MEET LEILA
Photo credit: Aleksandra Dubov
Some know early on exactly what they want to be in life. I am not one of those lucky life adventurers. Now on my fifth career, I never imagined when I started out in financial services that I’d be teaching yoga. In fact, my first experiences with yoga overwhelmed me. Then I was introduced to Kundalini Yoga.
In the beginning, like many of my students, even sitting on the floor and keeping my spine straight was a challenge. But instead of feeling overwhelmed in Kundalini classes, the variety of exercises allowed me to keep pace and see improvements in my posture. The meditations lowered my stress. The science of Kundalini Yoga motivated me by clearly connecting the physical benefits to the exercises.
I later discovered that Kundalini Yoga was a healing gift to share. When my Mom was in her advanced years, I showed her exercises, breath-work and meditations that improved her focus, cognition, and joy. Seeing her improvement inspired me to complete Level One - 220-hour KRI Teacher Training at Guru Ram Das Ashram in April 2019 with Awtar Kaur Khalsa. Swiftly upon graduation, I started teaching privately, and at Square One Yoga Collective in Oakland. That same year I repeated Level One Training for the opportunity to study with legacy instructors, Sat Santokh Singh Khalsa, Prabhu Nam Kaur Khalsa, and Snatam Kaur. Also in 2019, Sariah Sizemore’s Ritual Intuitive Coaching Program helped me expand my role as instructor to connect to the healer within. By 2020, I added teaching classes at Shanti Naam Yoga in Castro Valley. When studios closed to in-person classes, I launched my own business, TRP YOGA-which stands for Technology for Real Peace, in 2021, offering virtual sessions via Zoom. Participating in Liya Garber's inaugural Self-Mastery Teacher Training program in 2022 added another layer of depth to my training to fuse the technology of Kundalini Yoga with the embodiment of the Divine Feminine that our earth needs for deep healing.
My journey as a Kundalini Yoga instructor started by supporting my family with healthy aging and continues by offering this powerful technology to students of all abilities. In May of 2022 I joined the El Cerrito Royale Assisted Living Community to teach Kundalini Yoga to super agers. My experience with the Community’s residents led me to find ways to tailor movement and relaxation to individuals’ changing health conditions.
By August 2024 I could no longer resist the call to return to school to begin training as a Yoga Therapist taking a deep dive into Anatomy and Physiology. My attendance at the 2025 International Institute of Yoga Therapy (IIYT) Symposium in Detroit guided my acceptance into the March 2025 IIYT training cohort with Veronica Zador to develop individualized relaxation techniques to bring the body into a receptive state of healing through breathwork, movement, and meditation.
My goal is to help everyone connect to their inner spark to find more vitality through yoga and meditation. While in Yoga Therapist training, I am teaching weekly classes at Soma Yoga and Wellness Center in El Cerrito and private sessions through my on-line portal.
If you’re ready, I'll meet you there.
In the beginning, like many of my students, even sitting on the floor and keeping my spine straight was a challenge. But instead of feeling overwhelmed in Kundalini classes, the variety of exercises allowed me to keep pace and see improvements in my posture. The meditations lowered my stress. The science of Kundalini Yoga motivated me by clearly connecting the physical benefits to the exercises.
I later discovered that Kundalini Yoga was a healing gift to share. When my Mom was in her advanced years, I showed her exercises, breath-work and meditations that improved her focus, cognition, and joy. Seeing her improvement inspired me to complete Level One - 220-hour KRI Teacher Training at Guru Ram Das Ashram in April 2019 with Awtar Kaur Khalsa. Swiftly upon graduation, I started teaching privately, and at Square One Yoga Collective in Oakland. That same year I repeated Level One Training for the opportunity to study with legacy instructors, Sat Santokh Singh Khalsa, Prabhu Nam Kaur Khalsa, and Snatam Kaur. Also in 2019, Sariah Sizemore’s Ritual Intuitive Coaching Program helped me expand my role as instructor to connect to the healer within. By 2020, I added teaching classes at Shanti Naam Yoga in Castro Valley. When studios closed to in-person classes, I launched my own business, TRP YOGA-which stands for Technology for Real Peace, in 2021, offering virtual sessions via Zoom. Participating in Liya Garber's inaugural Self-Mastery Teacher Training program in 2022 added another layer of depth to my training to fuse the technology of Kundalini Yoga with the embodiment of the Divine Feminine that our earth needs for deep healing.
My journey as a Kundalini Yoga instructor started by supporting my family with healthy aging and continues by offering this powerful technology to students of all abilities. In May of 2022 I joined the El Cerrito Royale Assisted Living Community to teach Kundalini Yoga to super agers. My experience with the Community’s residents led me to find ways to tailor movement and relaxation to individuals’ changing health conditions.
By August 2024 I could no longer resist the call to return to school to begin training as a Yoga Therapist taking a deep dive into Anatomy and Physiology. My attendance at the 2025 International Institute of Yoga Therapy (IIYT) Symposium in Detroit guided my acceptance into the March 2025 IIYT training cohort with Veronica Zador to develop individualized relaxation techniques to bring the body into a receptive state of healing through breathwork, movement, and meditation.
My goal is to help everyone connect to their inner spark to find more vitality through yoga and meditation. While in Yoga Therapist training, I am teaching weekly classes at Soma Yoga and Wellness Center in El Cerrito and private sessions through my on-line portal.
If you’re ready, I'll meet you there.