Upcoming events and trainings - click HERE For more info.

accepting applications for our modular 300-hour advanced yoga teacher training.

Sound healing with juju, august 15, 6-7:15p.

Trauma informed yoga training with casey urban, September 12-14, 19-21.

Now enrolling for 2026 200-hour teacher training! January-March 2026.

Retreat to Nosara with adrian and Lauren, january 17-24, 2026.

the gift of wellness is always in season. our gift cards are good at both The Yoga Dojo and Theta Wellness. e-gift cards are available at the link below, or stop by the studio to pick up a physical card.

Adrian McCavitt

Instructor

Adrian got into yoga after needing a real life change. He decided to take a chance on a yoga class after hearing about its positive effects on the mind and body. He has a strong background in rock climbing, so he took to the strength and balance aspects of yoga quickly.  Finding a real love and challenge in what he likes to call the architecture of  movement, as it primes and conditions us for all other types of movement, he knew instantly that this was going to be something life changing.

After benefiting so much from yoga in mind and body, and feeling first hand the transformational effects on his entire outlook and perspective on life, he felt very called to teach. Adrian received his 200 hour Ashtanga training along with his Rocket teacher certification from Asta Yoga in San Francisco, CA. He completed his 300 hour certification under the guidance of Marie Belle and Roots Love Yoga. With the benefit of retrospect, he feels that what we are all searching for is in fact searching for us too.

Lauren Nottingham

Instructor

Lauren started her journey into yoga in high school, when her aunt gave her a mat and a yoga video, thinking it would complement her background in dance and movement. She dabbled with a home practice through the years, but nothing ever really stuck. Eventually, while going through some big life changes, she was drawn to the practice while looking for something more meaningful in life. 

As her practice intensified, Lauren felt a strong calling to share her love of yoga with others. She completed her 200 hour training under the guidance of J Miles, followed by her Rocket teacher training at Asta Yoga in San Francisco with Steve Pyka and Rene Henley. She completed her 300 hour certification at Asheville Yoga Center. Along with Rocket, Hatha, and Vinyasa, she is trained in Restorative, Meditation, Kundalini, and Trauma Informed Methods, as well as concentrated studies in anatomy with Libby Hinsley and Kristin Leal. She has completed the Meridian Yoga Technique Levels 1 + 2 certifications under the guidance of Rose Erin Vaughan, Melissa Soong, and the Science of Self team. She feels a strong calling to serve the community, offering these incredibly healing modalities to the Dojo community and beyond.

Lauren also holds a BS in Fashion Merchandising from Virginia Commonwealth University, which comes in handy while running the studio’s day-to-day operations. Her main goals for her students are for them to be able to practice without judgment or expectation, to tune in and reconnect the mind-body-spirit with the present moment, and have fun (probably including a couple of laughs) while practicing.

Lauren firmly believes that the work we do on the mat helps us be more compassionate and kind humans as we leave the solace of the yoga space and enter out into the world. Off the mat, Lauren enjoys traveling and exploring with her husband, Ryan, and snuggling with her rescue pups, Howdy and Frankie.  

Corey Lorenz

Studio Manager + Instructor

Corey Lorenz, or as many call her, Coco, has been living in Richmond since 2013. The practice of yoga found her a few years later in 2017 when she entered a path of recovery from addiction. In 2020, the stars aligned and she found The Yoga Dojo, which she now considers her second home. She completed her 200 hr Yoga Teacher training with Lauren and Adrian, and is currently enrolled in our 300 hr Advanced Yoga Teacher Training, and has over 1000 hrs of training that informs her teaching. Coco’s other specialized trainings include: Y12SR Peer Recovery Specialist Certification, Trauma Informed Yoga Certification, Meridian Yoga Level 1 + NADA Ear Seed Specialist, and is a certified Prenatal Yoga Teacher and Birth Doula. 

When Corey isn’t on her mat or continuing her education, she can be found most days next door at the front desk of Theta Wellness. As manager of both the studio and spa, Corey is here to help you navigate whatever your wellness goals may be. Having received the benefits of a consistent movement practice and regular bodywork, she knows how transformative and nourishing these forms of self care are. Corey looks forward to matching you with the right yoga class or massage therapist for your specific needs. If you see her around, know she is more than happy to chat and answer any questions you may have.

Meg Hardey

instructor

In high school, Meg was a cheerleader, swimmer, and track and field athlete. After graduation, fitness was not a priority for her. Then in her twenties, she started to run and work out regularly, then fell in love with the challenge of running a marathon. 

For years, Meg chased the euphoric high of running long distances and trained diligently for ultramarathons. She coached for the RVA Training Team and has completed over 30 marathon and ultramarathon races. She is also a certified personal trainer with a strong passion to help others feel their best mentally and physically.

