Janice has been an integral part of the Ottawa yoga community for over 20 years, bringing decades of experience, study, teaching and mentorship to her work. Throughout her career, she has travelled internationally teaching movement, fitness and yoga, and has returned to Ottawa over the years to lead Teacher Trainings, workshops and classes.
A dedicated lifelong student and teacher, Janice has completed five Teacher Trainings with renowned teacher Richard Freeman, experiences that have had a profound influence on and inspired her teaching. She also had the opportunity to study with Pattabhi Jois during his visit to Canada. Her practice extends beyond asana, with a special connection to meditation developed through her studies at the Shambhala Center in Boulder, Colorado.
Janice is honoured to be part of the PranaShanti Yoga Centre faculty for both the Summer and Fall 200-Hour Hatha Yoga Teacher Training programs. She also contributes to the 300-Hour Teacher Training program through workshops that provide students with opportunities to deepen their...
Sue's yoga and meditation journey began about 30 years ago in graduate school. Much of her early training was in the Iyengar tradition, and living and travelling in many countries gave her the opportunity to explore different yoga styles and integrate these into her own practice.
After years of yoga practice on the side of a busy international development career, Sue had the opportunity to switch the balance and put yoga at the centre. She was drawn to teaching as the pathway to deeper engagement, and she completed her 200-hour Hatha Yoga Teacher Training at PranaShanti in 2022 and is a registered yoga teacher with Yoga Alliance.
Sue's teaching is grounded in connecting the body and breath through mindful movement, and developing a greater awareness of our own physical and mental alignment. Sue also continues her yoga journey by working toward the 300-hour HYTT certification at PranaShanti, including training in restorative yoga, pranayama, and biomechanics....
Bren’s mission is to help you advance your yoga practice, live in tune with the seasons, and experience the benefits of meditation (even if you don’t like to sit still!).
In her classes you will find clear, directive language, and respect for your individual anatomy and experience. She specializes in the connection between Yin Yoga and Traditional Chinese Medicine and creative sequencing in both strengthening and gentle Flow styles. Bren is passionate about helping practitioners realize they are the observer of their experience and to share in a practice of intentional choices that help bring one to present moment awareness.
Bren is a long-time yoga practitioner, and has used traditional yoga practices as well as modern mindfulness and psychology to greatly improve her sleep, become less reactive, and to find some peace in both stillness and movement.
She holds RYT500 designation and has taken additional trainings in Yin, Mindfulness, Yoga for Chronic Pain, and is a Trauma Informed Facilitator.
When not teaching or practicing...
Randy is a registered yoga teacher completing his 200 Hr YTT in 2018 and since then certified in Yin, Restorative, Meditation and Yoga Nidra. A daily practice of meditation, breath-work, vulnerability and gratitude are the foundation of his practice.
Randy's background has always included regular fitness activities having completed multiple Ironman races, marathons, 100 km fundraising runs, endurance ski events, lake swimming, self guided biking vacations and anything outdoors.
As co-founder of 24 Hr Yogapalooza, an annual fundraiser for cancer research at CHEO, Randy has a special connection with the Ottawa Gatineau yoga community and is always recruiting volunteers. This event has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for research.
Randy specializes in Hatha, Power, Yin, Meditation and Nidra.
When you attend his class you will soon discover his compassionate, authentic caring and soulful nature. Vulnerability is welcomed, and judgement not so much. Randy brings a lifetime of experience, and known for story telling.
You will be invited/challenged to explore and accept your edges, focusing on how...
Venus has always had a naturally busy mind—brimming with energy, constantly in motion, and always eager for the next challenge. Slowing down was never easy for her. For years, she believed that only high-intensity workouts could keep up with her pace and help release the stress accumulated each day.
When she first tried yoga, it was a challenge. Yoga asked her to slow down without physical exhaustion, which felt unfamiliar and difficult. But over time, she discovered that yoga isn’t about slowing down—it’s about tuning in. It brought a sense of calm she hadn’t been able to access through any other practice. . Through yoga, her sleep improved, her focus increased, and her connection with herself and others deepened.
