Our Staff
Julie - Owner and Director Apollo Beach Yoga RYT 500
Julie Chavanu's yoga journey began in 1998 when she took a Hot Yoga class as a way to relax and as an alternative to her "real" work out. In 2000, she opened her first yoga studio in Kansas City and created an online directory of the city's yoga classes and studios. She is a 500-hour RYT with Yoga Alliance, holds certifications in NLP and Reiki, and has taken yoga workshops and trainings with Max Strom, Baron Baptiste, Shiva Rea and others. She also has an undergraduate and Master's degree in Economics and previously worked in the telecomunications industry.
Salima - Certified Yoga Instructor RYT200
Salima, a graduate from the Lotus Room/Pond is a 200-hour registered yoga teacher with Yoga Alliance. She was interested in yoga and yoga’s philosophy at a very young age but began her formal practice in 1999 when she was seeking to deepen her spirituality. She soon found that yoga brought an overwhelming sense of joy, freedom, and open-heartedness and taught her to more patiently accept and embrace the changes of life. Her intention is to encourage her students to build strength, calmness, and awareness from the inside to the out. She enjoys infusing her teaching with her affinity for the Kripalu, Iyengar and Anusara disciplines by focusing on alignment, core and grace. She finds peace with nature and a daily practice of meditation and yoga.
Angela - Certified YogaFit Instructor
Angela Yoho was first introduced to Yoga in 2003, when she studied with Laurie Anton in Apollo Beach. As her knowledge and abilities increased, so did her thirst for learning “the Yoga way”, which led her to enroll in the Yogafit institute in Orlando. It was here she earned her certification as an instructor.
She has been active in teaching group classes in our South Hillsborough area, including at Apollo Beach Yoga, which brings an incredible Spirit and Verve to our community. What a gift! Angela continues to study and expand over the seemingly endless continuum of Yoga practice..
Her study of kid’s Yoga includes sessions with Erin Wheeler of Lucky Cat Studio, a renowned expert in the discipline, and she brings a warm patience to her practice that is particularly effective with the younger set.
Mary Ann - Advanced Yoga Instructor
Mary Ann has been practicing yoga since 1999. While experiencing inner-peace and enhanced fitness, her desire to share the experience through teaching grew. She found that her communications abilities, interpersonal, and organizational skills from her professional experience translated to an enhanced student environment. She creates custom classes for her students in order to create a peaceful yet stimulating and challenging learning experience. She primarily practices Hatha (umbrella for several types) Yoga drawing from the Iyengar (ideal physical alignment of body during poses), Ashtanga (power yoga fast-paced and intense) and Vinyasa (Breath-synchronized movement) methods.
Current certifications include FitTour Advanced Yoga Instructor Certification and working toward obtaining the rigorous Yoga Alliance Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) certification.
Mindy - YogaFit Instructor
Mindy is a wife a mother of two children and a yoga instructor. She began her yoga practice about three years ago. It all started for her as she read spiritual books and noticed all the wonderful things they said about yoga and how good it is for the body, mind, and spirit. So she decided to see what yoga was all about. She started to practice yoga two to three times a week and fell in love with it and after less than a year decided to take her trainings through Yoga Fit. She is always looking for ways to expand her knowledge and trainings for yoga, It's her number one goal.
Michael "Mike" Nitch - Tai Chi Instructor (Yang Style) | Certified "Refuse To Be A Victim" Instructor | Gung Fu (Sifu or Teacher)
Sifu Nitch has been in the Art since the early 70's. He has an extensive background in Tai Chi Chuan (aka Tai Chi), Gung Fu (Kung Fu), Self-Defense, and other forms as well. He is a retired Police Officer, graduate of FLETC (Federal Law Enforcement Training Center), holds a Master of Public Administration with a military background as well. He has studied under Richard Konrad and others of the Cheng, Man-Ch'ing lineage. There are many disciples between Cheng, Man-Ch'ing and those before and after him not listed here. Sifu Nitch studied under Master Instructor Melvin Armstrong from Grandmaster Ark Y. Wong's Wah Que Studio and he achieved Sifu ranking in Kung Fu. Sifu Nitch trained at various law enforcement academies in self defense tactics and was part of the self-defense staff at the Region 9 Police Academy. He is a certified "Refuse To Be A Victim" instructor. Additionally, he has completed seminar work under: Master Luo LI, Esther Allen, Taoist Tai Chi Society, AFAA-SEU units, Sifu Glenn Bullock (Nevada) and more. You can read more on Sifu Nitch at www.fivefamilywushu.com.
Teresa - Pilates
Teresa has been fitness minded throughout her life. She loved to ride her bicycle as her main mode of transportation while living in cycle friendly California back in the 80s. In the 80s and 90s she lived in many different warm climate communities. Running and swimming was a way to stay actively fit while being outside. She has participated in a couple of sprint Triathlons just to see if she could do it. Wanting to share the positive feelings this actively fit lifestyle provides she became a spinning instructor in 2004 and a personal trainer in 2006. She believes in having a balance within the spirit, mind and body so to round out her fast paced workouts she started taking Pilates at a Power Pilates studio. She enjoyed the slower, challenging form focused exercises. She became a Pilates instructor through SCW fitness in 2009 which is helping to keep her training and fitness level well rounded.
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