After a lifetime of avoiding all types of movement practice, Zahra (she/her), found yoga very unexpectedly. She signed up for an introductory membership at the local studio with the sole intention of introducing her mother to the practice. Much to her surprise, she fell in love and hasn’t looked back since.

Zahra enjoys teaching a powerful and mindful alignment-based yoga class. She likes to incorporate unique sequences and functional movement into her classes. Her personal asana practice is a potpourri of Rocket, Ashtanga, and Vinyasa Yoga.

Zahra has most recently studied with Jason Crandell and Leslie Kaminoff. Her teaching philosophy is deeply informed by her personal yoga journey – she wants people to walk out of her class with a smile and a sense of mental and physical empowerment.

With a background in dance, Sara has been teaching expressive movement for well over half her life. Having studied to earn her 500hr RYT with master teacher Shiva Rea, each class with Sara is a creative, flowing and inspired exploration of the body and breath in space, a full experience for the senses. You can find her on the mat leading vinyasa classes at extendYoga in Maryland or in the air with aerial classes at Yoga Heights in Washington DC.

After offering a number of fully immersive local yoga retreats, Sara officially launched EndlessOM in 2021. In addition to its flagship Retreat Festival event, Sara hopes to create a sort of "yoga collective" - a growing community of teachers, studios and students coming together for truly unique and transformative experiences, all without having to venture too far from home. For as the Radiance Sutras reminds us, "every perception is an invitation to revelation."

Sara is also an aspiring aerialist, embracing Aerial Dance as a way to fulfill the circus girl dreams of her childhood. And she's also a pretty grateful wife and mother, who in her spare time tie-dyes socks, makes jewelry out of rose petals and studies the mysteries of the Tarot.

With over 10 years of experience teaching yoga in countless settings (yoga studios, gyms, health facilities, public schools, corporate offices, online, and many more), Lika Elwood, ERYT-200, strives to teach with equality, diversity, and inclusiveness in mind. She holds a space for students to move, breathe and be still and supports them with a warm smile along the way.

She teaches students of all levels, backgrounds and ages; encourages them to try new, unconventional poses/transitions, and to modify/amplify their practice based on their own needs and desires.

Lika was born and raised in Syktyvkar, Russia and moved to Washington, DC when she was 24. Her whole life she has been drawn to movement and dance, which eventually led her to yoga. Initially she was drawn to yoga as a way to stay flexible, strong and to find relief for her lower back pain. After a short time however she discovered the power of yoga as a path to a more balanced, compassionate and meaningful life.

After leaving a career in politics and public service, Maggie took a deep dive into the ancient studies of yoga and meditation. Initially looking for a way to naturally support her family, Maggie found Ayurveda, which seeks the root causes that bring disease into our lives and provides the building blocks to establish rituals and routines to support us during challenging times and all times.

As the founder of GRANTED Wellness, Maggie is a certified Health Coach, Yoga and Meditation Instructor, Nutritionist, and Ayurvedic Practitioner. Her passion and nearly 20 years of studies, research and teaching have been honed to be your guide on learning how to get in sync with your true self and discover preventative health techniques and routines best suited for your health needs and well-being goals.

After accidentally discovering hot yoga classes in NYC, Arlet realized how important yoga became to her in order to de-stress and clear her mind. Fast forward to 2011, when she founded and opened extendYoga. In addition to her love for yoga, Arlet is passionate about community building, outreach, and committed to social responsibility and social justice.

Arlet loves sharing her experiences, talents, and fun loving personality with her students and team. She’s also a proud first-generation Armenian who is trilingual (Armenian, Turkish, English), and hopes to share the Armenian culture (and food!) as much as she can with her two young boys; Levon and Avo. When she’s not in the studio, you might find her playing with her kids, creating art, hanging with her husband John, or supporting her Maryland Terrapins.

Jana is passionately committed to sharing yoga with others who need intentional time and movement to internally check-in and align mind, body, and spirit. Jana has been drawn to the practice of yoga since childhood and began practicing as a way to manage stress and anxiety.

Jana is particularly focused on those who, like herself, may struggle to find time to slow down and come home to self. She enjoys creating spaces that invite others to reconnect and realign. Her classes can be described as meditative, grounding, and strengthening. In addition to yoga, Jana is also a policy analyst and a published stylist.