Now, with over 16 years of dedicated practice, Venus is completing her 300-hour Yoga Teacher Training at PranaShanti, where she is deepening her spiritual connection to the practice and learning how to offer more inclusive and accessible classes for all bodies and backgrounds.
Alongside...
Alexis’ interest in yoga began in childhood through her parents. She began practicing regularly in university and completed her first 200 hour teacher training in 2010. Since then, Alexis has continued to take trainings and workshops. She has achieved her 500 hour designation for Hatha yoga and, most recently, completed her level 1 Kundalini teacher training. Alexis teaches Hatha, flow, hot, Yin and Kundalini styles of yoga. Her personal practice reflects these styles but she has really enjoyed delving deeper into meditation and mantra through her Kundalini practice.
Having a regular practice brings a sense of calm and comfort into your life. Alexis has found that yoga makes being in her own skin more comfortable, both physically and mentally. A regular practice also brings deeper compassion for other beings and provides more balance to her busy lifestyle of being a high school teacher and mother. Pranayama and meditation are excellent stress management tools and the sense of spirituality and community that...
Lindsay is a certified yoga and barre teacher who is dedicated to meeting people wherever they are on their wellness journey. Lindsay’s mission is to help folks feel grounded in their bodies and minds, fostering a sense of empowerment and self-discovery.
Lindsay grew up as a dancer and came to yoga in her teens as a way of taking care of her body. She had no idea the benefits of yoga extended so far beyond the mat! She is grateful to have trained with teachers she admired in Toronto in 2017 and 2018, and to be settling into the yoga community in her hometown of Ottawa. Lindsay loves a good slow flow or a juicy Hatha class, and she looks forward to helping create a nurturing and supportive environment where folks can realize their inner strength and recognize that they are capable of more than they believe....
Born in Mexico City, I started doing yoga when I was 14 years old after my mom introduced me to it.
I recently completed the 200 Hours Hatha Yoga Teacher Training at PranaShanti Yoga Centre.
Yoga has been a life changer on me. It plays a big role in my daily life and I love it so much that sharing it with other people makes my heart burst with happiness.
Additionally, I also enjoy biking, crocheting, and travelling....
Eric's wellness journey began at a young age, when at his first Karate classes he learned about the benefits of meditation and physical exercise. This later led him to explore the practice of Yoga and in 2005 he completed his first Yoga Teacher Training. In 2009, he graduated with distinction from La Cite Collegiale as a Physical and Occupational Therapy Assistant and began to explore how Yoga and Mindfulness might be used in Rehabilitation.
He travelled to India and has been classically trained in Rishikesh, the world capital of Yoga, under the tutelage of his present-day Guru. He went on to complete further levels of training, including two 500-hour Yoga Master Programs and received the title of Yoga Acharya, Master of Yoga, M.Y. from the International Sivanada Yoga Vedanta Centre. He has taught and travelled extensively abroad from India to Thailand, the Maldives, Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, Vancouver and Hong Kong, leading numerous yoga teacher trainings, workshops, and retreats.
During his travels he...
Katherine completed her initial teacher training, here in Ottawa, in 2012. She has been teaching yoga and meditation in the Ottawa-Gatineau region ever since - in studios as well as within the local health and social service sector - alongside her work as a psychotherapist and clinical manager.
Since 2016, Katherine is trained and certified as a yoga therapist within the Krishnamacharya tradition of yoga, also known as Viniyoga. She continues to study, practice, and receive mentorship in this tradition, while continuing to explore the vast wisdom of yoga across all lineages and schools of thought. She has weaved yoga therapy into the fabric of her life and career because she knows its effectiveness in restoring wellness first hand, and sees the results in the people she works with.
She is a mother, a dog-owner, a nature-lover, and writer, who is always looking for ways to deepen her own practice. You can count on Katherine's classes to be breath-centered, regardless of the...
