Our Teachers

Hi, my name is Grace and I am a Senior Yoga Alliance Teacher, fully insured, with over 17 years teaching and bodywork experience. I founded Central Wellness in 2016.

I am registered RELAX AND RENEW® LEVEL 1 Restorative yoga teacher and a Yogacampus Yoga for Stress and Burnout  specialist teacher. I am an experienced body worker specialising in Therapeutic Massage and most recently trained as a Positive Psychology Practitioner for professional development and personal wellbeing.

I teach weekly Vinyasa Flow Yoga classes which are intelligent, thoughtful sequenced movements with mindful breathing helping to release patterns of tension held in the body and understand the importance of the body-mind connection to mental wellbeing. Along side my classes I hold regular workshops and retreats in restorative yoga and meditation.

My teaching is founded in the philosophy of the yoga tradition, but with the modern approach of Positive Psychology of evidence-based self-help tools raising your level of happiness, meaning and satisfaction in life.  Instead of the more traditional ‘disease approach’ of focusing on the problem, Positive Psychology concentrates on a  person's strengths, optimism and resilience.

James has been practicing Yoga for over five years. He was persuaded to go to his first class by a physiotherapist after he had badly damaged his spine in a mountain bike accident.

Yoga assisted his back injury in recovery and then really improved his mobility and fitness. As his practice developed, he discovered that through connecting with his breath this calmed his busy mind.

Whilst working in a fast paced and sometimes dangerous occupation, he used the techniques learned in yoga and meditation to remain calm, steady and focused.

In 2018 James completed a 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training Course with Paul Dallaghan at Samahita in Thailand. He began teaching in 2019 and still continues to practice at Central Wellness Studio.

James' Vinyasa Flow Class uses a variety of traditional and non standard movements to allow students to find space in the body and connect with the breath. He would like his students to leave his class feeling that they have worked their body, moved out of the mind and into the body, found calmness and the satisfying and enjoyable feeling achieved at the end of a yoga practice.

Jo is a certified 500 hour, fully insured teacher with over 10 years' of experience.

Whilst living in Sydney, Jo was introduced to Ashtanga yoga.  On her way back to England she spent time under the tuition of Sri K. Patthabi Jois and his grandson Sharath in Mysore, India.  She completed her teacher training with the British Wheel of Yoga in 2006 and soon after trained to teach yoga to children with special needs, with Jo Manuel at the Special Yoga Centre in London.  Five years later, whilst pregnant with her first baby, Jo trained to teach pre-natal yoga with Judy Cameron, a wonderfully inspiring midwife. 

Jo has experience of many styles of yoga; Ashtanga, Sun Power, Yin, Restorative, Hot Yoga and for the last ten years, Jivamukti Yoga, under the guiding hand of Andrea Kwiatkowski.  Her teaching draws upon all these influences. 

Jo’s practice continues to evolve as life takes its twists and turns. Yoga has provided her with a strength and comfort ever since she first tried a class, and she looks forward to sharing the benefits of the practice with you. 

Upon finishing his degree in Philosophical Studies in 2008, John took to travelling to experience the world. Eventually landing in Hong Kong, John’s first yoga class was a hot class and soon after he found Ashtanga Vinyasa as the practice for him. The focus and discipline this system provided helped John truly commit to the yogic path.

A few years later, it was a trip to Thailand to study with Paul Dallaghan and his team which helped John discover new depths to his practice. John found great benefits from the Kriyas, Pranayamas and Mantras he learnt there, developing a meditative aspect which helped bring clarity and calmness to his life. During his years in Hong Kong, John is also very grateful to Connie for guiding him with his asana practice.

“The beauty of your practice is in your breath” is the mantra John bases his classes from. John believes that even in the most energetic classes there should be a firm grounding quality and stillness of the mind. Keeping his teaching simple and humble, John hopes to guide his students with proper alignment and attention to their breath.

Pascha was first drawn to yoga because she recognised something very special in all her yoga teachers. Even though they taught different styles and had different personalities they all had a common trait and that was that they had a genuine sense of love, kindness and compassion towards their students. When faced with a challenging time in her life battling cancer, her yoga practice kept her strong both physically and mentally and provided her with a sense of stability. As soon as she was in remission and was fit enough to travel, Pascha travelled to Rishikesh in India and completed her teacher training so she too could share this amazing practice with others and hopefully be there to support others in the same way as her yoga teachers did for her. Pascha teaches both Hatha and Vinyasa styles and enjoys teaching everybody from absolute beginners to the more seasoned and experienced. Her approach is holistic and her classes are designed to nurture and nourish the relationship between our mind, body and soul.

My name is Lou Hounsfield. I have been practising yoga for 5 years. To begin with I found yoga a useful tool to release tension, relax and feel calm. As my passion for yoga grew i found i wanted to help others feel this same stillness. I completed a 200 hour Hatha Yoga course and became a fully insured Yoga instructor in 2017.

Through a mix of Mantra (chanting), Pranayama (breath control), Asana (physical postures) and Meditation my aim is for everyone to feel the connection between body, mind, energy and spirit. To be aware of whats happening internally and externally at the same time.

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Facebook: www.facebook.com/lousyoga/
Email: lou_grantham@hotmail.co.uk

I am a Meditation Teacher and Counsellor here at Central Wellness. My meditation practice began when I was a student in Beijing in 2008. To begin with I just went along to a weekly class but during the summer holidays I spent nearly every day with my teacher, Master Wei. My lessons included many hours on the mat but we also spent a lot of time in nature and in the various hospital wards learning first-hand about what it means to be human and how to apply mindfulness to our daily lives. During the winter of 2008 I had my first taste of intensive retreat under the guidance of Mingyi and Mingji and their teacher Master Jing hui at the Sizusi Monastery in southern China. The Zen practice was disciplined and tough, but it gave me my first taste of how the mind can become still and clear.

