My Story

Hi I'm Rachel and I began my exploration into the wellness industry with a dis-ease around living the status quo and a very short-lived blog aptly named The Natural Vibe.  My blog chronicled my exploration of and interest in healthy living and alternative health practices. I parlayed that experience into a writing job with the online newspaper and now defunct Examiner.com, where for the next few years I wrote on various alternative health topics.  This experience provided a wonderful opportunity of being able to research and create more understanding of topics that interested me.  Around this same time I began to feel pulled to teach yoga.  Through my own practice, I was finding a sense of calm and connection unlike anything else I had ever experienced and I desperately wanted others to be able to find that as well.   However, I struggled with severe stage fright and for several years put my teaching dreams on the back burner, thinking I would never be able to overcome my fears.  I continued to be interested in health and wellness, but eventually settled into a corporate cubicle position to pay the bills.  A few years passed and sedentary life was really taking it's toll. I began feeling the pull to teach again.  Eventually, I came to the realization that if I didn't follow this aspiration, I knew I would always feel less than fulfilled.  Quite the motivator! 

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So, I cashed in all my PTO and signed up for an immersive 200 hour training. 

I began teaching yoga in 2011 after 10 years of practice and began spreading the namaste to a multitude of studios all over the metro. I'll be honest and tell you that my fears did not disappear once I received my certification.  For several years I battled against stage fright and impostor syndrome.  For years I started classes feeling terror and ended them feeling elation and purpose, continually being reassured I was on the right path.  And yes, eventually the fear faded away.

In my time as a yoga teacher, I have taught over 6,000 group and private sessions across five countries.  I've garnered several other yoga certifications and have had the pleasure of teaching to most all populations and experience levels.

I have worked in studio management and through that began to delve into training new yoga teachers.  In 2016 I develop and lead the first 200-hour curriculum at Yoga Patch in Kansas City.  For five years I managed and co-led the program. 

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 Over the years of leading classes and developing relationships with my students, I began encountering questions that fell outside the scope of a yoga teacher.  These questions and my lack of answers-lead me to explore other ways in which I could expand my reach and help my community further.  I dove into life coaching and completed trainings in two different approaches on the modality.  I began coaching clients in May of 2018.  I then continued my studies and in 2019 received my associate's degree in fitness and nutrition coaching, a holistic nutritionist certification from AFPA, and the designation of behavior change specialist from NASM-a very busy few years!  I most recently have expanded into Pilates Reformer, completing my Reformer level one certification, and have excitedly begun working with clients in this life (and body!) changing modality.

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Through my studies and life practice, I have found immense respect and fascination with the body and brain, specifically functional movement and anatomy, as well as behavior change psychology.  I strive to learn as much as possible in these fields to help cultivate awareness and understanding for those I work with.  I truly love helping my clients connect the dots of their health and lives, hoping that my hours and years of effort can aid and streamline the process of finding wellness.

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Alongside my wellness business, I currently work full-time as both the Kansas City Regional Yoga Manager and area yoga educator for a nationwide health club.

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I believe yoga has been the most transformational force in my life.  It has allowed me the guidance, opportunities, and tools to craft a life full of passion and the drive to help others do the same.  I truly hope my story and my coaching can help others in their pursuit to uncover their goals, their passions and to encourage them to follow the things that pull at their soul, even when it's scary.

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