Ally’s enthusiasm, passion and commitment are deeply woven into her core identity as an instructor, mother, partner and friend. She moved to Durango from San Diego in 2001 to attend Fort Lewis and fell in love with the mountains, the people and the small, eclectic town. She became an educator and left Durango to explore in 2008, knowing she would be back. During that time she received her M.Ed in environmental education and restoration ecology from the UW and started a school in Denver. She discovered yoga in college and intrinsically recognized its power. She needed an outlet for the demands of a master's degree and starting a brand new school, so over a decade later, in 2012 she received her 200-hour teacher training in Hatha/Vinyasa. Then, in 2013, she became a certified kids' yoga instructor. In 2018, she moved back to Durango with her (then) 3 and a half year old twin boys, Bodhi and River and started teaching at The Sweaty Buddha in 2020. Ally is currently working with Janet Stone on her 500-hour certification.
Yoga has given Ally the gift of bringing awareness to her breath and body, providing her the ability to understand her thought patterns and the choice we all have to choose joy each and every morning, moving through life more intentionally. As an instructor, she enjoys sequencing creatively so that each flow feels like a dance. She loves to encourage her students to try new things, often finding how incredibly capable their bodies are. She changes her sequences monthly, giving students an opportunity to melt into tense areas of the body and build strength in muscles they didn't know they had. She also adores creating playlists that are unique and unexpected. Ally believes that yoga doesn't have to be serious; we can live with the dichotomy of intention and sincerity while having fun. Finding the balance in life is beautiful and pursuing it has made her a better mother, friend, teacher and human being. Her classes are for every body because she recognizes that this is your practice; make of it what you will and enjoy the heat!
In her free time, you'll find her playing with her partner, 11-year-old twin boys, 3 stepdaughters, and the zoo of animals they've collected. She loves to travel and absolutely loves any time she gets to spend on boats. She also loves to spend time in her woodshop creating music, nature and yoga inspired woodart and caring for her multitude of houseplants.