A decade ago, Matthew's friend invited him to a Bikram Yoga class, and while he is not fond of heat nor humidity, he accepted the challenge. For almost two and a half years, he practiced Bikram Yoga four to five days a week, and though he enjoyed the challenge of this particular approach, he sought to broaden his practice. And while his physical body needed the high energy Yang side of the asana practice, he was more attracted to the subtle side — namely Yin, Restorative, Yoga Nidra — as well as various approaches to meditation.

The inspiration to teach struck in 2016, and Matthew completed his 200-hour Vinyasa Yoga teacher training and a 100-hour Yin Yoga teacher training in 2017, followed by certifications in restorative yoga, and Yoga Nidrā. In the spring of 2018, he left his career in congressional affairs to focus exclusively on guiding yoga and meditation. He is also an avid writer who has been featured in Yoga Journal.

Linda is passionate about working with clients of all ages to support them in living their best and most blissful life. She loves creating fun, effective, and focused programs for individuals and groups that combine research-proven techniques with ancient traditions from around the world. At her offerings, you can expect a safe and judgment-free space to pause and “be” in a world that is constantly asking you to “do”. You will be led to connect with your breath, body, and heart with curiosity, openness, and acceptance of the present moment through meditation, movement, inquiry, humor, and journaling.

During her father's terminal illness in 2009 and later while working through her own depression after his death, Linda experienced the tremendous healing power of mindfulness training, and she is grateful to be able to share this with her clients. In addition to being a Mindfulness Based Life Coach through the Maryland University of Integrative Health, Linda participated in the 200-hour vinyasa yoga teacher training at Flow Yoga Center, is Level I iRest certified, is a certified .b mindfulness teacher, and completed the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program (MMTCP) taught by Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield. Linda is an Insight Meditation Community of Washington (IMCW) teacher and the founder of Rooted In Bliss in North Bethesda, where she offers private coaching, mindfulness, Reiki, and yoga sessions.

Leslie has a passion for guiding people to reconnect to their wholeness through the tools of yoga and Ayurveda. They feel that the yoga mat is the perfect place for people to feel at home in their body while exploring their own mind, energy, and spirit to grow closer to Self.

As an experienced instructor and a certified yoga therapist, Leslie loves formulating evidence-based informed yoga practices for a variety of people’s needs. Their classes and offerings are grounded in a trauma-informed approach helping to create feelings of safety, build resiliency, and cultivate interoception.

Leslie is currently a full-time Mind/Body Therapist in a hospital setting mainly focusing on chronic pain, sleep issues, depression, anxiety, and PTSD. They are currently pursuing a master of science in mental health counseling with a focus on somatics and human sexuality. In their spare time, you can find them stand-up paddle boarding, climbing, camping, hiking, reading, enjoying nature, and playing with their cat.

Ayanna is a lifelong athlete who first found yoga in a search for community and belonging. After completing her 200 HR yoga instructor certification with her home studio, extendYoga in Rockville, MD in 2018, she immediately started teaching yoga and its philosophy to a variety of bodies, abilities, and belief systems from mixed martial artists, older adults, children, and college students at American University.

Her passion for yoga centers around introducing the practice to people who wouldn’t traditionally be exposed to it and encouraging her students to go inward for a better understanding of self.

Her business, Ayanna L Wellness LLC, focuses on educating people on how to live a healthy lifestyle through physical activity, yoga, meditation, and healthy eating ultimately impacting future generations.

Whether on the mat or in the air, Amanda’s classes offer each student the opportunity to build at their individual comfort level. In each sequence, she offers varying stages of difficulty encouraging everyone to express themselves uniquely.

Amanda strives to create welcoming, challenging, and creative classes that open pathways for students to fall in love with both the practice and their bodies.

Jonathan's teaching style places an emphasis on keeping movement accessible to all bodies. Supporting students as they cultivate a yoga practice that feels right for them and aiming to dispel the myth that we or our practice needs to look a certain way. This is a practice to meet us where we are and evolve with us over a lifetime.

Breathwork, mindfulness and humor are used to ensure everyone feels comfortable and safe in his classes. Spaces where there is no judgement or expectation, only an exploration of the physical body and a reconnection to our peaceful spirit.

When he's not teaching or practicing, you can generally find Jonathan making abstract coastal landscape paintings, hiking in the woods with his dog, kayaking with his boyfriend, or cooking yummy food.