Highly Qualified and Highly Intelligent.

You can be assured that each of our instructors far exceeds industry requirements for certification. We strive to offer you instructors with at least 500 hours of experience teaching. This means they will intelligently sequence and skillfully attend to the class to prevent injury and optimize the postures for your individual body.

Because we encourage all Shanti instructors to pursue continuing education and offer many trainings right at the studio, our teachers stay on the cutting edge of yoga instruction and are able to both guide a deeper experience and keep it fresh.

5 Core principles of our work

  • Intelligently Designed Class Offerings

  • Safe Sequences

  • Highly Qualified: Over 2x the Industry Standard

  • Required Continuing Education

  • Cares About the Individual Yoga Journey

OUR INSTRUCTORS

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Star Rader is a Yoga Alliance certified ERYT instructor with over 1,000 hours of training. She has trained extensively in various styles of yoga including Power/Vinyasa flow, Yin Yoga, Yoga Barre, Breath work and more. Mentors include Annie Carpenter, Saul David Raye, Mia Togo, Bianca Fearon, and Nancy Norby among others. She has taught at various studios in Los Angeles and around the world and is a founder of Shanti Hot Yoga’s flagship location in Culver City, California.
A yoga practitioner and dancer, Star’s approach identifies that no two bodies are alike. Therefore mindfulness + focus towards understanding proper alignment, personal anatomy, + injuries are key to developing a strong and safe physical practice. Staying open to self inquiry and a willingness to honestly reflect on what you discover about yourself can bring about an experience that serves your spirit to keep you growing and inspired on all levels.
Join Star Rader and Thomas Taubman on a transformative journey through a 200 hour Teacher Training for 13 weeks starting March 14th, 2020. You won’t want to miss this opportunity to transform your practice and establish or evolve your teaching skills! Email star@shantihotyoga.com  for more details!

Star Rader

Shanti Yoga Teacher, Trainer, & Founder
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Born and raised in Cape Town, South Africa, an actor, dancer and story-teller by trade, Leigh has been an avid yogi and teacher for the past 10 years. The fast-paced, hustle and bustle of New York City living called him to the mat to find stillness. After 4 years of practice, it was clear that teaching was the natural progression. 200 RYT certified, as well as Sculpt, Barre and Yin Yoga through Hot 8 Yoga, Leigh believes in creating a flow-centered, strength-focused movement class, that offers a unique, grounded and inspiring exploration of the body. He also loves cheese boards, South African wine, jazz music and watching nature documentaries. Follow @leighwakeford.

Leigh Wakeford

Shanti Yoga Teacher
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Thomas Taubman, RYT 500, has been teaching a broad range of movement classes since 1998. His background includes dancing, boxing and yoga. Over the past fifteen years, Thomas has been an instructor at Yoga works, offering a variety of daily classes and leading teacher training programs all over the world. He recently completed his thirty – first Teacher Training for Yoga works. His light sense of humor, welcoming spirit and knowledge of movement and anatomy make him a very gifted and giving Instructor. His sequences are creative, challenging, unique and safe!

Thomas Taubman

Shanti yoga Teacher & Trainer
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Ola’s passion and dedication inspires a healthful and fit lifestyle rooted in inspiring self-commitment. She believes that through movement we can all find the better version of ourselves. Ola is NCSF PT certified and received her formal degree from Saint-Petersburg University Of Humanities and Social Sciences in Russia.
Ola holds over 750 hours in certifications including vinyasa flow, sculpt, barre, yin, and an Anusara training completed in Bali, Indonesia. 

Ola Avedissian

Shanti Yoga Teacher
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Sound Healer Neil Belen is a visionary musician, album artisan, multimedia producer, inner engineer, community cultivator, and certified Kundalini Yoga teacher born and raised in Long Beach, California. With over a decade of experience in the realm of sound and frequency, his background in FM live broadcast and theatre productions has led to worldwide travels and universal transmissions sharing the healing power of music. These moments have brought a deepened awareness of self, an enhanced perspective of one another, and an appreciation of wellness for all.

Neil Belen

Shanti Sound Healer
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Maggie is a Reiki Master and Energy Healer passionate about helping people to unlock their deepest harmony and greatest potential. She holds a Master’s Degree in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University with a concentration in Spirituality Mind Body Practice. She is a certified Reiki Master and Medical Reiki Master with over 400 hours of advanced training in Spiritual Healing and Meditation. Maggie draws on her extensive background in Spiritual Healing, Contemplative Practice, and Western Psychology to create an approach that is at once warm, grounded, and transformative.

Maggie Gold

Shanti Meditation Teacher & Reiki Healer
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Carrie has been teaching for over 14 years. Her roots are in Hatha, Ashtanga and Iyengar yoga. Her thirst for knowledge is what fuels her enthusiastic manner. She views yoga as a continual journey that influences her approach to teaching. She believes yoga shines a light and connects us with our true nature.
 
Carrie draws on her background in theater and her love for painting to kindle her creativity in class, allowing her to create sharp, safe and playful sequences. She prides herself in her attentiveness to proper alignment, safety and breath, due to some of her own injuries, she is able to empathize with those students who have injuries or limitations in their body.
 
Carrie has an exuberant spirit and encourages a balance between working hard and joyfully exploring one’s own practice, stepping into the light of consciousness and familiarity with one’s unique and special spirit. Her trainings/certifications include: Teacher Training in India under Dr. Senthil Kumar, Jivamukti Teacher Training 300-hour and E-RYT 500-HOUR, YogaWorks Certified.

