I came to yoga a little later on in life. I was already a wife and mother of 3 beautiful daughters. I initially resisted because I only knew of counter culture people taking yoga, and that was not an image I had of myself. I even thought yoga and smoking dope went hand in hand. Wrong perception! My first yoga experience was very challenging. My teacher was much older than I expected her to be and I was skeptical about her athletic abilities. As class started I was amazed, she was so strong and flexible and confident in her body. I had many different emotions come up for me during that class and after it's completion I felt a change for the better on many different levels. With my budding hope and enthusiasm I wanted all my friends and family to hear and learn everything I had experienced. This was the start of my calling as a yoga teacher and as a lifelong yoga student. As my practice evolved I started studying and practicing more. I began teaching yoga to anyone who would listen, the girls in my Brownie group...the ladies in the PTA. I found that my own personal practice was greatly enhanced by sharing it with others.

After moving to Portland Or, I found Gisele Fitch, an amazing, charismatic and beautiful woman who was connected with the majority of the senior Yoga Instructors in the world at that time. Having lived in India, she was skilled and highly educated in a broad variety of styles and systems of yoga. Gisele believed in fostering a community of yogis and often hosted workshops taught by visiting master yoga teachers. She generously created an opportunity for me to work with her coordinating these workshops, allowing my studies to expand and giving me exposure to these gifted teachers.

I became determined to share the gifts of yoga with "the world" and began teaching classes at every health club in Portland. Eventually I expanded my outreach to include corporations, universities, and private and public agencies. There was a small core group of teachers here in Portland that came together with the central mission of sharing Classical Hatha Yoga. Along with this group of dedicated teachers I developed and implemented the standards for certifying yoga instructors in Portland.

In 1991 I officially opened the first Holiday's Health & Fitness Yoga Center.

Having been a teenage mother, I feel strongly about working with youth, especially with adolescent girls as the these years can be filled with so much change and anxiety, especially around body image. In 1992 I founded Standing on Your Own Two Feet^tm, a nonprofit yoga program designed specifically for teens. My intention was to encourage and develop the potential in young people through the practice and wisdom of yoga. The curriculum emphasizes fitness with awareness, personal development, self-esteem, and the importance of life-long health habits. Standing on Your Own Two Feet^tm has become a nationally recognized yoga program and continues to serve hundreds of teens in educational, recreational settings each year.

Now as a grandmother of eleven, I have shifted my focus from Directing an entire yoga center to focusing on offering personal yoga training, retreats and workshops, further developing my teens program, and teaching 5 classes a week through the Hawthorne Wellness Center. I believe that yoga is an opportunity for us to come together to meet and develop the finest qualities of who we are. I continue to feel blessed to be in the position of sharing the wisdom of yoga with others in my global community.

Breathe & smile,
Holiday Johnson