Teachers
This diverse, passionate and unique team of teachers and health professionals are excited to guide you and support you through your weekend journey. Click on any of the images below to learn more:
The Crew
Jen Birenbaum
Jen is a proud mama of 4, creator of hOMe private yoga studio, co-owner of Camp Walden and co-founder of The Yoga Weekend. This beautiful wellness retreat is not only a passion project for Jen, but a culmination of her 15 years of camp experience combined with her love of yoga. Jen’s vision of a community of like-minded people coming together to slow down, grow and connect is the driving force behind this weekend. With her friend and teacher, Sari Fox by her side, nothing short of magic will happen
Sari Nisker-Fox
Yoga Teacher + Mentor, Life & Business Coach, Sari has lived and breathed the fitness and yoga space in Toronto for over 10 years as a practitioner, teacher, and studio owner. Sari’s deep connection to movement as a catalyst for healing and change is reflected in her ever-evolving practice and teaching. A life long learner in numerous movement practices, including, Anusara, Vinyasa, Ashtanga, and Yin, Sari has trained and taught in NYC, LA and Toronto over the past 15 years, leading teacher trainings, immersions and workshops. Sari’s innate curiosity for the mind-body connection and what the contemporary yogi (and non-yogi) needs today, has inspired her to take a deeper dive into Life, Wellness and Business Coaching, both privately and corporately. Be it leading a class or a coaching session, Sari aspires and feels privileged to provide space, support, and be a witness to her students’ and clients’ self-development, both on and off the yoga mat. Sari loves building community and working in collaboration with director, Jen Birenbaum on The Yoga Weekend is pure joy and an honour!
Tracey Soghrati
Tracey’s signature teaching style offers students an intimate exploration of the intersection between mind, breath and body. She has a background and education in biology, molecular biology, nursing, acute care, public health education, and both Swedish and Thai massage. Her yoga practice has been her best friend in all its forms for over 20 years. She has studied with many great teachers, but her greatest love is the yoga therapy method as taught to her by Felicia & Ante Pavlovic combined with yin yoga. She is a teacher’s teacher and has been delivering and reviewing yoga curriculum in Toronto and internationally for over 10 years.
J-P Tamblyn
Love and Dharma are the twin forces behind J-P’s inspiring and heart-felt teaching style. His unrelenting passion, inclusive and accessible instruction, and unwavering commitment to updating the biomechanics of yoga asana have made him a powerful voice in the Canadian yoga community. As the founder of the Ahimsa Yoga Studio, a practice born out of the belief that people deserve a yoga practice that meets them where they are, and offers safe, effective tools to help them move forwards on their own unique path of physical, emotional and spiritual evolution and elevation. He is blissfully married to his Goddess of a wife, Michelle Tamblyn-Sabo, with whom he has two divine yoga-babies, Penelope and William.
Lisa Messina
Thoughtful, insightful, and creative, Lisa creates a safe place for deep listening and courageous exploration. A dancer from an early age, Lisa’s life work has been exploring and sharing her passion through a broad range of movement methods; including dance, Pilates, and yoga. A persistent seeker, she unites a profound understanding for the ancient traditions of the yoga lineage with her research in progressive movement modalities. Lisa is a certified yoga teacher and teacher trainer recognized by the Yoga Alliance (E-RYT 500, YACEP) including; YRT 200Hr from Svyasa Yoga University in Bangalore, 300Hr TT from Octopus Garden Holistic Yoga Centre, Pilates Level 3 Trainer from Taylor’d Pilates. Lisa is currently half-way through her studies in Relational Somatic Psychotherapy with the Three Fold Way.
Kate Gillespie
Hailing from Vancouver with a robust Toronto fan club, Kate brings her passion and own magical insight to yoga. A background in competitive sports and over a decade of studentship, Kate’s accessible and beautiful methods of teaching are appreciated and beloved by students across Canada and Internationally. Kate continues to deepen her personal practice and is currently Inspired by the intelligence of Annie Carpenter’s SmartFLOW and the mindful creativity of Schuyler Grant’s Kula Flow, You can find her leading teacher trainings, workshops and retreats worldwide!
Michelle Tamblyn-Sabo
Michelle’s teaching reveals her profound love and adoration for the feminine body’s inherent wisdom and ability to express truth. With an unquenchable thirst for learning and growth, she has studied extensively in Ahimsa, Restorative, Para and Ashtanga Yoga as well as S Factor Feminine Movement. Michelle is a leader in inspiring women to live a wildly vibrant, sensual and powerful life fuelled by passion, truth in movement, and a deeply nourishing SoulBody connection. In addition to being the creator of Goddess Flow Yoga, Michelle is a mama to two children, teacher trainer, and co-owner of Ahimsa Yoga Centres in the GTA with her husband, J-P Tamblyn-Sabo.
