MY STORY
“Your body holds deep wisdom. Trust in it. Learn from it. Nourish it. Watch your life transform and be healthy.”
Bella Bleue
John Paul has studied yoga since 2005 and completed his first 200 hour training at Yoga Tree in San Francisco in 2009. In 2014, he had the fortune of spending four months in India traveling and studying Indian traditions including yoga.
Since then he has incorporated his continuous learning in yin, restorative, hatha, yoga nidra, InnerYoga and mindfulness meditation (Cultivating Emotional Balance) in his teachings in wellness centers, his work in the corporate world and in daily living. JP brings his lived experience as a gay man and mixed race heritage into his teachings.
He is a current candidate in the Master of Arts in Yoga Studies program at Loyola Marymount University. In his spare time, he enjoys music, dancing, city life, nature, and visiting friends and family.
My Mission
I’ve always been attuned to other's energies, but I didn't always have a way to manage being an "empath." Through my personal exploration of many forms of healing, movement and meditation, I’ve been able to better harness my ability to see people clearly and listen to them deeply while maintaining my own groundedness.
I believe anyone can use the mind, body and breath to settle into a more relaxed state, promoting the ability to practice intense focus and connecting with their highest self. My hope is that with time and practice, my students will have an overall greater sense of well-being.
My Method
I am a mover and a contemplative. Mindfulness powers my movement practice and my contemplation practice. Working mindfully translates to a variety of experiences whether it’s learning to be embodied from the first time or if you are a long time athlete or whether you are learning to deal with stress in the workplace or relate to yourself more kindly.
My approach is grounded in timeless principles from ancient texts, thousands of hours of studying with master teachers in the US and India, balanced with contemporary spiritual and scientific perspectives.
With experience of over a decade as a mover: from dance to Pilates to yoga to Thai massage and more, my exploration of many healing modalities informs how we work in yoga. My exploration and training in mindfulness meditation also influences how I approach problems with clients. Knowing that there is a lot of inner capacity for change in each of us, yoga is inherently therapeutic. This is different from many contemporary teachers who approach yoga as a fitness exercise.
At JPG Yoga, we look at the bigger picture of who you are and how to stay connected to that deep inner knowledge of the Self. This is grounded in deeper study of yoga texts and philosophy, including the ancient language of Sanskrit, which I make relatable to the needs of a modern client.
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