Rebecca Whitrow
Rebecca describes always being passionate about fitness. In her youth, at the age of 16, she became certified to teach fitness classes. Like many of us, life gets busy, and she stepped away from those things that she loved.
Before the COVID-19 lockdown, she decided to get back to her roots in fitness and started training in an area she loved, Yoga. Rebecca looks at the time in lockdown as a blessing. She completed her 200 hours of training to become certified as an Inspirational Yoga Alliance Instructor, and then begin her advanced training as a Master, and You 1st Yoga was born.
In June, she started offering drop-in yoga classes at the park near her home at Alta Vista. She describes being blown away by the response she received from the surrounding communities. With her family’s support, they removed the sea-doos from her in-law’s garage, and she created a yoga studio for the winter. She describes the space as really nice as it’s large enough to social distance and has the comfort of heated floors.
Rebecca Whitrow
Not only does she offer in-person classes at her studio, but she also live-streams her classes, and participants can work on their downward dogs over Zoom. Classes are offered four times a week and are one hour long, and while she has everything you need at her studio, if you want to start from home, you don’t need any special equipment to begin. Participants can simply use a towel or blanket as a yoga mat.
Rebecca describes her philosophy - that it’s so important for you to take care of yourself so you can take care of everyone else – by learning to calm your mind and strengthen your spirit. She always teaches something inspirational; for example, in her most recent class, they worked on gratitude. “Instead of focussing on the things that we don’t have and that we can’t do that we need to, of course, count our blessings. It just changes our heart to feel more joy.”
Her philosophy falls in line with You 1st Yoga’s Mission Statement – To care for the body, calm the mind and strengthen the spirit through movement and inspirational meditation, giving the world the best of you instead of what’s left of you.
Rebecca says that she “teaches people to let go of stress, anxiety, fear and worry. Teaching self-care, presence, gratitude and contentment to help others feel hope, peace and joy.”
To find out more about Rebecca’s classes, you can find her at; www.you1styoga.ca. You can also find her on Instagram and Facebook or by calling 306-535-4993.
- Jennifer Argue, LMT Reporter