Today we’d like to introduce you to Ahlia Biondi.
Hi Ahlia, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m a certified personal trainer, yoga and meditation instructor, accountability coach, and mentor for other fitness and wellness industry professionals. I’m the host of What’s Wellness Podcast and have a membership site with recorded yoga classes and workshops available on demand as well as free classes available on my YouTube site: Ahlia Yoga. I got started teaching yoga when I lived in Minnesota in 2009 and had been practicing for 8 years when I started teaching. I wrote Ahlia Yoga Academy Teacher Training in 2016 because I saw an opportunity to bridge the gap with teacher training programs and offer both the opportunity to learn and integrate the other 7-limbs of yoga (there are 8-limbs to the yogic path) as well as glean a strong understanding of the yoga asana practice for oneself and to guide others through. The reason I started practicing yoga was to help with my anxiety, which it has tremendously. Teaching yoga is a meditation for me and an amazing opportunity to connect, uplift and inspire others… it’s one of my favorite ways to make a positive impact in my community and around the world. I am also a retired professional athlete and retired ranked 5th in the world as a pro tandem surfer. I was forced to retire due to a traumatic brain injury that I suffered in 2015 at world championships contest in Hawaii, I didn’t realize how badly I was injured until I got on the airplane to fly home – which the Neurologist told me I should not have done. Today I love helping others navigate their wellness journey as I believe in balance in all activities – from how you exercise to how you rest and recover, nutrition, hydration, and mindset are all incredibly important as well as consistent effort and a mindset of making permanent changes to lifestyle as opposed to temporary changes.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I struggled a lot with digestive health issues and had surgery on my small intestines in 2018. These challenges have held me back at times due to the uncertainty of when my symptoms would act up. I decided I didn’t want to be held back anymore and made permanent changes to my nutrition and hydration, especially through incorporating various minerals to optimize cellular function. I had a wide array of food allergies for the greater part of a decade that would cause pain and problems for me, sometimes keeping me from being able to work. This caused a tremendous amount of anxiety for me and often impeded on my work and social life. I have overcome a lot of these struggles through mindset, meditation, breath work, body awareness, nervous system regulation, stress reduction, and I will no longer eat in a hurry or while driving. I have been able to incorporate many foods back into my nutrition that used to trigger my symptoms with success, and have a lot of hope that anyone going through these kinds of struggles can come out the other side with time and diligent effort as well as faith in the possibility to have a full recovery. I struggled a lot after the brain injury because a lot of my identity was tied to being a pro tandem surfer. It was and still is something that I look back on fondly and miss tremendously, but I have learned so many valuable lessons both as a professional athlete and in my retirement from the sport. I have the mindset of looking forward and moving towards my goals for the future and only looking back to recall the lessons learned from the past.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Ahlia Yoga isn’t just yoga anymore! A certified Personal Trainer, Yoga Instructor, Yoga Teacher Training School, Mentor, Lifestyle and Accountability Coach, Retreats leader, and Podcast Host – Ahlia Yoga is a brand that is proud to facilitate heart-opening, energy-expanding, transformational experiences whether we have one hour together or spend 200-hours together in a teacher training program. As a brand, Ahlia Yoga promotes wellness from the inside out and focuses on the mind-body-spirit connection that comes through integrating practices that regulate the nervous system, help to release stagnant energy as well as tension and stress held in the mind and the body. Ahlia Yoga is also a meditation facilitator and guides self-myofascial release sessions to help people feel good in body and have a healthy mindset. Ahlia Yoga works one-on-one in person (in and around Encinitas, CA) and on zoom and teaches five classes a week at Rancho Valencia Resort and Spa in Fairbanks Ranch, CA. You can check out What’s Wellness with Ahlia Yoga, a podcast available on all major platforms.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I hired a mentor upon graduating from my first 200-hour yoga teacher training program, and it was the best choice for me because the program I participated in did not prepare me well enough to teach a group class. I worked for an additional 8-weeks with my mentor and highly recommend recent teacher training graduates to inquire whether their favorite instructor offers a mentorship program. Why inquire with one’s favorite instructor rather than with the lead(s) of their teacher training program? Although of course, you can work with the lead(s) from your program, especially if you like their teaching style, I found it more helpful to work with someone who I admired as an instructor who facilitated strong connections with their students and who I resonated with the most for things like: cues, hands-on adjustments, themes, sequencing, music, etc. It just so happened that for me this person was not one of the people who led my first training. It’s important to work with someone you trust who will pour love, encouragement, and honest feedback into you to help support your growth and evolution as an instructor. For networking, I have found that making in-person connections with participants to be the best way to grow and network. Word of mouth is a fantastic way to build your private clientele, as well as marketing yourself online. For instructors who are new to an area or if you’re not ready to teach in studio – I suggest putting together donation-based outdoor yoga classes at a local park (check if you need a permit first). Donation-based outdoor community classes are a great way to connect with new people and get the word out about what you are offering.
Pricing:
- Sliding Scale Donation Based All Levels Vinyasa Yoga on Zoom Wednesdays at 4:30 pm PST – $15-25 per person
- Private Personal Training $100-125 (Zoom or In Person)
- Private Yoga and/or Meditation $80-100 (Zoom or In Person)
- Discounted Prices Available For Packages of 3 or More
- $15/month: On Demand Membership – Access to ALL Yoga, Meditation, and Home Workouts!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.ahliayoga.com
- Instagram: @ahliayoga
- Facebook: http://facebook.com/ahliayoga
- Youtube: http://youtube.com/c/ahliayoga
- Other: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/whats-wellness-with-ahlia-yoga/id1494254559
Image Credits
Christian Murphy
Quillis Photo
