Instructors

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Sharon Tessandori

Sharon is the happy owner of Barefoot Works. It only took her four years post graduate school to discover that her path must be one she forged for herself. A strong desire to live a creative and authentic life and a deep love of yoga inspired her to open Barefoot Works is 2006.

Sharon teaches group classes at the studio, directs the 200 hour yoga teacher training, leads an annual yoga retreat in Tulum, Mexico, and has a ball while growing Barefoot Works. She uses yoga as a catalyst to bring about a balanced life that's full of passion, compassion and joy. Sharon strives to find new ways of presenting yoga in a way that honors tradition but doing so in a lighthearted and modern manner. She brings to her class an inspiring energy where she encourages students to find their own path. Sharon believes that the real power of yoga is contained in the breath and when combined with movement, magical things are bound to happen.

Outside of yoga, Sharon can be found reading, journaling, taking pictures, sipping coffee, writing on her blog, dreaming of Mexico, and dancing wildly in the foyer of her home.

Teresa Harrold Thompson

Teresa Harrold Thompson has been an instructor at Barefoot Works Studio since March, 2007. For over 20 years she spent most summers in Southern California studying pranayama and meditation with her teacher, and she happily brings this experience to her students. She received her Masters degree from Marshall University in ceramics and art history in 1984. She has been teaching yoga since 2001 and completed her Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) certification in 2007 from Yoga Alliance through the Cincinnati Yoga School. Since then she has acquired over 2000 hours of teaching experience.

In addition to classes, trainings and workshops at Barefoot Works Yoga Studio, Teresa has worked extensively with seniors; with students challenged by issues of weight, age, and injury; and with students who live with cognitive and physical disabilities. She is a patient, loving, and informed teacher whose goal it is to share the benefits she has experienced from yoga with others. She gratefully acknowledges Sharon Tessandori for introducing her to the Vinyasa style of yoga, which she joyfully continues to practice and teach.

In her spare time Teresa enjoys reading, gardening, raising goats, and working in her art studio in downtown Lexington. She is a supporting member of Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram outreach programs, the Vedic Friends Association, and is a member of the International Association of Yoga Therapists. She studied Vipassana/Insight meditation with Cynthia Thatcher and is a student of Sanskrit with Jo Brill and Vyaas Houston at the American Sanskrit Institute.

Please meet Teresa on her personal website at www.yogatrees.com

Emily Davidson

Emily's six year yoga practice spans everywhere from Nashville to Alaska, eventually landing in Lexington, KY. She has had a goal of completing a yoga teacher training for several years, but that dream did not materialize until she discovered Barefoot Works. Emily has completed Barefoot Works 200 hour yoga teacher training. All of Emily's experiences, her passion for life, love for the human body and its abilities, tend to flow into her teaching, which makes for a fun and compassion filled class.

Off the mat Emily is pursuing a second bachelor's degree in Nursing at UK. Her long-term goals include integrating yoga and eastern medicine with the more traditional medicine of the west to create individualized medical care for the whole individual. Emily spends her free time gardening, hiking, biking, traveling, drinking hot tea, and playing outdoors with her husband and their two dogs.

Hang out with Emily on her blog: http://hive-alicious.blogspot.com

Sarah Michelle Frank

In January of 2007, Sarah discovered Barefoot Works Yoga Studio and began an intensive study with Sharon Tessandori. By January of 2008 Sarah knew that she was ready to take Sharon's yoga teacher training, eager to share her love of yoga with others. Sarah emphasizes to students to listen to their bodies in her classes, and enjoys teaching the basic postures and breathing techniques. She enjoys presenting yoga in an informative and fun manner, striving to make all in her class feel both comfortable and excited about the practice of yoga.

When Sarah is not on the mat, she is a research associate at the University of Kentucky Appalachian Center. Her research involves new local economic development solutions; such as working with regional partners in expanding local and regional food systems in Eastern Kentucky. She also loves to cook and bake, knit, hang out with her two cats, see live music, take mini weekend trips to hike, camp, and backpack in the many wonderful Kentucky parks, and is a huge Cincinnati sports fan.

Hang out with Sarah on her blog: http://www.zennnow.blogspot.com

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