Anne Van Valkenburg

I started practicing yoga in 1999 and have been teaching at Yoga Works since 2003. I teach public classes and personal clients in Los Angeles, as well as travel nationally and internationally teaching the Yoga Works 200-Hour and 500-Hour Teacher Training Programs. The heart of my teaching is alignment-based vinyasa taught with thematic sequences that tell a story and that challenge students to slow down. I am passionate about teaching the nuts and bolts of the physical practice, as well as weaving in the philosophy of the "Eight Limbs of Yoga." I enjoy creating a space for students where they can define their own meaning of yoga. My hopes are to inspire students to look beyond the physical and to use the whole practice of yoga as a means to deepen the connection with one's true self. Ultimately yoga teaches us to go inward, and by creating an attitude of santosha, or contentment, we are able to embrace all of the parts of our self and can harmonize with the world around us. We can be grateful for not just one thing, but everything. The practice of yoga teaches us how to live with an open heart and with a willingness to dig deeper.