Sarah Beston

Sarah Beston is a yoga and meditation teacher, Inner Wellness Coach and writer based in Los Angeles. Through her teachings and guidance, Sarah hopes to inspire others to overcome self-imposed limitations, helping them to uncover their individual truths and (re)discover their most authentic selves.

Sarah’s Body Wisdom™ coaching programs and retreats blend ancient wisdom with modern science while pulling from the traditions of yoga, spiritual healing, positive psychology, somatics, and mindfulness.

In her classes, Sarah promotes a welcoming and safe environment that realigns her students with the natural gifts within—vitality, strength, joy and intuitive intelligence. She brings her love of dance and choreography to creative vinyasa flow sequences. Through refined attention to breath, physical strength and mindful movement, Sarah connects her students with the expansive freedom and potential of the body-mind-spirit connection. She believes a consistent practice offers the practitioner a pathway back to his or her own divine, radiant nature.

Sarah holds her Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology with a concentration in Spirituality and Mind Body Practice from Columbia University.

She received her yoga teacher training certifications through Yoga Mittra in Manhattan Beach and Laughing Lotus in New York City. She has completed multiple advanced trainings in trauma-informed yoga, yoga for post traumatic stress, Ayurveda, and Mindfulness Based Strengths-Practice (MBSP) through the VIA Institute on Character.

Sarah is an instructor at Columbia Business School’s Venture for All program, where she teaches courses on spiritual entrepreneurship and venture creation.

Melissa Barron

Melissa Barron is a huge fan of the transformative power of yoga, and she loves nothing more than showing her students how amazing this practice can be! Melissa’s warmth and encouragement (mixed with a healthy dose of southern charm) inspires students of all ages and abilities. Her popular classes are always uplifting, playful, challenging and thoughtfully designed with proper alignment and safety in mind. Melissa also believes that music can deeply affect the class mood and energy level, so she’s quite popular for curating the perfect playlist for each class!

Melissa began her yoga journey in 2005 with Bikram Yoga and used it to offset the physical strain from marathon and half-marathon running. After a knee osteotomy sidelined all running in 2011, Melissa immersed herself in Vinyasa-style yoga and never looked back. “I used to think I was fit when I could run 26 miles, but yoga transformed my body and mind in ways I could never imagine”, she says of her new-found commitment to the practice. “Seeing my body transform and doing things in my 30s and 40s that I could only dream of in my teens as a gymnast was so inspiring, and it continues to inspire me each day!”

Based in sunny Orlando, Florida, Melissa completed her RYT200 in 2017 and currently teaches at Orlando Power Yoga, the largest and most beloved studio in central Florida. Melissa has committed herself to practicing and studying with other wonderful teachers at workshops and retreats all over the world; she brings this knowledge to her studio classes, arm-balancing workshops, corporate yoga instruction and yoga retreats.

Get ready for adventure and prepare to smile, sweat and groove on an upcoming retreat with Melissa!

Lisa Riente

Meet Lisa Estelle Riente, the radiant force behind Blue Dog Yoga & Wellness in Camden, SC. With over three decades of yoga and healing experience and more than 20 years of teaching, Lisa has woven a tapestry that touches lives in studios, prisons, hospitals, healing centers, and schools, worldwide.

A graduate of the University of Georgia and former Air Force wife and mother, she has a zest for knowledge and adventure. She became not just a yoga practitioner while living in Germany, but a wellness studio owner in South Carolina for the past 20 years, where she’s nurtured communities and cultivated relationships one breath at a time.

With over 20 local, regional and international transformative retreats under her belt, she has guided seekers of all ages to discover the profound connection between mind, body, and energy in the most breathtaking corners of the world, including Peru, Belize, Jamaica, Mexico and throughout Europe and the US. Among her greatest honors was representing the US as one of 52 yoga ambassadors from 22 countries on the 2018 Yoga Ambassadors Tour in Kerala India, sponsored by AYUSH.

Lisa truly finds her sanctuary and sanity in the embrace of nature and adventure, As a beekeeper, animal rehabber and outdoor enthusiast, she’s discovered that the hum of the bees, the rhythm of the earth and cosmos, and the thrill of exploring new lands and cultures, hold the secrets to happiness, inner peace and harmony for her. Leading retreats worldwide is her deepest passion and there is no greater pleasure than showing new adventurers awe-inspiring locations!

If you’re ready to embark on a journey of fun, self-discovery and inspired movement, step onto the mat and out in the world with Lisa and let the magic unfold. She’s the queen bee of yoga therapy and the guiding star for countless yogis seeking balance, serenity and an eclectic and authentic yoga experience. Her creatively-themed and choreographed hatha and kundalini-inspired classes will charm and delight you!

