Biography: Asia Nelson

“What makes the difference in yoga is the instructor. You need one with integrity, one you can respect and trust. Asia is that teacher.”
~ Tara Lustad, Pranalife yogi

“I have fallen in love with yoga in large part because of how I was introduced to it by Asia. Each week something new and awesome is revealed to me.”
~ Sian O'Keef, Pranalife yogi

“The entire experience of Pranalife Yoga Teacher Training was life altering in the most positive of ways, and I thank my lucky stars for Asia and Pranalife Yoga each time I step onto my teaching mat.”
~ Kris Lekin, Pranalife Yoga Teacher Training graduate

Q&A with Asia

 How has yoga changed you?

When I started practicing yoga I was inflexible - in a lot of ways. Beyond the physical, I was really driven and hard on myself, which meant I was achieving a lot but I wasn't my best ally when I needed compassion. Through yoga I started to realize I could improve while also enjoying where I was.

Over time I learned how to use yoga to shed habits that were wearing me down. Every time I stepped on my mat, I was stepping (or folding or balancing) into the unknown of what I could do. Over time I grew more confident - on my mat and in my life - because I knew I had the right approach. I could be gentle and still be very, very strong.

Why do you teach yoga?

Every moment in life is an opportunity to explore our potential. I use yoga to move past my limits, to learn to trust myself, and to practice being strong, bold, intelligent and passionate. My samadhi, bliss, Dharma - whatever word you use - comes from showing people how to use this brilliant system to support their best lives. 

That’s why I teach; I love to create the opportunity for others to live their lives, one breath at a time, at their full potential.

What's different about studying yoga with you?

I can relate to people with normal challenges when it comes to flexibility and strength, and I can teach them at the level they're at because I've probably been there. My body isn't naturally bendy, nor am I particularly graceful (I do something awkward about every seven minutes), so it takes me a while to master postures that someone with a gymnastics or dance background can pick up right away. That makes me a unique teacher because I've had to figure out what a posture is really doing, and how a non-bendy body can do it. 

My limitations have also kept my ego in check. I can't waltz into the Ashtanga studios where I practice, surrounded by advanced Mysore practitioners, and own the room (... yet ;) ). I like to challenge myself, but without being too attached to the outcomes. It's more fun - it's the joy in the journey gurus talk about. That sense of fun and humour is at the heart of my teaching.

I think of myself as a yogic Rocky Balboa. I love Rocky. He put his whole heart into fighting and set his intention to "go the distance." In yoga - and in life - I love the idea of people putting their whole body, mind, and soul into something without being overly attached to how it's going to turn out. 

What benefits do people who practice yoga with you experience?

Most people start doing yoga to be more flexible, have a stronger core or de-stress, which is great and definitely happens. After a while they start to notice other benefits, too. When you commit to yoga you learn to trust yourself, you dare to try new things on your mat in a way that's supportive. To me, this is the truest practice of yoga. 

What can someone who wants to study yoga with you expect?

After providing thousands of hours of yoga leadership, I know that yoga makes us healthy, makes us "fit for life" as yoga guru BKS Iyengar wisely phrases it. I've subjected yoga to the interrogation of experts like back biomechanics specialist Dr. Stuart McGill and pelvic floor physiotherapists to understand bandhas in today’s terms. When I teach I combine research with simple, immediately useful instruction. Studying with me means you'll sweat, get stronger and come out feeling refreshed. You'll feel safe and have fun. It's an opportunity to feel creative, confident, and compassionate in body, mind, and life. 

Asia Nelson
Certified Advanced Yoga Instructor, Yoga Teacher Trainer, Founder of Pranalife Yoga & Pranalife Yoga Teacher Training
Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

About Asia

Asia began practicing yoga in 1998. She became a Certified Advanced Instructor in 2003 with Trinity Yoga and founded Pranalife Yoga in 2006 after completing a Masters Degree in Communications Design. She has led thousands of hours of classes in Calgary, Kitchener-Waterloo and Toronto and created sell-out yoga events like her Vine & Vinyasa yoga+wine+food evenings with Wildcraft sommelier Chris Clark, and retreats to Baja, Sicily, Costa Rica and Tuscany. As part of the development of Pranalife Yoga Teacher Training, she pioneered programs with physical therapists, biomechanics specialists and doctors.

Asia has been interviewed in MacLeans, Chatelaine, Bizeebee, The Record, Imprint and TruLiving Magazine. She has also written for Elephant Journal, Metro Toronto and was the Yoga Expert for DailySqueeze and SweetFit.

Her primary yoga style is Ashtanga, but she has studied and practiced many major styles. Her teaching integrates the best of these practices based on what is effective on and off a yoga mat for inspired living. Asia believes that the best teachers stay students; hence, she continues to study Ashtanga yoga at Downward Dog and the Ashtanga Yoga Centre of Toronto. Previously, she has trained with Rolf Gates, Sadie Nardini, Kino MacGregor - and other any teacher who ignites her continued passion for yoga. She considers the Pranalife Yoga Teacher Training her favourite expression of her life purpose so far.

Contact Asia at asia@pranalife.ca.

Read Asia's blog.