Teachers
Joan Hyman
Joan Hyman’s grounded teaching style seamlessly supports her students as they emerge from their practice with the rich and bright energy that yoga has to offer. Joan’s teachings come from an organic and intuitive place, as she draws upon the combined studies of Ashtanga and Iyengar yoga as well as Ayurveda and meditation. An authentic modern-day yogi, Joan's love and devotion show up in her practice and throughout her teaching, you will leave her class feeling transformed and deeply aligned. Joan spent fifteen years as a distinguished YogaWorks Senior Teacher before bringing her expertise to Wanderlust as the Director of Teacher Trainings in 2016. Now, with over twenty years’ experience leading retreats, trainings, and international workshops, Joan continues to travel the globe leading her own signature trainings. In addition, Joan partners with yoga schools in various corners of the world on their teacher training programs. Joan’s open-hearted approach to teaching yoga keeps both her inner spirit and her students continuously evolving.
As a leader in the Los Angeles yoga community, Joan also contributes to popular blogs such as The Daily Love, Elephant Journal, and Wanderlust. She has been featured in Yoga Journal, ORIGIN Magazine and Women’s Health for her advice and expertise on health and wellness. Joan’s openhearted approach to teaching yoga keeps both her inner spirit and her students continuously evolving.
Romy Phillips
Romy Phillips, MFA, E-RYT 500, C-IAYT, began teaching yoga in 2001 in Los Angeles. She leads workshops, trainings and retreats in the US and Asia. Since 2012, Romy has lead teacher trainings in Japan, China, and Vietnam for YogaWorks, as well as Yoga Formaâ workshops and intensives in the US and for First Ship Yoga School in Tokyo.
She is the author of Yoga Forma: A Visual Resource Guide for the Spine and Lower Back. Romy is an avid Ashtanga practitioner, meditation instructor and yoga therapist.
She currently resides and teaches in Maryland.
To learn more about Romy, please visit:
Jeanne Heileman
MA, 500-ERYT, ParaYoga Level II Certified, was introduced to yoga as a dancer and actress. Facing ongoing pain from scoliosis, yoga allows her tools for physical realignment and acceptance of difficulties. In her quest for a deep and meaningful connection to all that yoga has to offer, she studied extensively in Ashtanga, Iyengar, Anusara, ParaYoga, Vini and Tantra Yoga; each adding a deeper element of meaning to her practice and teachings.
She specializes in discovering the needs of an individual and gently guiding each student to their own grace and balance. She creates a safe haven for students to dive deep, find their edge, and transform. Jeanne teaches with sensitivity, generosity of spirit and a good dose of humor. Founder of Tantra Flow Yoga™, Jeanne brings together over 35 years of practice and over 24 years of teaching experience into a style of yoga inclusive of asana, Ayurveda, mindfulness, with the added focus of the poses’ energy.
Founder of Tantra Flow Yoga™, Jeanne tours internationally teaching her teacher trainings, workshops and retreats, and is a guest teacher for many other yoga schools. Based in Los Angeles, she is a featured teacher on the International Yoga site and teaches at YogaWorks when not traveling.
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Mia Togo
Mia creates a space for her students to explore their truth – a place where they can remember that their worth does not need to be earned, bought, or outsourced, because true love comes from within. In a world where we are taught to push away discomfort and attach to pleasure, she encourages students to honor what is coming up, rather than override it.
“Life is full of challenges and every season we move through is a gift to honor, to move through mindfully, and live from a space of truth and love.”
When I was younger I felt like a square peg in a round hole. I stopped trying to fit in and decided to be me. A struggle is a lesson we haven’t yet learned. Yoga and coaching is a modality to define our struggles, develop rinsing and processing skills to choose a life that refines our purpose. We are all unique and yet the same, navigating through change asks us to go beyond what we know and be open to possibility. This is where miracles happen.
Instagram - @miatogo
Pete Lee
C. PETE LEE, CPCC, RYT IS A LOS ANGELES-BASED CERTIFIED PROFESSIONAL CO-ACTIVE LIFE COACH, CERTIFIED GREAT STORY COACH, CERTIFIED AND REGISTERED INSTRUCTOR OF SACRED ENERGY ARTS, KUNDALINI, RESTORATIVE YOGA AND MEDITATION, ENERGY AND SOUND HEALING PRACTITIONER, INTERACTIVE IMAGERY GUIDE, AND AN OCCASIONAL FOOD WRITER WHOSE WORK HAS APPEARED IN THE LOS ANGELES TIMES AND L.A. WEEKLY.
Pete coaches, mentors, supports and guides heart-centered and soul-inspired individuals who wish to see and live life as a great adventure that continues to evolve and unfold. Through coaching, gentle and restorative yoga, meditation, contemplative soul and self-focused exercises, and journaling, Pete supports his clients on a nourishing journey in reclaiming the role of the author of their lives - creating, designing and living fulfilling lives they love; to strengthen the body, mind, nervous, glandular and energy systems; to restore deeply and relax completely; and, to share tools and practices that cultivate spaciousness, groundedness, and ease in every moment, with every delicious bite, and with every nourishing breath.