After my studies had finished, I left China and went to practice intensive meditation under the guidance of Sayadaw U Vivekannda,  a world renowned Vipassana teacher at Panditarama, Lumbini. The Vipassana practice was even tougher than Zen, we woke up at 3.30am and Meditated in silence every day until 9.30pm. All movements were done in slow motion to maintain continuous awareness and no form of entertainment or distraction were permitted. My first stay here was for 5 months, but then I went back on subsequent years, first for another 5 months and then 9 months the year after. During these years, a general stilling of the mind started to occur along with an unfolding of equanimity and insight. I also spent a lot of time studying the practice of compassion and loving kindness with a Burmese Nun, Sayalay Bhaddamanika.

On returning to England and settling back into life in the west, I became interested in how clinical mindfulness was being used and how Psychotherapy could be used alongside meditation. During this time I participated in an 8 week Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction course and marvelled at how the creators of this course had captured the very essence of the meditation practice I had learnt in the east and were using it to help people find ease from ailments such as depression, anxiety and chronic pain. I later trained as a Mindfulness teacher at Bangor University and leading these 8 week courses is now one of the most enjoyable aspects of my work.  My life is quite busy these days, I love the work I do, but also enjoy my yearly meditation retreat when I leave worldly issues behind and spend a few months dwelling in the peace and clarity of the mind.

After my second long retreat in Nepal, I was struggling with lots of difficult memories from the past and I read about how Psychotherapy could help. I sought out a skilled therapist and saw her regularly for 2 years. My experiences in therapy alongside the fact that the people coming to me for meditation lessons were holding a great deal of pain which required more skill and understanding than I currently had, led me to train as a counsellor. I always feel very honoured when doing counselling work, to be allowed into a person’s world and walk alongside them in their pain for as long as they need. 

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hello@justiniles.co.uk

www.justiniles.co.uk

Cheng Jie is the Taoist name of James Screeton who teaches Taichi. He is currently studying TCM acupuncture at Lincoln university and is also a  24th generation disciple of the Chun Yang Cheng Wudang Daoist sect. He has spent time studying and living at the Five Immortals Temple at Wudang, first going in the summer of 2015 and then again in the summer of 2017. He is studying various forms of martial arts including various styles of Taichi and Kung Fu and is an official Taichi teacher for the ITSWA school of Chinese martial arts.

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Atma has traveled internationally, training and practicing the teachings of Yogi Bhajan and serving people to reach their full potential though yoga and meditation. On completion of her Kundalini instructor training with Karta Singh and Amrit Nam Sarovar, Atma continues her training at practitioner level under the guidance Shiv Charan Singh.

Atma is a member of the Kundalini Yoga teachers association and adheres to their ethical code of conduct and professional practice. Atma enjoys studying the sacred scriptures and is currently completing an M.A Theology. 

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I have  been practicing yoga for 5 years, having initially discovered it to be a useful tool to calm my mind.  Since adopting a regular practice, I have found benefits extending to every corner of my life. Over the last two years I shared my experience with friends and family, hoping that yoga could bring light to their lives in the same way it has mine. The result was so wonderful that I was inspired to travel to India to become a certified yoga teacher. I am registered with the Yoga Alliance.

My teaching qualification was multi-style, but my preferred styles are Hatha and Yin. 

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charlottelumleyyoga@gmail.com

My name is Agnieszka (Aga) Postola. I have been practising yoga for about 15 years. At some point I really wanted to share my passion and the goodness I received from yoga with other people. I completed a 200 hour Hatha Yoga course and became a certified and fully insured Yoga teacher registered with the Yoga Alliance. 

I am excited to be teaching the first early morning classes at Central Wellness on Fridays from 6:30 to 7:30. To learn more about these classes or to book in, please get in touch with me.

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My name is Stevi Pullen and I’m a qualified Theraplay informed Counsellor Triple P parenting practitioner and kids yoga dance teacher. I have over 17 years experience of working with children, young people and their families in a variety of settings.

I’m extremely passionate about all beings but have a strong pull to work with children and young people to help them unveil the bright light within. They are the future and key to bringing about more consciousness in the world. They are my favourite people to be with as they see the world with wonderment and curiosity.  This truly is a blessing and refreshing in this judgemental world. I want to give them space for self-discovery and an awareness of self and instil in them the fact they are a part of something much bigger than themselves.

Yoga is not a destination but a journey.  That said, I will continue to learn read attend workshops ongoing CPD and training.

I can’t wait to see you on a magic mat, riding into a fantastic yoga adventure!   

Liz Underwood has been teaching yoga for over 11 years. She trained at the Nosara Institute, whose teachers; Don and Amber Stapleton were some of the original teachers at The Kripalu Institute. A yoga related injury led her to read "Anatomy & Asana, preventing Yoga Injuries" by Susi Hately and in 2012 she went to Canada to train in Susi’s Yoga Therapy Certification programme. Liz is now one of only four teachers across Europe to have qualified with Susi.

Liz has over 10 years experience in teaching Pregnancy Yoga and is also qualified to teach Mother & Baby Yoga. Her nurturing approach led her to train in Restorative Yoga with Judith Lasater.

An interest in healthy movement for mind and body led Liz to Somatics and she continues to train with Martha Peterson.

Liz creates an environment for exploration and enquiry through Therapeutic Yoga and Somatics which she describes as an intelligent movement practice, one that makes sense to the mind and body, helping her students and clients to deepen their awareness and connection of mind, body and breath.  

Liz specialises in Therapeutic Yoga and Somatic classes and is available for private consultations in Lincoln.

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