Adeline Yoga Studio - Instructor Bios

Adeline Yoga

3320 Adeline Street
Berkeley, CA 94703
Tel: (510)-501-5986
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Teachers
Chris Williams, Owner of Adeline Yoga Studio Jaysi Chander Erin Collom Bridget Frederick Heather Haxo Phillips		Jessie Holland Alan Leon Melinda Morey Melissa Murphy Vince Valente

	Chris Williams Chris has been studying the art of yoga since 1992. Along with studies in India, Chris has completed a one year teacher training at Piedmont Yoga Studio with Rodney Yee and a one year teacher training at Turtle Island Yoga with Tony Briggs. He has also studied extensively with Ramanand Patel. He is currently working on his Iyengar certification under the guidance of senior teachers Manouso Manos and Allan Nett. Chris is the founder of Adeline Yoga Studio. He has been teaching since 1998. His classes are fun, challenging and invigorating.

	Dr. Jaysi Chander Jaysi was born in Chandigarh, India and was raised in Plover, Wisconsin, the town with love in its heart, the home of Plover Potatoes. Jayshree has been practicing yoga in the Iyengar tradition regularly since 1993 and has completed the advanced studies/teacher training program at the Iyengar Yoga Institute in San Francisco. She has studied at the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute in Pune in Feb 1997 and Feb 2008. Jaysi is also a practicing physician in the community clinics in San Francisco and Berkeley. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Medical School and completed a residency in family and community medicine at the University of California-San Francisco. She was a fellow in occupational and environmental medicine at UCSF and earned her MPH in environmental health sciences from UC-Berkeley. She is also an assistant clinical professor without salary at UCSF and creates a podcast about prioritizing well-being at www.neijingnow.org She is a performing artist of kathak, tabla, and poetry and is a dedicated vipassana meditator.

	Erin Collom Erin has been practicing Hatha Yoga for 22 years. A graduate of Piedmont Yoga Studio's advanced training program, her Iyengar-based teaching methods offer accessibility and relief to students of all ages and abilities. Erin's carefully crafted classes provide the pace, sequence, and modification, to serve and support the physical and emotional needs of every student in the room. Visit her website at yogaerin.com

	Bridget Frederick Bridget began studying yoga in 2002 and is a graduate of The Yoga Room's Advanced Studies Program. Her pursuit of yoga came after a back injury that pushed a chronic back problem past her pain threshold. She found relief from the Iyengar focus on alignment and she learned skills to strengthen and heal her back. Bridget has worked with students of all ages - from age nine to ninety-four - and has a strong understanding of different body types and abilities. Individualized attention to each of her students and her adept use of props allow for a comfortable experience of yoga. She draws inspiration from the extensive experience of her Yoga Room teachers: Donald Moyer, Mary Lou Weprin, Gay White, Ada Lusardi, Sandy Blaine and Herta Weinstein.

	Heather Haxo Phillips Heather is a certified Iyengar yoga teacher and has been teaching for nearly 10 years. She focuses on proper alignment and safety for the student. A graduate of the Iyengar Institute in San Francisco, Heather deepens her own practice by regularly studying with the Iyengar family and senior Iyengar teachers. She is a certified restorative yoga teacher with additional training to help those suffering from scoliosis, injuries, or problems with their menstrual cycle. Interested also in nutrition, Heather can provide expertise in creating a healthy diet through raw and whole foods. Heather's love of the art and science of yoga is evident in her teaching. She welcomes people of all abilities and interests to her class. Find out more at www.haxoyoga.com or email heather@haxoyoga.com. You can watch a video about her classes or read Heather's Yelp! reviews.

	Jessie Holland Jessie teaches yoga in the Iyengar tradition. Her classes emphasize the precise alignment taught in the Iyengar system, along with sustained reflection on the connection of the body, mind and breath. She also integrates her studies of Ayurveda into each yoga class, helping students to harmonize the systems of the body with the rhythms of nature. Jessie is eternally grateful for the teachings of all her instructors and students. Jessie is a Clinical Ayurvedic Specialist and Pancha Karma Specialist. She has attended both a 200 hour and 500 hour teacher training program in the Iyengar Tradition. She has recently returned from India where she studied yoga with the Iyengars, and completed a clinical Ayurvedic internship with Dr. Vasant Lad. Jessie's private Ayurvedic practice is in Berkeley.

	Alan Leon Alan is a graduate of Piedmont Yoga Studio Advanced Studies Program since 2001. He has also followed other trainings including a training in pranayama and chanting in N.Y.C. Alan teaches yoga classes around the Bay Area (Namaste yoga, Ironworks, YMCA, Allegro, and the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies) and assists Rodney Yee at yoga conferences and retreats.

	Melinda Morey Melinda has been practicing Iyengar yoga since 1990. She is currently working on the second level of assessment, to become a certified Iyengar instructor. Manouso Manos is her primary teacher. Melinda's understanding of yoga asana (poses) and philosophy is rooted in a strong personal practice. As a surfer, swimmer and former dancer, Melinda brings a broad background of movement and understanding of biomechanics to her teaching. Melinda is also an exhibiting fine artist with a master's degree in art. She brings a spirit of creativity to her teaching. Her work can be seen at www.melindamorey.com

	Melissa Murphy Melissa started practicing yoga as a teenager and began a studying in the Iyengar tradition in 1996 with many wonderful teachers. She recently graduated from the three-year Advanced Studies Program at the Yoga Room (Berkeley) and has been teaching since 2009. Drawing on the yoga principles of balance and alignment, she would like to impart to her students a sense of ease and strength in their practice. She is currently a student of Vedanta philosophy, a reformed lawyer, and would like to do more dancing.

	Vincent Valente Vince has been teaching yoga since 1998. He completed a two-year Iyenger teacher training course with senior Iyenger teachers, Eddy Marks and Mary Obendorfer, in San Diego. He is also certified as a Strength and Conditioning Specialist with the National Strength and Conditioning Association and worked for over eight years as a personal trainer. He is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with a private practice in Berkeley. Early on, Vincent became fascinated with yoga psychology, which influences both his teachings in yoga class and his psychotherapy practice. He has published research on yoga’s impact on the personal and professional life of the psychotherapist and is currently writing about integrating yoga into traditional psychotherapy. Vincent’s classes reflect the Iyengar tradition and cater to the needs and goals of students at various levels. With a lighthearted and compassionate nature, he challenges his students to reach beyond their limits to evolve physically, emotionally and spiritually.