Pete is a graduate of The Coaches Training Institute’s (CTI) Co-Active Coaching program and Lucid Living’s Great Story Coaching and Mastery Programs, which he is a part of its leader team as a mentor coach.
As a certified energy healing practitioner, Pete graduated from Clearsight's Energetic Medicine program as a Master Healer. Pete has also completed levels 1-3 of Eric Pearl's Reconnective Healing program as well as levels 1-2 of Richard Bartlett's Matrix Energetics.
As a certified and registered instructor of Sacred Energy Arts, Kundalini and Restorative Yoga, Pete has trained with Matthew Cohen, Gurmukh, Tej Khalsa, Rachel Sat Siri Dougherty, and Jillian Pransky. He teaches regularly at Yogaworks and Equinox Fitness Centers throughout Los Angeles.
Instagram - cpetelee
Tiffany Russo
Tiffany Russo is a yoga teacher, mentor, trainer/educator, athlete and world traveller (an advocate of real connection….). She believes that connection creates change and the most important connection to cultivate is the one that we have with ourselves.
In Tiffany’s yoga classes, she offers a modern approach to the classical yoga practices, taking students directly to the present moment by asking them to pay attention on the how and why they are moving through space. The classes are anatomically informed and can be called challenging, not only physically but also drawing on the mental fitness that lacks in the all encompassing digital world. When we get pulled off course, it is the practice of yoga that brings us back to center. Tiffany’s mission is to help you realign to your center and connect you back to your true nature.
When not teaching or leading a yoga teacher training, you can find Tiffany by the beaches in Southern California or travelling the globe to experience adventure with her partner.
Instagram - @tiffrussoyoga
David Romero
In addition to the immediate physiological benefits of yoga, practitioners will notice secondary benefits and improved lifestyle as the effects build upon each other. For example, decreased stress and increased oxygen intake will contribute to better, deeper sleep which will in turn improve performance at work, in the yoga studio, and in life.
Grounded in their own years of practice, self-discipline, ever-expanding awareness, and constant personal development, David and his team of certified, registered yoga instructors are prepared to guide you through personalized tailored yoga sessions focused on you and your body’s needs.
It is with much gratitude and love that I thank my loved ones, mentors, friends, family, employees, and patients – you have significantly contributed to the self-realization and discovery of my higher path throughout this lifetime and for that, I am eternally grateful.
Namaste.
Kiyomi Takahashi
Kiyomi was born and raised in Japan, growing up as an athlete and earned her BA in Tokyo, MA in San Francisco. She began her corporate career in 2001, and Yoga quickly became her refuge during a busy corporate life. With her strong desire to understand the healing capacity of this practice more in-depth, she completed her 500-hr teacher training at YogaWorks in 2007.
In 2009, Kiyomi took a plunge to pursue her deepest desire to share this transformational practice of Yoga with others and never looked back since. She continued her study to complete the Yoga Therapy RX course at LMU, as well as 220-hr Kundalini Yoga Teacher Training. Kiyomi feels that Yoga is a gift for all, mentally, physically, and spiritually. She is passionate about living, learning, and sharing this transformational teaching.
Kiyomi teaches breath-focused flow classes with detailed attention to safe alignment respecting individual needs and uniqueness, as well as Kundalini Yoga and Meditation. Kiyomi currently leads Teacher Training, workshops, and classes both in English and Japanese. She is dedicated to touching as many people's lives as possible with this teaching to expand their potential to live their lives with joy and peace within.
Sean Gray
The foundation of my teaching is expansion in all aspects of the Self. Expanding ourselves physically, energetically, emotionally, cognitively, and spiritually with intention, commitment, courage, and compassion. Yoga is a tremendous tool for change- to show us what is, give us the way to do things differently, and monitor the development of what it is that we’re changing. And just like with any tool, with practice and refinement, we can eventually master the tool and use it for not only our own personal benefit, but for the benefit of all. To practice yoga is to practice living, and we can use our practice to help us with how we live, within our own body and mind, as well as how we live within our communities and the entire collective itself. Thanks to my non-yoga background, I am able to relate to my students, no matter their level or capabilities, and demonstrate how students can use the physical part of the yoga practice (asana) as a way to move into any and all aspects of our practice, and into our lives. I truly want my students, everyone really, to grow and thrive, and live their authentic lives filled with exploration, joy, balance, and most of all love.
Anne Van Valkenburg
I started practicing yoga in 1999 and have been teaching at Yoga Works since 2003. I teach public classes and personal clients in Los Angeles, as well as travel nationally and internationally teaching the Yoga Works 200-Hour and 500-Hour Teacher Training Programs. The heart of my teaching is alignment-based vinyasa taught with thematic sequences that tell a story and that challenge students to slow down. I am passionate about teaching the nuts and bolts of the physical practice, as well as weaving in the philosophy of the "Eight Limbs of Yoga." I enjoy creating a space for students where they can define their own meaning of yoga. My hopes are to inspire students to look beyond the physical and to use the whole practice of yoga as a means to deepen the connection with one's true self. Ultimately yoga teaches us to go inward, and by creating an attitude of santosha, or contentment, we are able to embrace all of the parts of our self and can harmonize with the world around us. We can be grateful for not just one thing, but everything. The practice of yoga teaches us how to live with an open heart and with a willingness to dig deeper.