Our Teachers

I started yoga to lose weight and become more limber.  I quickly learned that there was much more to yoga than the physical asana.  The physical activity of the poses allows the body to be calm while the mind does the more important work.  I became addicted to the practice both for its physical and mental benefits.  After spending my first week of study with Bryan Kest in Mexico, I was able to understand our need to honor the body and listen to it as our teacher.  The frequent practice of yoga became an important part of my life. Teaching yoga has allowed me to share my love for the practice with others. I hope I can also spread the philosophy of self-care through yoga.  At One Love Yoga, we will offer true yoga, not Eastern based calisthenics.  Yoga has changed my life physically and mentally; I want that for my students as well. Namaste

Jim

When asked to define yoga, most people would say something about workouts, classes, or stretching. But classical yoga is actually a spiritual practice with eight “limbs, and only one of those limbs—asana—involves physical movement. In other words, while yoga does involve gaining strength, increasing in flexibility, and holding poses, that is the least of it. Classical yoga is mostly about moral behavior, breath control, concentration, meditation, and community. It’s this holistic understanding of yoga that local instructor Lauren Correll seeks to bring to her studio, One Love Yoga.

Eight years ago, Lauren first tried yoga, just looking for a new workout regimen. “I immediately realized that yoga was so much more than a physical practice,” she said. “And once I took my first group class, I knew I wanted to teach.” She set out to deepen her practice and become a 200-hour certified instructor. She has been teaching for three years now and is multi-certified.

Though she loved teaching out of various studios, Lauren knew early on that she would better be able to serve her students in a different setting—one that Texarkana didn’t seem to offer. “I knew what I wanted to see in Texarkana, and I hadn’t found it yet,” she explained. Lauren sought a studio that embraced all eight limbs of yoga fully and equally. She wanted to be in community with others who were devoted to a practice rooted in Eastern traditions.

“The conventional, more-Western yoga is about 108-degree rooms, HIIT (high-intensity interval training), power classes,” she said. “If that’s what your body needs, that’s great—but it’s not what we’re offering at One Love Yoga.”

Instead, Lauren and her fellow teachers are committed to fostering a community dedicated to self-realization, self-efficacy, inclusion, and mutual support. They offer classes at all levels—beginner, intermediate, advanced. They are even offering chair yoga for those with mobility disabilities or difficulties, including senior citizens.

All of the teachers are CPR and first-aid certified, and they all have a deep understanding of human physiology. Included among the staff are a surgeon, registered nurse, first responder, and mental health professional. “We are very selective about the teachers we hire,” Lauren said. “There are so many aspects of greatness in this staff.” One of the instructors is male, a fact which Lauren hopes will draw male students to the studio.

Curating and maintaining a safe, welcoming studio is a top priority for Lauren and the other teachers, though she intends for the love she fosters within the studio walls to radiate throughout the entire community. One way they will do this is through consistent charitable giving. Each month, a percentage of the studio’s proceeds will go directly to a different local charity. Lauren cites aparigraha, the Hindu virtue of non-greediness, which is a tenet of classical yoga. “Most of us who take yoga classes are blessed and can share our gifts with the community around us,” she said. 

Among students, too, Lauren actively encourages sharing. The studio’s library features a take-and-give basket, where community members can leave things they’d like to share and reciprocally take what they need.

Lauren spreads her passion for yoga everywhere she goes. Her 21-year-old daughter, Ashlyn, currently practices at the University of Central Arkansas and even introduced group yoga classes within her sorority. Lauren hopes that One Love Yoga Studio will be a vehicle she can use to spread yoga throughout the entire Texarkana community.

“I never thought I would be a business owner,” she admitted. “I’ve always liked creating, but I never thought of myself as ‘artistic.’ But when I found yoga—that’s kind of my art.”

She wants people to know that yoga is available to anybody who wants—or needs—it. “You don’t have to be thin or look good in yoga pants,” she said. “If you can breathe, you can do yoga. It’s not a competition—not even with yourself. It’s just about being present.

“We want to bring yoga to everybody,” she continued. “Everybody can benefit. It’s not about the calories you burn; it’s about the mental and physical strength you gain. Yoga helps the mind as much as it helps the body.”

To begin your yoga journey, visit the studio, located at 3004 Richmond Rd, or find the class schedule on the MINDBODY app. This month only, two free beginner classes are being offered—on Saturday, September 7th and Saturday, September 14th, both at 10:30 a.m. Preregistration through the app is encouraged.