Meg has always loved yoga. In 2020, she focused her efforts and completed The Yoga Dojo’s 200 hour program, then continued with an additional 500 plus hours to achieve a 300-hour Advanced Teacher Training Certification, along with Levels 1 and 2 Meridian Yoga Technique, Yin Yoga, Anatomy, and NADA ear acupuncture certifications. 

Through strength training, yoga practice, and spiritual awareness, Meg feels that she has become the best version of herself. Yoga has not only allowed her fitness to grow, but also her life through spiritual and self-awareness. Meg’s love for this practice has given her the knowledge and opportunity to share this with others and to help them to grow.

Katie Boyd

Instructor

Katie started practicing yoga in 2013 as a way to reclaim a sense of balance in her life. She initially practiced asana in heated studios, and later cultivated a love for Vinyasa, hand balance, and contortion. She completed Jonathan Miles’s 200-hour Maha Vira Yoga Teacher Training in 2019, and most recently completed 100 hours of Meridian Yoga Therapy training with Rose Erin Vaughan and Science of Self Yoga in 2021.

As a Practicing Massage Therapist of nearly a decade, Katie’s natural tendency is informing students to have an anatomy-based awareness of each asana. Her focus is on facilitating functionality and easeful movement, while also bringing people to a new understanding of what their bodies are capable of. She encourages practitioners to explore the unknown in a safe and curious way. She strongly believes that experience, failure, and consistency, are the best teachers.

“There is no better way to master oneself than to be completely present in the process of becoming oneself. My time on the mat and as a body worker has given me a deep understanding of the practice and a strong foundation from which my style pulls from.”

Izzy Shurte

Instructor

Izzy fell in love with yoga while in college. However, it was the catalyst of losing her dad suddenly at twenty-nine years old that prompted a committed daily practice.  Izzy received both her 200 HR and 300 HR training at Asheville Yoga Center. She is also Licensed Professional Counselor specializing in Mindfulness and Acceptance Based therapies and Somatic Inquiry.

Izzy believes yoga is about showing up.  Each day the mat provides an opportunity to practice joy, lovingkindness, compassion and equanimity for oneself so that one can show up unconditionally for others.  She is grateful to have been guided by skilled and compassionate teachers including Andy Matinog, Emily & Vince Horn, Stephanie Keach, Michael Johnson & Stephanie Johnson, Lillah Schwartz and Kristin Luna Ray.

 Izzy is inspired by the root texts of yoga, the power of mantra to bypass the mind and move the heart, and by anyone moving forward in the direction of their dreams in spite of fear.

Sarah Austen Holzgrefe

instructor

Sarah Austen began a regular yoga practice in college, attracted to the practice because of the physical challenge and the empowering feeling of mixing flexibility and strength. It wasn't until a couple years post-grad that she discovered the enormous benefits of the practice on mental and spiritual health. Since this moment of clarity, yoga has transformed into a moving meditation and a daily ritual of peace and healing.

Sarah Austen received her 200 hour teacher training from The Yoga Dojo in 2020. She strives to dedicate moments of breathwork and meditation into all her classes. She is excited to expand her education on different kinds of yoga and other healing modalities. Given the choice, she would practice and teach outside every day.

Sara Garrett

Instructor

Lany Prousalis

Instructor

Lany became a devoted practitioner of Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga in 2005 following the birth of her second child, Balthazar. She recognized that the strength and flexibility of the mind, could be influenced by the state of the body. Inspired by her teacher of Tibetan Meditation, Lama Dawa Tarchin, she began merging her yoga practice and teaching with the spacious complement of meditation.

Lany believes the discovery of ones own potential for creative energy, strength, and wisdom, can be found through the practice of yoga. Her classes have a quest for freedom and fun, while concentrating on the fluidity of movement with the breath. Lany has completed Michael Hamilton’s Ashtanga Teacher Intensive, and her 200 hour Yoga Alliance Teacher Certification with Sandra Pleasants from the Iyengar tradition and Jennifer Elliott of Ashtanga Yoga Charlottesville. She has attended workshops with several noted teachers including Tim Miller, Kino MacGregor, and Michael Gannon. She is especially grateful for the insight and teachings of Tibetan Lama Dawa Tarchin, Michael Hamilton, Eddie Stern, and Shri Sharath Jois during his tour of the US and during her study at the Sri K. Pattahbi Jois Ashtanga Yoga Institute in Mysore, India. Lany also completed her Rocket teaching certification under Steve Pyka of Asta Yoga.

