Shaina Traisman  
Shaina teaches Vinyasa yoga with a strong emphasis on alignment, breath, spirituality and self-awareness. She sets a classroom environment that is nurturing and challenging, leading her students to gain both inner and outer strength. It is due to her extensive training in yoga, bodywork and healing that she is able to safely and skillfully guide people through a process of self-discovery.

Shaina has been teaching yoga for eight years. After graduating from Samadhi's esteemed Yoga Teacher Training Program in 2003 Shaina served as a mentor for the program two years in a row. She has studied with countless inspirational teachers over the years in the U.S. and in India. In April of 2010, Shaina completed a 200 hour Ashtanga Yoga teacher training in Rishikesh, India with the famously loved and respected Kamal Singh.

Shaina has an ten-year history of experience and continuing education in the field of massage therapy. Her passion for bodywork highly informs her yoga teaching abilities. Shaina is not shy about her geeky love for Anatomy. With a deep understanding of the body, her classes are an education on human anatomy and how the body functions, as well as remaining rooted in yogic philosophy and spirituality.

Shaina is the founder of Yoga Behind Bars, a thriving non-profit organization that brings yoga and meditation classes to incarcerated youth and adults as well as those at risk of entering the criminal justice system. She has been featured in Yoga Journal and Conscious Choice, on King 5 news, on NPR (National Public Radio) and in various local publications.

It has been through yoga that Shaina has experienced profound healing in her life. Her primary goal as a yoga teacher is to share with others the tools that have offered her immeasurable amounts of clarity, strength and peace of mind.		  
         
      Testimonials  
     

"I had a truly incredible experience with Shaina on the Thailand yoga retreat last year. The way in which Shaina organized every aspect of the retreat was thoughtful in vision and attentive to detail. In a gorgeous peaceful setting nestled in the Chang Mai mountains, I was able to completely reconnect with myself and deepen my practice. Shaina is a gifted teacher, and because of her guidance I am able to practice yoga with a much keener awareness than ever before. Her sequences are gentle yet powerful, fluid yet challenging. Her teachings are supported by extensive experience and understanding of theory and anatomy, so I always felt there was a lovely balance between the spiritual and the physical. I learned a lot, and left the retreat with a greater sense of peace, strength and empowerment. Six months later, I am still feeling those benefits! I would recommend this retreat to anyone looking for a holistic, challenging and super fun yoga experience."  - Kyra Boyer

"Shaina’s yoga retreat in Chiang Mai was a meaningful and invigorating experience for me. I had been living in Chiang Mai for 6 months, and longing for the chance to attend a yoga workshop close by. Not only did Shaina welcome me in, but she created an atmosphere in which I could really focus intensely on myself and my practice. In addition, there was a group of fabulous people who were also there to do the same thing. I made great friends, and felt totally supported through the course of the workshop. Shaina provided a strong mix of yogic teachings and physical practice - which in combination, lead to very powerful revelations, both in terms of personal growth and the strength of the group’s dynamic. Her demeanor as a teacher is calm and assertive, warm and supportive. She was fully capable of catering her classes to all levels of yoga practitioners. The location of Chiang Mai is perfect for a workshop of this kind, and next year’s retreat sounds amazing, with a built in component for volunteering locally. I felt very honored to participate. I can't say enough good things about Shaina or her retreat! I wish I was able to do it again this year."  - Julia Schwadron

"Shaina’s long list of accomplishments and studies led me to be more than confident in her teaching abilities when I signed up for her Thailand yoga retreat. I was never disappointed, and even more so, I left with a broader scope of yoga and yogic elements, meditation, and a deeper and more rooted place in myself. I could easily say that because of this retreat it has tied, joined, and interwoven everything I thought I knew about yoga and my body...it has taken me to a place where breathing, walking, thinking has made more sense. There’s something about being removed from one's normal life, like stepping back from a canvas in a museum, get get a clearer picture and when I stepped back into the painting the colors were more vibrant, the ebb and flow of life more rich, and my heart more content. It was a life-changing event."  - Molly Ochoa