In June of 2016, Melissa acquired studio space on California Ave. and created the boutique healing oasis, Temple. She envisioned Temple Yoga as a place for stress management, community, and a living alter where your body is the inspiration for your devotion.  She began studying yoga in 1999, took her first yoga training course in 2007, and began teaching full-time after the 9 week 500 hour course. A passion for attending training courses immersed and she hasn't stoped learning since. Melissa is dedicated to the Dharma of the path and considers her role as a Mother to be her greatest accomplishment in life. Her yoga instructor training includes over 2,000 hours of Yoga Teacher Training courses beginning with Bikram Yoga Training in 2007. Mel's enthusiasm for sharing yoga eventually led her to training in Bhakti Flow with Rusty Wells. She completed a 500-hour journey that continues with Janet Stone Yoga immersing through travel, India, South America, and many more sources of inspiration. Finding joy through teaching public yoga classes yet wanting to create community, she began We Are One Yoga Teacher Trainings in 2013. The teacher trainings are in-depth study modules exploring the many ways to embody the teachings of yoga. Her yoga classes are strong yet basic, sweaty and also cool, radiant and relaxing--an experience of yoga.

I have been practicing asana for many years, and bit by bit, experiencing little openings to something bigger. After traveling and working different jobs, I felt pulled to come back to Reno and dive in deeper. This led me to completing my 200hr RYT in Reno with We Are One Teacher Training. Since then my practice, studentship, and curiosity have grown into something I can’t help but love to share. The classes I offer intend to create a space for someone to explore whatever it is they are looking for in the practice. The beauty of it is when one gets on that mat, and experiences a connection to themselves through the mind, body, and breath. The results can be limitless! My classes consist of Hatha yoga with flow and attention on concentration.

Born and raised in Reno, Nevada, Susan Frankovich has had quite the nomadic past. She began her bellydance journey with ATS in New Mexico and continued onto NYC, LA, San Francisco, and Croatia, and then back to LA again, learning something more in each place while developing her own style along the way. She’s an international Tribal Fusion dance instructor, performer, and yogi who is in the constant pursuit of improving her art and teaching style. Susan has a great eye for correction, and can deliver critique with a positivity that makes her students feel successful. She is a former member of Bellyqueen and PURE (NYC), The Barbary Coast Shakedown (San Francisco), and was the People’s Choice winner with Jillina’s Bellydance Evolution (for Dark Side of the Crown) in the summer of 2012. Susan has taught and performed in the US, Canada, Mexico, Ecuador, Asia, Russia, and throughout Europe. She is known for bringing tribal style dance to Croatia (in 2002), and in addition to the many years traveling to teach and perform there, she spent 4 years cultivating a lively and loving dance community in Zagreb. In December of 2012, Susan moved to Los Angeles where she had the opportunity to choreograph and dance for Bellydance Evolution’s Alice In Wonderland. She also had the great fortune to lead 3 weekly classes at two of LA’s premier studios. In December of 2015, Susan was also certified in a 200 hour power yoga teacher training through CorePower Yoga in Pasadena, and has been teaching ever since. Her love of movement, both yoga and dance is never-ending, and she loves to guide others and watch them grow. Because of her dance background, her sequences are creative, her transitions smooth, and the Emphasis of the Asanas originate from the core with a strong foundation in alignment. After 22 years of globetrotting, Susan is back in Reno and ready to share her passion with you! For more information, go to www.susanfrankovich.com.

Deanna understands busy lives and strives to help people balance a life that includes work, family, and personal time through the practice of yoga. Deanna is in the midst of her 20+ year career in marketing and communications and understands the stress, posture challenges, and constant connectivity expectations that a successful career can afford someone. While she remains dedicated to helping Reno, her hometown, she intends to do it differently now. In the past, she helped by using her creativity to position the authentic side of Reno increasing tourism. Recently, she inspired the community to more easily connect and better understand issues facing our local government. After meeting her true love, getting married and having two children later in life, a chance to refocus presented itself. Yoga has been the path towards achieving balance, finding her patient breath, and allowing movement to reenergize her tired life. Earning her 200hrRYT from her teacher Melissa Martinez at We Are One Teacher Training in 2015, Deanna quickly took up teaching to her colleagues at the City of Reno. Juxtaposing politics next to the "yama and niyama" practices was challenging, but clearly needed. The offering brought many the opportunity to bring a more peaceful, focused, healthy, and positive approach to a stressful environment. At Temple Yoga, Deanna tunes into her students needs, incorporates her love of music, provides a glimpse into yoga philosophy and leads an asana flow practice for all levels to enjoy.

Loren's class is smooth with vinyasa and beats to relax you and get you in the mood to go inward. She's an experienced instructor with great communication style in her teaching. You can find Loren here with us at Temple when we're lucky enough to have her fill in for us. You won't regret coming to her class and we think you'll like her flow as much as we do.

I grew up as a competitive athlete and was always pushing my body. After a few repetitive stress injuries from the sports I played I turned to Yoga as a way to heal my injuries. My whole world flipped upside down and my views about “fitness” changed. I learned the value of being gentle and kind to oneself, the power of breath, and the beauty of stillness and quieting of the mind, and living in the present moment. I strive to demonstrate to my students that yoga is so much more than just the physical practice. Yoga is truly transformative for mind, body, and spirit.