Lany enjoys gardening and is a continuing student in the study of Ayurvedic medicine and nutrition.  She loves running the trails along the James and shares her life with her three spirited children, Kyria, Balthazar, and Evangelia.

olivia yohai

Instructor

Olivia became a Licensed Massage Therapist and Registered Yoga Teacher in 2016 at the Lotus School of Integrated Profession.  Her instruction for teaching yoga predominantly focused on Hatha-Ananda, Ayurveda, Yin, and Restorative styles.  In 2017, her studies took her to South East Asia where she studied Thai Yoga Massage in Thailand with Pichest Boonthumme.  

Upon returning to the states, she completed her 50 hour Rocket Training at the Dojo with Steve Pyka, and then her 85 hour Prenatal Yoga Teacher Training at Humble Haven with Suzanne Burns. She also holds Levels 1 and 2 Meridian Yoga Technique certifications, 100 hour Yin, and a 300 hour Advanced Teacher Training certification, all under the guidance of Rose Erin Vaughan and the Science of Self team. She has been instructing yoga and working as a massage therapist since she became registered and continues to take class daily and workshops whenever she can! 

kyra haigh

instructor

Kyra has dedicated much of her life to the search for meaning and well-being. In her 20s, she found yoga—a philosophy and approach to life that resonated deeply with her. Practicing yoga became a pathway to calm her mind, listen to her body, and slow down—a journey that rekindled her connection with herself. It also opened the door to meditation and other introspective practices which offered a grounded and spacious approach to life.

Kyra views yoga as a transformative exploration of oneself. Through conscious breathing, heightened awareness, and mindful attention, it opens the door to a profound sense of presence, deep connection, and love. It is this spirit that Kyra brings to her teaching, aspiring to convey to her students the depths of the practice that she finds so supportive.

Tracy Gresham

Instructor

Tracy received the gift of yoga in 2015. She immediately fell in love with the practice and earned her teaching certification in 2017 at The Yoga Dojo. She enjoys teaching a variety of styles of yoga, including Rocket, Power, Yin, and Prenatal. 

Tracy loves the way a yoga practice provides space to access the present moment. An opportunity to move the body and breath in a way that stills the mind and reconnects us with our true nature. 

When Tracy is not teaching or practicing, she is spending time outdoors with her husband and kids. 

Sera Davenport

Instructor

Sera’s own yoga journey started with a weekly restorative class for seniors, which she attended as a young adult. She came to yoga to cope with a medical condition which limited her physical abilities for multiple years. The practice gave her physical relief, but just as importantly she always left class with a clearer head and a lighter heart. As she regained her health her practice evolved into more challenging vinyasa, where she delighted in finding new ways of moving her body and regaining her stamina. The philosophy of the practice taught her valuable lessons in acceptance and perseverance, to which she attributes much of her success.

With yoga having become a significant part of her life, she pursued her 200HR RYT certification. Fast forward to now, Sera has been a yoga instructor for over a decade and has taught everything from Restorative to Ashtanga. Sera taught at our first studio in Scott’s Addition, and started our beloved Chill AF class based on her unique style of teaching. Having practiced many styles, she sees each as useful tools for different purposes. No matter what she’s teaching, her approach focuses on finding the balance of sthira and sukha (or stability and ease) in all postures through detailed instruction of what to engage, what to release, where to breathe, and sharing yogic philosophy to help students build awareness, resilience, non-attachment, and compassion. She hopes her classes help students learn more about themselves, develop the tools they need to achieve their goals, and be more compassionate with themselves and others.

Outside of yoga, Sera has built a career in software startups and enterprises, helping companies shape and implement their strategic vision. She lives in Northside with her partner Toby and their two sweet dogs. In her spare time, you'll find her weightlifting at Westwood working towards a new PR, volunteering with her civic association, in her garden, or sharing meals with friends.

Sarah Fischer

Instructor

Sarah started her yoga practice in 2001 as a way to deal with the stress of graduate school.  After earning her degree in Dance/Movement Therapy from Drexel University, Sarah moved to Richmond and found her home in the yoga community.

Sarah started teaching in 2007 after completing her first 200hr training through Yoga Source.  She then pursued hundreds of hours of training and study in Anusara Yoga  and Ashaya Yoga.  Both styles emphasize physical alignment that is integrated with life-affirming Tantric philosophy.  Most recently Sarah completed an additional 300hr training with Christina Sell.

Over the years, Sarah has spent hundreds of hours supporting students and mentoring teachers.   Her classes, workshops and retreats offer students guidance for embodying sacred alignment while confidently building a lifelong practice.  It gives Sarah great joy to witness folks using yoga as a way to build relationships with their bodies, minds, hearts, and Mystery.

In addition to teaching, Sarah mentors yoga teachers, and is a Certified Life Coach helping folks integrate mindfulness into their lives.  She lives on the Northside with her husband, two school-aged children, and Dexter, their rescue pup.

