to become a teacher. I completed yogaview’s teacher training, as well as an additional prenatal teacher training with Dee Davis.

I like to share a positive energy in my subtle teaching style, and I encourage students to find strength in gentleness and gentleness in strength. I instill peace and harmony throughout my classes while guiding students through asana practice at a steady, calm pace.

Caryn

In an effort to alleviate the scoliosis-related back pain that afflicted me for years, I skeptically entered my first yoga studio hoping simply for pain relief. It did not take many classes for me to begin realizing the physical benefits of yoga, and after learning to integrate breathing with movement, I began to receive the emotional benefits as well.

I am continuously amazed by the parallels between life on and off the mat, and I sincerely believe that everyone can benefit from a regular yoga practice. I strive to create a nurturing, welcoming and unintimidating space, where students are encouraged to find their balance between effort and ease. I am grateful to live in a city where the options for yoga are plentiful, and I am appreciative for my teachers throughout Chicago. I received my certification at yogaview in Chicago.

Dede

After discovering yoga in college, I became serious about my practice after moving to Chicago and finding the vibrant yoga community here. I received my certification through Yoga Now in February 2011 under the inspiring teaching of Amy Beth Treciokas and Jen Enders.

I am passionate about sharing the empowering message of yoga. My own practice continues to get me in touch with my inner strength and knowledge, constantly reaffirming that by cultivating self-awareness and self-compassion we find our own innate power to heal. I draw from a wide range of styles and philosophies to help my students connect to their inner healer, both on and off the mat. Whatever your level or reason for practicing, I look forward to sharing some breath and laughter with you!

Leona

I took my first yoga class twelve years ago and was immediately delighted at the parallels between yoga and the struggles of everyday life. Since then the practice of yoga has become a constant in my own life. I completed my initial teacher training with Tias Little at Yoga Source in Santa Fe, NM in 2002 and have been teaching yoga ever since. I have also studied with the teachers at Yogaview in Chicago and am certified in prenatal yoga.

In my classes I aim to create an atmosphere where students can experiment with physical poses and reflect on their internal process. I encourage my students to be their own best teacher by tuning into their inner voice and finding their path. I hope to share the gratitude I feel every time I step on my mat to teach or practice.

Lee