Carrie Costello

SHANTI YOGA TEACHER
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Ken recently relocated from Chicago to LA. Through the use of mindful movement, he has carved out a new life for himself. Studying music in college, he made his living in musical dramatic arts for a decade, but realizing something was missing he embarked on a new chapter of his story. He became Yoga Sculpt certified and started teaching in 2012. From there he completed his 200 Hour in August 2012, Restorative/Yin in October 2012, another 200 Hour and his 500 Hour in April 2018 all with CorePower Yoga. After managing several studios and communities, Ken is excited to be back solely in the seat an instructor to connect in a deeper way, one song/asana at a time.

KEN JONES

SHANTI YOGA TEACHER
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I fell in love with yoga years ago, it helped heal an ailing back and helped quiet my mind in ways I never knew existed. I felt myself getting stronger inside and out and have always wanted to share that with my students.
I practice and teach a very physical version of vinyasa yoga but always focus on building into a sequence slowly so that the body has time to properly prepare as we get more challenging and deeper into the stretches. My students often tell me that my class is more challenging than many others but that because I take the time to work into it their bodies feel much better and stronger at the end.

STEPHEN BICKLE

Shanti Yoga Teacher
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Nancy is a master teacher and a pioneer of barre fitness. She’s had a passion for movement since childhood. Physical fitness has always been a priority in her life with a special interest in muscle development, definition and alignment. Nancy began her journey as a dancer and has taught movement for over 4 decades. In 1983, Nancy trained in NYC with Lydia Bach, founder of the Lotte Berk Method U.S.A. and Elisabeth Halfpapp, now co-director of Core Fusion. Nancy has trained numerous teachers, many of whom have continued on to have successful careers in fitness. Nancy is recognized as a ttrue expert and pioneer in the barre class format.

Nancy Norby

Shanti Barre Teacher
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Nora Herschl

SHANTI YOGA TACHER
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Jacqueline Ramirez

Shanti 26 and 2 and Pre-Natal TEACHER
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Kris Matsuoka is a graduate of Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, a Rinzai Zen practitioner, a K.R.I. Certified Kundalini Yoga and Meditation Teacher from Yoga West Los Angeles, a student of Sat Nam Rasayan, and a Sound Healer co-creating Welcome Home Sound Healing.  In 2013, Kris began to draw a path towards experiencing his highest potential. This synchronistically coincides with the dawn of his practice of ancient technologies and how it can extend human perception and bring inner peace. Now he is integrating his experiences into inspiration for others through Sound Baths, Yoga/Meditation classes and photography.

Kris Matsuoka

Shanti Sound Healer
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While dancing professionally Marie discovered Yoga, her practice really helped her discover subtle body awareness that dance didn’t teach her. As she ended her performing career it was organic for this movement obsessed to continue teaching this practice that gave her so much joy and healed her mind from the turmoils of the entertainment industry and body from numerous injuries. 
Marie is E-RYT 500 Hours certified and constantly training, researching and exploring new techniques, she holds certification 200hrs Hot yoga, 60 Power yoga with Bryan Kest, has completed her 300Hr with Noah Maze, and was mentored 100hrs by Schuyler Grant in the Wanderlust Vinyasa style.
She is passionate about helping her students grow their physical and spiritual practice and guide them toward their own yoga bliss as well as relieving the body of any tension and old patterns.

Marie Grucijic

Shanti Yoga Teacher
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Jackson brings a rare maturity and depth of life experience to his teaching. Taught and mentored by globally recognized teachers – Mia Togo, Jillian Pransky, David Kim & Jasmine Lieb in Vinyasa, Yin, Restorative & Therapeutics – Jackson has amassed over 700 hours of formal training along with countless hours of study home & abroad, as well as assisting master teachers in a myriad of settings. Jackson is a retired professional cyclist & NYC branding & creative exec who understands that body, mind & spirit are one.
“We are unified beings, not merely a collection of interchangeable bones, tissues and organs. I approach every aspect of the practice with the entire person in mind so individuals can begin to see the truth of who they are, both on the mat and in their daily lives.”

Jackson Lynch

Shanti Yoga Teacher
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Beate Sophia is a Yoga alliance certified Yoga teacher and has received certifications from Annie Carpenter (Smart Flow), Govind Das (Bhakti Yoga), and Core Power Yoga (Hot Yoga). She has also studied with Swami Harish Chandra and Sheela & Sreedevi.
Beate’s teaches a unique blend of Vinyasa flow with a strong emphasis on the devotional aspect of Yoga; the path of Bhakti Yoga. Beate wholeheartedly believes in Yoga as the science of well being, by following the eight-limbed path by Patanjali, with the ultimate goal of well being, happiness and Self-realization.
Come experience Beate’s transformative & heart opening classes.

Beate Scholz

Shanti Guest Teacher
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Mahsa discovered Sound Therapy over three years ago while going through her own emotional healing. She felt an immediate deep connection with the sacred sounds and heard the call to learn more. Now a certified Sound Healer and KRI Level One Kundalini Yoga and Meditation teacher. Her mission is to create healing spaces for people to tap into their inner light and authentic selves.

Mahsa Moayeri

Shanti Sound Healer
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Yoga brought Rachel from Boston to LA, back in 2018 on the belief that yoga can change your life. After knee surgery, in 2003, Rachel started practicing Bikram and in 2015 began her teaching career. Rachel is RYT 500 Hour Certified with Yoga Alliance and has completed several additional trainings including working with Jill Miller; yoga tune, hip-hop music training, is first degree reiki certified, and taken specific supplemental anatomy and alignment trainings to further her teaching skills.

“I feel honored to share my passion and practice with other yogis.”

Rachel Kennedy

yoga Instructor