Holly Zajur

Instructor

Yoga first found Holly in 2008, offering a grounding path back to herself during a time of change. She earned her 200-hour RYT certification in 2014 and has been sharing yoga and mindfulness ever since. During college, she studied Ashtanga Yoga with Jennifer Elliot and Zoe Ward. For the past decade, she’s found the most joy and depth in her practice through her ongoing studies with Izzy Shurte. Holly is endlessly grateful for her lifelong teachers, Izzy Shurte and Becky Eschenroder, who continue to guide and inspire her path.

Holly Zajur is a wellness educator, potter, and host of the How the Wise One Grows podcast. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Mental Health Counseling. At the heart of Holly’s work is creative wellness—a practice of nourishment, inspiration, and connection that invites people to create from a place of wholeness and live with greater authenticity. Whether leading retreats, mentoring one-on-one, or guiding creative exploration through clay and movement, Holly’s work is about sparking deeper connection within ourselves, with each other, and with the world around us.

Parham Neal-Pishko

Instructor

Parham found expression through movement at Richmond Ballet and Richmond Olympiad at the age of two and hasn’t stopped since. She practiced asana as a supplement to dance, gymnastics, and competitive cheerleading through high school and into college. 

Fueled by grief, P took her first 200 hours of teacher training in 2017 with J Miles and that’s when her established physical asana practice became yoga. Paying it forward and finding dharma through the practice, P has taught in partnership with addiction recovery and the Cullather Center for cancer treatment at Bon Secours. 

After closing her brick and mortar studio in 2020, Parham founded Luuma Yoga and Ayurveda, which offers Ayurvedic consultations, workshops, community events, and women’s retreats both domestically and internationally. 

She has trained with Suzanne Burns and Ashley Williams in Trauma Informed methods. Most recently, she completed her advanced teacher training in 2022 with Kayla Nielsen of GLOW Yoga and Rocket training in 2025 with Steve Pyka.

Parham received her 300-hour feminine form Ayurveda Specialist certification from The Shakti School. She finds that her clients tend to seek her out when healing hormonally and reproductive health, and has embraced the niche. Her Ayurvedic wellness credential is the Eastern compliment to a BS in Biology from Virginia Tech. 

P can be found leading the Ayurveda portion of studio yoga teacher trainings, partnering with Experience Retreats, and GLOW Yoga retreats. In addition, she teaches yoga and mindfulness to the students she guides academically at Richmond Montessori School. When not in leggings or the lab, P loves riding on planes, waves, and her horse, Sport. 

Julian (JuJu) Desta

Sound Healer

Julian J. Desta is 200 hour yoga instructor residing in Richmond. Always having a passion for the creative arts, he was introduced to the practice of Sound Healing and Therapy when given his first singing bowl as a birthday present from a friend. Julian began researching the depths of sound and its powerful healing techniques. After a few years practicing, Julian received his Sound Healing Certification from Mentor and friend Mark Toregson in 2019.

Specializing in a variety of instruments from the didgeridoo, to flutes, singing bowls, and drums Julian has created a unique Sound Healing Experience called Elemental Sound Healing. Discovering relationship between  sound healing and nature he calls on the 4 elements of Air, Wind, Water, and Fire to channel through each practice to bring balance to the human system, or what he likes to refer to as homeostasis.

Sound healing is an ancient practice that uses sound to relax the body and mind through allowing the vibrations of the various instruments to put one into a “yogic sleep”. In yogic sleep, the individual is neither fully asleep nor fully awake. In Aboriginal culture it is referred to as the “Dream Time” state. The sounds vibrate with every cell of a living organism which in turn activates a natural healing process working through any physical, mental, or emotional blockages within the body. 

David Quimby

Breathwork Instructor

David is the founder of the nonprofit, The Foundation for the Advancement in Yogic Education and Mindfulness (FAYEM). FAYEM is a nonprofit giving grants and scholarships for yoga teacher training to the financially underprivileged. 100% of David’s earnings in teaching yoga go directly to the FAYEM foundation.

David immersed himself in teacher training, not to become a teacher, but to deepen his own personal practice. He completed his 200hr YTT through YogaWorks, under renowned teacher Ashley Rideaux. After completing his 200hr, David felt drawn to travel to Yogaville where he completed a 165hr Raja Yoga YTT under Sri Swami Kurananda. David is also trained in the healing nature of diaphragmatic breathing under David Elliot and is currently completing his 500hr YTT at Asheville Yoga Center.

The betterment of humanity and teaching yoga through the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Asanas, Pranayama, Meditation and right thinking is a calling for David. Sri Swami Satchidananda summarizes the teaching of all the scriptures, as Peaceful, Easeful, and Useful, and this is what David ultimately strives to be, and offer, to any that seek to deepen their studies along this path.

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