Carmelinda Dimanno
Yoga teacher and DJ, Carmelinda leads a variety of movement practices, inclusive of Yoga, bodyART, and ballet barre. Carmelinda believes and teaches emotional and mental healing through mindful movement with a passion for sharing her philosophy and knowledge of the energetic bodies. Carmelinda’s understanding of what makes a body move as a teacher and DJ, gives her a unique insight to hold space for others.
Karen Gnat
A health maven for over 15 years, Karen was influenced early in her life upon discovering how food, mood, and breath are all interconnected. Her extensive studies in nutrition and yoga has given Karen the opportunities to work in both the public and private sectors in Toronto including; Working with children in schools and families to promote healthy eating and yoga; within a private eating disorder clinic with a focus on meal planning and using yoga to feel the body to help manage anxiety; within Toronto yoga studios as well as privately. Karen’s current nutritional work is family and individual meal planning to create fast and easy meals that help enhance energy in this hectic world! Karen’s central yoga practice is inspiring her students through vinyasa and yin styles, spotlighting mindfulness, philosophy, strength building and more
Jaimee Horn
Ottawa born, Jaimée works as a registered yoga teacher, an independent dance artist and writer in Toronto. As a professionally trained dancer and lover of anatomy she explores the mind, body, spirit connection, and self-awakening that yoga offers, encouraging her students to develop an ability to move with respect and integrity for their own structure, an appreciation for their individual self as well as to find balance and a peaceful physicality. Jamiee’s fluid style of Vinyasa integrates a variety of movement principles, creative sequences that are fun and free-flowing with breath to give way for students to find creative expression through self-inquiry. Jamiee’s teaching and practice are inspired by Don and Amba Stapleton, Schuyler Grant, Sarah Tacy, J-P Tamblyn-Sabo, Rod Stryker, Frey Faust, Kenny Pearl and Samantha Booker. Jaimée is a Lululemon Ambassador and currently teaches throughout the city of Toronto. She is a contributor to The Dance Current magazine and in her spare time, loves to travel, cook, colour, paint, sing, day dream and move. Her goals include learning how to ride a bike with no hands and successfully growing a vegetable garden.
Lisa Barkin
Lisa experienced her first yoga class in her 20’s and loved how it drew on an alchemy of strength, flexibility and balance. In 2008 Lisa took her 200 Yoga Teacher Training at Spynga. She continued her studies with Janice Clarfield, taking her Prenatal Yoga Teacher Training Certification for conscious birthing as well her Yin Yoga Certification with Tracey Belanger Soghrati. Lisa brings to her students not only sound technique on which to base their practice, but also provides a safe and nurturing environment in which they can challenge themselves. Her classes are not just about stretching the body but also about expanding horizons. She is a committed instructor who presents music-based asana classes. She creates a feeling of well-being and empowerment in sincere, natural and authentic yoga classes. It’s not only about the physical practice but lifting the spirit as well. Lisa feels privileged to learn from the community of teachers including Sari Nisker, Tracey Belanger Soghrati, Sadie Nardini and Michael Siddall as well as her students and everybody she connects with on a daily basis. Her belief in maximizing potential by integrating mind, body and soul truly motivates others to achieve their goals.
Elisse Peltz
Elisse was introduced to yoga in high school when she stumbled upon a yoga instruction manual in her parent’s library. Since 1995, Elisse has been a dedicated practitioner upon attending her first group led class at McGill University. Elisse became a certified instructor at Yoga People in New York in 2004 and has since deepened her knowledge of the discipline with a Restorative Teacher Training Program 520 hour yoga & restorative teacher training. She has taught throughout Toronto’s yoga communities, schools, boardrooms, weight loss clinics and privately to encourage accessibility for all types of people who want to learn what yoga has to offer. As a healing professional for 20 years, Elisse provides psychotherapeutic counselling in private practice for individuals, couples and families with a mind body focus. Her belief in the healing effects of yoga, Elisse combined her passion for yoga with traditional psychotherapeutic techniques and become a certified Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy Practitioner in 2008. Elisse weaves healing yoga teachings and psychotherapy to promote healing and the exploration of the relationship between body, mind and spirit.