BAJ University of Georgia; IAYT certified yoga therapist; Yoga Alliance E-RYT 500 and YACEP (Continued Education Provider); Certified Death Doula, SC Certified Beekeeper

Giselle Mari

Giselle Mari, (E-RYT500, YACEP & C-IAYT) is a global yoga teacher with spunk, spirit and depth. Her light-hearted but comprehensive teaching style weaves in yogic philosophy, Sanskrit chanting, anatomy, skillful hands-on assists, funky eclectic music and an unabashed authenticity into her classes. She trained under the direct tutelage of Sharon Gannon & David Life of the Jivamukti Yoga method, as well as assisted them for many years. She obtained advanced certification, served as a faculty member for their esteemed international teacher training and as a panel member for the Jivamukti advanced certification board exam. She also represented the method at various conferences and festivals over the years. Her other teachers include, Sarah Powers, Paul Grilley, Jill, Miller, Manorama & Jai Uttal.

She now offers a 300hr Advanced Training through Nandi Yoga in San Mateo, California and is a faculty member in other domestic and international teacher trainings at the 200 & 300-hr level as well as Yoga Therapy training. She’s been on the covers of Yoga Journal & Yoga International Magazine and has appeared in many of their articles. She’s written for Origin, Mantra and Yoga Journal magazine. She’s also featured in Kathryn Budig’s book “Women’s Health: The Big Book of Yoga”, Linda Sparrowe’s “Yoga at Home” & Stephanie Spence’s “Yoga Wisdom” and in the documentaries What is Real? The Story of Jivamukti Yoga and the Director’s Cut of Cowspiracy.

Leslie Sikes

Leslie Sikes is a Cincinnati yoga instructor with over 15 years of teaching in studio, institutional, and private settings. She recently participated in a Travel Yogi trip to the Galapagos Islands. It truly changed her life in many ways. 

Leslie teaches yoga studies for The University of Cincinnati. This curriculum allows college students to access yoga and meditation through their college career. She was the driving force behind the creation of a yoga studies certificate that consists of coursework from yoga classes through the College of Education and Human Services, the College of Medicine, and the College of Arts & Sciences – a first of its kind at the University. She also teaches yoga for the UC men’s basketball and UC women’s volleyball teams. 

Leslie’s yoga training consists of 200 YTT in Ashtanga Yoga, 300 YTT in Rocket Yoga and certifications in Yin Yoga, Prenatal Yoga and Mindfulness. She recently completed her 500 YTT at Modo Yoga Nicaragua and currently teaches hot yoga and workshops for Embra Yoga Cincinnati. 

When it comes to teaching, Leslie’s goal is to help students use yoga to stay connected both spiritually and physically, on and off their mats. She loves music and is constantly creating new music playlists to match her teachings, which she subsequently shares with her students. Leslie currently lives in Clifton with her husband and two girls, Lila and Rose. 

Leslie’s Galapagos Story

I found The Travel Yogi through the Yoga Journal as a sweepstakes to win a free yoga retreat to Iceland. While I didn’t win, I reached out to the company to see what they were all about. I’m a 42 year old yoga instructor who lives in Cincinnati with her husband and two kids, ages 14 and 11. The Galapagos Island trip had been on my bucket list since I was a little girl. I knew this was the right time in my life to travel again. I decided I should travel as a student first to see the experience from that side. I was completely blown away by my experience! The food, culture, hospitality, yoga practice, local guides of the island, and time to detach from everything at home was crucial for my mental health. I returned home recharged with a fresh outlook on life, and couldn’t wait for the next trip. I made a new group of friends as the Travel Yogi trips seem to attract open-minded, non-judgemental, diverse and friendly people! This is what inspired me to host my own yoga retreat in Panama, the beach lover’s vacation. If you’re looking for a way to detach and “replenish your soul”, come meet me in February 2024. You’ll feel recharged and full of life inside and out.

Maura Manzo

Maura Manzo is a sought after yoga & meditation teacher in the Philadelphia area, specializing in trauma-informed practices, community engagement and mind-body integration. She is a catalyst for change encouraging reflection, responsibility and action in our individual lives and in our deeper connection to each other and the world. She believes in the power of community and collective care. Maura has helped raise over $500,000 for local and international organizations, building 5 schools in developing countries and organizing various fundraising groups for direct service and cultural immersions. She is also a retreat leader known for curating unique experiences for her students that land them back into the center of themselves.

Maura has trained extensively with Off the Mat into the World founders and faculty, specifically Seane Corn, Hala Khouri and Nikki Myers, around trauma informed practices and the intersection of social justice and yoga. She has studied trauma-informed care with Lakeside Global institute.

In 2013, Maura co-founded Yoga Home which she co-owned with Kerri Hanlon through 2020. The studio was awarded many ‘best of’ awards throughout the years and she was also the personal recipient of Philadelphia Magazine’s Best of Awards 2014 – Best Yoga Podcast.

Maura’s deep commitment to building community shows up in all that she offers. Over the last 10 years, she has raised nearly $500k for different organizations she has partnered with including OTM, (HIV/AIDS South Africa), buildOn (building schools in 5 different countries) and most recently, Hope for Haiti (sustainable development).