Tracy went looking for a yoga teacher in 1996 with a few of her closest friends. They found Lorna Benedic, and started this life changing journey. She completed her first teacher training with Erich Schiffmann in 2002 and has been teaching yoga ever since. She also has studied with Lynne Ramsey, Eddy Modestini and Nicki Doane, Lama Chistie McNally-Tibetan Heart Yoga and most recently Carol Lyons, here at Studio 8. She finally understands the saying, "do your practice and all is coming. " After many years of "studying" yoga, Tracy has finally found how to "practice yoga"  here at Studio8, practicing astanga. She prefers to practice mysore style, but will try to attend a led class once a week so that she can "hear " Sanskrit, chat with the class, and to learn more about the practice. Tracy came from a completive swimming, triathlon and marathon running background. She also has raised three children.  She can honestly say that Yoga has enhanced everything in her life, and she hopes continue the practice always. When not practicing or teaching  yoga you can find Tracy at Studio 325 where she works as an Aveda Aesthetician.   “ I finally understand the saying ‘Do you practice and all is coming'."

Dawn loves to style hair at her salon by the river and she is a cosmic hair wizard. Her classes are soothing and powerful as she uses her awareness of the elements. She is the owners favorite yoga teacher to receive the calm and peace of mind that the practice offers. She only teaches 7:30am on Fridays due to her long list of clients. We're grateful that Dawn shares her yoga practice with us at Temple.

A Pilates instructor since 2004, the transistion into Yoga Instructor was a natural 'next step'. In addition to many Pilates trainings, I have now completed 200hr- YTT, and another 200hr YTT on consecutive years with We Are One YTT. Also, having completed an intensive training for Restorative Yoga at Ananda Village a year ago, I'm happy to offer that peaceful and meditative experience as well. As most instructors will agree, the training is never over and continuing to seek out growth through education is part of the offering we all bring to our practice and to our students. All are welcome! Namaste

Justine Anderson hails from the wonderful city of Austin, TX, where she discovered her life-long passions of yoga, the outdoors and fabulous music. She started practicing yoga in 2003 with her mom and fell in love with it after the first down-dog. In 2007 she recieved her yoga teacher training with Dharma Yoga in Austin, TX. Over her teaching career she has taught yoga to all walks of life from children to professional athletes to traumatic brain injury victims all across the country. With a bachelor's degree in kinesiology and a doctorate degree in physical therapy, she brings a strong knowledge base of proper alignment and technique along with a passion for movement and meditation to her yoga classes. She believes strongly in the intimate connection between our mental and physical bodies and believes yoga is a beautiful way to cultivate that union. The most important things yoga has taught her is not to take life too seriously and to take each day one breath at a time.

Kim Arnott teaches an energetic class for all to enjoy who prefer a vigorous vinyasa-style flow class. She's full of good tips on the alignment and pose build-up and loves teaching yoga. She is the owner of the beautiful glass bottles with the Sri-Yantra that you see all over our community. She does great work with assisting in green houses and is a dog-mom to two very cute boxers.

Having always been passionate about wellbeing on every level, I sought life practices that would support a healthy mind, body and soul. I discovered that through a consistent and committed Yoga practice I could heal and transcend challenges and setbacks in life. By embracing the philosophy and soulful teachings of Yoga I learned to experience and express those thoughts and feelings through the physical postures. In my group and private classes, I create the space and offer the instruction for students to explore and express what they learn through their own Yoga practice. I guide them in developing better body awareness and safe postural alignment as well as in improving their strength and mobility. In addition, students can experience an introspective awareness and inner growth through healing chants, profound breathing exercises and a philosophical focus. My teaching style offers a blend of Hatha, Vinyasa and Bhakti styles of Yoga along with a heavy focus on postural alignment. I’ve been teaching Yoga since 2012 and have completed 290 hours of Registered Yoga Teacher Trainings. I’ve earned a B.S. degree in Health and Human Science and am a Certified Holistic Health Coach as well as a Certified Reiki Practitioner.

Yogini, Healer, and Gypsy SOUL. I recently moved hOMe to Reno after a decade in Southern California. I believe that blending love with connection creates magic. Life has taken me on a journey of self discovery and cultivated a desire to deepen my knowledge about the Shakti power. I love to travel and get lost in foreign countries. Although, I was introduced to yoga in 2002, my yoga journey didn’t begin until 2009 while I was living in Los Angeles. Soon after a life renewing adventure in Bali, I decided to deepen my practice and I obtained my 500RYT Yoga Alliance certification through Cloud Nine Yoga in Hawaii. With my background in dance, I combine fluidity, grounding, and deep connection into my classes. Being a Certified Massage Therapist, I believe that human touch and connection is one of the most magical experiences that can ignite the soul. It is my hope that I can form authentic connections with fellow Yogis as we learn from each other in this gift of life.

Becky Gough has recently located to Reno from New York where she spent the last 8 years as a personal trainer and Yoga instructor. Her original take on yoga can be summed up by a quote from Baron Baptiste, “they came because they wanted beautiful bodies, they stayed because they wanted better versions of themselves.” But after finishing a 200hr YTT in 2014 and her 300hr. YTT in 2016, she realized that yoga was way more than just the physical. It’s a compassionate, respectful way of living. Her energetic style incorporating fitness, yoga philosophy, and touch of humor will safely guide students through a mindful practice on the mat. Life, as well as our practice, is a constant evolution of trial and error, learning and becoming. “You cannot do yoga. Yoga is your natural state. What you can do are yoga exercises, which may reveal to you where you are resisting your natural state.” ~Sharron Gannon

Tina Villela I realized there was nothing more intelligent to do with my time other than practice yoga when I was about 25. I had questioned my existence, worked, studied, loved, lost, yet still had unanswered questions. What was the meaning of it all? I felt lost and isolated at times. The only place where life started to make sense was on my mat. Where work and reward were always hand in hand. I owe all my energy to yoga. We’re always told that as we get older, it gets harder, our bodies slow down. Thanks to this practice and all my teachers that hasn’t been the case for me. Yoga is a science of happiness. I am so grateful every time I’m in the lab and get to share the tools I’ve accumulated over the years with the world.