Carla Weinstein
A lawyer by training, Carla has taken her enthusiasm for inquiry, analytics, research and creativity and applied it to the world of wellness. Her passion is mindfulness – where science meets contemplative practices. Carla is dedicated to working with people in many capacities, helping to revolutionize the way we care for our minds, our bodies and ourselves. Building on her extensive training in yoga, meditation and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, Carla founded The Drop In Project, a vehicle through which she creates bespoke programming that is truly accessible and resonates with the specific needs of her clientele. At the heart of her work is the notion that: “Each time you ‘drop in’ your body has changed in some way; your mind has shifted – giving you insight into how you will face the world that moment, that day.”
Alexandria
Alexandria lives her life guided by love and believes in peace and harmony amongst all living and sentient beings. Accomplished yoga teacher, sound healer, Reiki master, and musician, Alexandria she has had the pleasure of teaching thousands of people and children across the Toronto area. Cultivating awareness and connecting people to their bodies is at the heart of her teaching through crystal singing bowls, Djing since her yoga journey began 13 years ago. A brand ambassador and global builder, Alexandria has created the NULOVE, Awaken and Zen Dogs Wellness brands which marry the power of yoga, wellness, and music.
Jonathan Phair
Jonathan’s practice began as physical and transformed as he discovered there was more to yoga than down-dog. He found yoga 10 years ago while he was working overseas, and it has kept him grounded and inspired as he slowly made his way back to Toronto! Jonathan focuses on how yoga can improve functional movement, the importance of alignment and stability, and how to keep your body safe while practicing. He often challenges his students to rethink each pose and their practice so that it better serves themselves. In his class you can expect to be given the tools to take ownership of your practice and to have a few laughs along the way.
Queenie Phair
Queenie’s practice is something that reminds her how powerful the body can be. She has practiced for over 10 years all over the world. Learning from teachers with different points of view has helped her to create a practice that has developed her own unique outlook on yoga. Queenie’s favourite classes to teach are generally faster-paced, vinyasa-power style, where she will encourage you to marry your breath to the movement of the body. She uses each class to teach both fundamental postures and techniques while at the same time introducing interesting new flows and target postures. Expect to be asked to smile while in her classes, and to sweat.
Jodi Larry
Being brought back to health by a naturopath after contracting a rare illness while traveling with her family at a young age, determined Jodi’s destiny. For over a decade, Jodi has brought hundreds in Toronto back to life by sharing her passion and experience of what living holistically really looks like. Through her busy private practice, wellness studios and corporations, Jodi shares her philosophy about clean, wholesome diets and self-care practices that inspires mind-body health and well-being. Jodi’s innovative cleanse programs have garnered a lot of popularity, both locally and beyond.
Jeannine Woodall
Jeannine Woodall is an Advanced Certified Jivamukti Yoga Teacher and has been teaching yoga for over twenty years. She was Co-Director of Jivamukti Yoga Toronto and Director of Rainbow Body Yoga in Toronto. Her yoga training includes advanced certification from Sharon Gannon and David Life, and many years of practice and guidance under Ron Reid and Diane Bruni in the ashtanga method. She is also a long-time practitioner of Buddhist meditation in the Niyingma Tibetan lineage. Currently Jeannine works as Director of Academic Services and Student Life at Rotman Commerce, University of Toronto. After being called to the Bar of Ontario, she worked as legal counsel, writer and researcher, and in various senior management roles at Osgoode Hall Law School. Jeannine teaches regular yoga classes in studios in Toronto and leads yoga and meditation retreats around the world. Jeannine’s aim is to share her love of practice and inspire people to be happy and free.
Mandy Elizabeth
Mandy lives and breathes her yoga practice, embodying unconditional love and the path of divine oneness. For over 6 years, Mandy has been devoted to studying, practicing and experiencing the ancient practices of Yoga: Asana, Meditation, Ayurveda, Kirtan, Mantra, Jnana, Prayer, and Vedic Ritual. Mandy’s gentle classes are layered with dynamic techniques to invoke transformation unique to each student. Her teaching style is said to be almost ‘poetic’ in nature and guides students on an experiential journey through self-inquiry and surrender; coming home to joy. As a devotee on the path to her own spiritual awakening, you’ll find Mandy traveling regularly to study with her beloved teachers: Ramananda Mayi, Lily Goncalves, and Amma Shri Karunamayi. As a full-time yogi, Mandy has completed 1500+ hours of certified training, and countless hours of experiential learning/daily practice.