Meet Heather Laffely CYT! Heather has been practicing yoga since 1996, when she took a class offered at her college, held in a beautiful little campus chapel.

Heather’s classes are creative, inviting, and blend her passion for body movement with subtle body awareness. Heather welcomes ALL bodies and ALL levels to her classes.  

Where and when did you complete your training?

I completed my YT-200 in Feb. 2021, through the Maine YogaFest School in Scarborough. I have been teaching Latin dance-fitness(2016), Buti Yoga(2017), Trauma-Informed Yoga (2019) and other fitness classes since 2016.

Is there a particular practice or theory that informs your teaching?

I teach intuitively, often using the chakra systems, or a particular area of the body, to help guide and structure my classes. I always address both the Physical and Subtle( mental and emotional) body of whichever system or area we are bringing focus to. My classes are always trauma-informed. I teach many different styles, and these principles are true for them all.

How long have you been practicing?

I've been practicing yoga for about 25 years. My practice deepened in my pre/post natal years( more than a decade!) in the early 2000's with pre-natal and baby and mama yoga. When I discovered vinyasa, after I was done with the mama and me years, I fell in love!

What yoga/fitness-related continued education courses have your attended?

Trauma-Informed, Yin, Chair, Fiesta Fitness, POUND Fitness

Tell us about a positive interaction you had with a yoga/fitness student that has stuck with you?

I recently had someone come up to me after a Yin class, one that had been focused on the Heart Chakra and the Shoulders, Arms and Chest. She told me, teary-eyed, that the class was exactly what she needed and so wished her daughter had been there as planned, but a hurricane prevented it. They had just lost a dear family friend unexpectedly, her daughter's best friend. She said that it was as if the class had been created just for her. Two things stuck with me:

1. Trust your Intuition and Create....If I hadn't I probably would not have taught that class, that morning

2. It shone a spotlight on the Gratitude and Honor I have, being able to offer my love of Yoga to the Community as an Instructor

What inspired you to start your personal practice?

I was looking for a way to offer slower movement and more meditation in to my practice. A balance to the higher impact classes I was taking.

What inspired you to start teaching?

I was already teaching Movement classes and I had wanted to take a Yoga teacher training for a while, though could not find a way to make it happen with my schedule. When studios and other employment were shut down in 2020, I decided there was no better time to train, especially because much of it was online. I wanted to work with, and bring Mindfulness Meditation and Yoga Classes too, the Recovery Community. I have been able to do that and I am continuously grateful for my decision to train when I did.

If there was one thing you could impart to your students, what would it be?

Self Love