Kasandra Ziolkowska
Kasandra first discovered Yoga in the 90s when she started practicing it from a Hatha yoga book. Little did she know that was only the beginning of a life-long journey. Few years later, having practiced in the Sivananda tradition classes for over a year, she moved on to explore a more fluid and varied “Power Yoga” in Svaha Yoga studio in Amsterdam. The studio’s incredible mix of Ashtanga, Iyangar and Jivamukti that stressed strong asana (yoga poses), pranayama (breathing exercises), meditation and Sanskrit chanting, gave her the experience of body, mind and soul connection she had been searching for.
Deepening the knowledge of yoga was the most natural step to take, and in 2011 Kasandra graduated from the Elbowroom’s 250Hrs Yoga Teacher Training where she studied under the guidance of Lisa Wilkinson, Marianne Jaccuzzi and Tanya Fitzpatrick among others. This was shortly followed by graduating as a Yoga Therapist from YTI (Yoga Therapy Ireland) in 2015, where she studied under the guidance of Elma Toland and Marie Lennon. Continuously adamant to keep yoga more and more available for and of help to those with injuries or limitations, she has recently signed up to the 500 Hrs Online Yoga Medicine training with Tiffany Cruikshank and is currently studying the Myofascial Release module.
Through her own practice and the limitations and changes she discovered in her body, Kasandra became particularly sensitive to the personal aspect of Yoga practice. As she strongly believes Yoga is for everyone no matter the age, health conditions or abilities, she addresses her classes to the individual needs of her students always emphasizing the importance of personal experience and gaining self-awareness. She is also specific about proper alignment as a means to experience a safe and wholesome practice. As a result, most of her classes are short Yoga therapy sessions in themselves, led at a different pace. She teaches slow, self – exploration Hatha or Slow Flow that also make up her Gentle Yoga class, as well as more demanding Mixed Hatha and recently Yin Yoga, all adjusted to different levels of student experience.