Meet Adriana
How did you first get into yoga? My mom took me to my first yoga class when I was home from college the first or second summer. It was slow, intentional, and inwardly oriented– very similar to how I teach now. And, to be honest, I…really disliked it. Lying quietly in a room full of random people felt….so weird. It wasn’t until I moved to California and was looking for a way to move my body and find social connection, that I found a very athletic, hot, very fast paced, physically demanding class. You’d be pretty hard pressed to find me in an asana class like that these days but it was just right for what my bodymind needed at that moment. It opened the doorway to the idea that I could be internally attuned, outwardly aware but not hypervigilant, and even ,at times, quiet and still with ease and contentment.
Over the years, my asana practice slowed down and became so much more aligned and attuned particularly after finding Three Queens Yoga in 2014 and then again with the massive pause that was and is the pandemic and the inflection point of the Uprisings in 2020. In this time, I steeped in texts like The Gita, yoga nidra, slow and releasing asana, and my path has continued to reveal itself to me.
My most gratifying yoga moments often happen very far away from my physical yoga spaces. And only sometimes do I recognize them in real time. It’s often the moments of focus or clarity that arise and allow me to live and move and act in ways that get closer and closer to my ideal values and also keep me tethered in the realness and messiness of what it means to be human and the role of grace and divine love– showing up for a friend or the collective more than I thought was possible, slowing down and remembering my breath in a hard conversation, making space for myself and honoring my boundaries, the ability to imagine things can be change and shift for the better, being able to be fully present in moments of joy and gratitude rather than worrying when the joy will fade away. All lessons were well earned but harder to see growing little by little, asana by asana, breath by breath.
The practice is so expansive that it becomes a resource, refuge, and catalyst over different stages of life or across states of mind within a given day. To this day, I still look back on the most basic notes from my first year of study and I can see where I was then and am grateful for the way how the same note can illuminate new, profound wisdom in the now. In this practice, you never stand in the same river twice. Something is always shifting you or your environment or both and yet something also stays steady.
What is your favorite part of teaching yoga? These days my favorite part of teaching is planting seeds like inviting people into deep rest that can lead to a profound experience of self as spirit which is the truth of our being. It might happen in a singular session, it might happen in a longer period of close relationship, it might come through a few sporadic classes spaced over years, and no matter how it happens it’s an honor to be a part of.
What can students expect from your classes? The modality shifts depending on the *what* of what I’m teaching: slow flow and restore will be more chill than a fiery mixed level which will follow a very different path than say pranayama practice groups or yoga nidra. But no matter what, you can expect my classes to have:
Options to meet you where you’re at that moment, whether it be more fire or more restoration, and
Spaciousness to transition mindfully and practice making better decisions for oneself in real time
Seasonal attunement to the shifting natural world and to the wider yogic calendar of celebrations and observances. Honoring the many environments we move through physically, socially, and cosmically.
Invitations to increase your interoceptive awareness and deep inner listening
Reminders of seemingly small techniques and distilled wisdom, philosophy principles to serve you off the mat
Tell us about leading a 200 Hr YTT. What does it mean to you? How does it feel?
After I completed my 200 Hr back in 2015, I took a year to teach before joining Mariel as an assistant teacher for 3 or 4 more rounds, just because I wanted to hear it all again, refine my skills, and stay in the flow that study offers me! So when she sat down to ask Anisha and I if we wanted to take over and co-lead it felt very much like a full circle moment. And it was invitation to bring in aspects that we felt like need more emphasis and clarity for new teachers which is why we bring a number of phenomenal teachers to share their wisdom on The Gita, Sanskrit, Ayurveda, Anatomy, and Decolonization.
What are you looking forward to in this new cycle of 200 Hr YTT?
There’s so much I could say from the curriculum to guests to the dynamic humans are already forming this year’s cohort, but to be honest I’m most looking forward to seeing the magic that happens when we’re together, present, and allow the unfurling that comes with the process. To borrow Anisha’s word, it’s the alchemy. Preparation, the right descriptor words on paper, and a well thought out framework can only take you so far if you don’t have allowance and deep presence on board. Both of which are so valuable in a 10 month program of learning and unlearning and trying and making mistakes and trying and again and applying it all while living in a real sometimes beautiful sometimes greivesome world. Growth isn’t always easy and a YTT can really have you bumping up against your own hard stuff but luckily I often say, Anisha is my favorite person to do hard things with and that rings true. I’m excited to see how we continue to grow as trainers– how our similarities and differences create hold a well rounded space for those ready for the journey with us.
Outside of the studio/yoga, what can we find you doing?
You can find me sweaty and happy in my flower fields, smiling and barefoot and maybe leading a mindfulness sesh in Freedom Greens and Gardens, running around or full lazing with my pittie Almond Butter, out on a day party dance floor, eating a delicious meal my partner Shane whipped up.
We can stay in touch across space and time a few ways:
My newsletter for the contemplative and curious! I’ve always loved to write and here I thread yogic teachings, personal musings, observations of the natural world, guided practices, hopes for humanity, and what’s coming next for me!
My insta is adrianaadele
My website is adrianaadele.com
To learn more about our 200 HR Yoga Teacher Training visit us HERE
