Kristin Leal

Teaches at New York Yoga

Soon after moving to New York City in 1993 to pursue her dance career, Kristin's friend dragged her to her first yoga class at the old Jivamukti yoga school. While she had no idea what anyone was talking about, she immediately fell in love with the poetry of meditation in movement. She studied with her first teachers, Sharon Gannon, David Life, and Katchie Ananda for many years trying to discover and understand herself and this transformative practice she stumbled upon. She hungrily went to every workshop and studied with every teacher that passed through town and completed several teacher trainings with Adrienne Burke (a senior Jivamukti teacher), Rodney Yee, and Betsey Downing PhD. In 1995, she graduated from the Swedish Institute for Massage Therapy and became a Licensed Massage Therapist and Reiki practitioner. She has additional certifications in Thai massage, Neuromuscular and Myofascial release. She has been honored to lead many workshops and teacher trainings around the world and in 2005 Kristin created the Kaya yoga 200 and 300 hour teacher trainings and advanced anatomy series to share her passion for the miracle of the human body and the liberating potential of movement. In 2006 her life changed yet again when she met her teacher Yogiraj Alan Finger. She is beyond thrilled to have been able to work alongside this yogi master helping him to further translate his teachings in the ISHTA Yoga 200 and 300 hour teacher trainings and to help create the ISHTA Marma Point teacher training. She is a co-author of the book "The Yoga Fan" and is currently working on her second book with Alan Finger drawing correlations between the physical and energetic anatomy.