Along with the rest of the staff, Lauren is thrilled to begin building community and is eager to welcome students from all yoga backgrounds, and to share with them her personal mantra: “All you need is love . . . and yoga,”

 I attended my first Yoga class near the end of 2013, when a friend dragged me to a hot yoga studio.  I immediately fell in love with yoga and I instantly noticed the physical and mental benefits. I practiced Yoga on and off over the years while battling the surgeries of endometriosis.  During this time, I have learned to honor and listen to my body.  Throughout the journey, my love for yoga has grown, not only to study postures and poses, but also the 8 limbs of Yoga. In 2019, I decided to deepen my practice by enrolling in a 200 hour teacher training.  i enjoy sharing my love of yoga on and off of the mat. 

 I'm Rachel, a Texarkana native who has taught yoga for over 10 years. Though mu practice started off as purely physical, I soon realized that the true benefit of Yoga was much deeper.  Now, I focus more on the spiritual aspects of the practice with the hope to help my students realize their true power and potential 

Why did you want to become a yoga instructor?
I started with an introduction to yoga many years ago. For the past three years I have focused on it and it has become completely foundational to my creative lifestyle. I am an artist and I have found that sitting long periods created injury to my posture, flexibility, circulation, and overall health. Coupled with a back injury, I learned to rehabilitate and take responsibility for my health with yoga as the core foundation. I
wouldn’t be able to art without yoga.
I wanted to learn to do yoga to learn more about it just for myself nitially. So that I could create my own asana practice without the need for videos or a yoga instructor so that I could fine tune my practice just for me. If I am into something I learn it completely. I discovered while learning to teach that bringing a practice to others is equally
important. The yoga community is one that will add depth and connection to your life. Yoga friends are welcoming, supportive and we all learn from each other. Teaching at One Love will be my first experience teaching at a yoga studio. I want to be a part of that community and help build it. Let’s change our lives together.

What are your classes like?
My classes focus on guided and seated meditation, energy cultivation and healing. I study and practice reiki and that has some presence in my classes. All blocks in energy can be cleared through yoga, meditation, and the use of sound for focus and healing.

You are invited to flow with me for vinyasa, restorative, yin yoga and my fusion class.

In my classes you can expect seated meditation and you can bring a meditation pillow if needed. It is much more comfortable with one and I will go over types of pillows in
class. Because I am also an artist, my class intentions are usually set to increase creativity so that you can preform at your best and co-create your best life. 

What do you hope to teach students in your classes?

I hope to help students discover an internal sanctuary of peace, relaxation while taking responsibility for health. In my Creative Energy Arts Yoga Events, cultivating creative energy is the intention.

 John Stanley
jpsapn@gmail.com

RTY 200 Hour | YOGA ALLIANCE QUALIFIED INSTRUCTOR

My yoga journey began with hearing a quote from author and theologian, C. S. Lewis, “The body ought to pray as well as the soul. Body and soul are both better for it.” My primary care practice serving veterans and personal yoga practice, including with soldiers and veterans while stationed at Fort Bragg, have taught me that yoga will meet every soul where yoga is needed. Acceptance and creativity reflect my primary intentions as a yogi. If you are practicing yoga to lose weight, tone your body, become more flexible, yoga will meet you there. If you are practicing yoga to cool your emotions, yoga will meet you there. If you are practicing yoga to calm your mind, yoga will meet you there. And, if you are practicing yoga to yoke your body and mind to serve your soul’s intentions... well, that is yoga’s highest intention - connecting us with what matters most.

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Hatha Yoga: In the West, most yoga classes may be classified as Hatha. Hatha includes breathing (Pranayama), poses (Asanas), and meditation (Dhyama). The word “hatha” can be translated two ways: as “forceful,” or the yoga of action, and as “sun” (ha) and “moon” (tha), the yoga of balance. Hatha yoga aligns your body, mind, and spirit in preparation for meditation.
Vinyasas Yoga: Gentle Flow Yoga - A calming, stress-relieving class to stretch and strengthen the body gradually in a style suitable for all levels of practitioners.
Yoga Nidra: Deep-Relaxation Yoga Sleep. Focused on breathing and guided meditation to reach the deepest state of relaxation while maintaining consciousness.

EDUCATION

Completed 40 hours of training in Trauma Sensitive Yoga with the Center for Trauma and Embodiment at Kripalu, Center for Yoga and Health in Stockbridge, MA. April 2019

Purple Lotus Yoga - RYT 200 Yoga Alliance Compliant Program. November 2018