W
endy Mosgrove was
skeptical yet intrigued when
a neighbor told her how
“hot yoga” had changed
her sister’s life for the better. Wendy
decided to give it a try. What happened
at her first yoga class would have made
most people grab their mats and run.
“The room was extremely hot and it
smelled,” Wendy said. “I was on the
verge of vomiting for the entire ninety-
minute class. I had already committed to
a series of classes; otherwise I would have
bowed out. I had to see it through.”
For the record, Wendy is a consum-
mate career athlete. She devoted 14
years to classical ballet including work
with the Hartford and Connecticut ballet
companies. She spent more than 20 years
as an aerobics instructor and personal
trainer, working at Jane Fonda’s Workout
in San Francisco and other health clubs,
and as a Fitness Director for the SF Marina
Health Club and Princess Cruise Lines.
As for her motivation, Wendy was
hoping that hot yoga, which has its
roots in the Bikram yoga methodology,
would help with some chronic back and
neck pain as well as some issues with
depression and insomnia.
Her perseverance paid off. She soon
started to regain full range of motion in
her joints and her pain subsided. She was
sleeping better at night and no longer felt
the need for anti-depressant medication.
Needless to say, she was hooked.
Something was spurring her on
to explore yoga at a deeper level.
And so, at 52, Wendy became one
of the oldest students enrolled in Bikram
Yoga of India Teacher Training. At first,
she wasn’t sure that she would make it
through the program.
“We did 120-minute classes twice a
day, six days a week, for nine weeks. It
was intense but I soon started to feel better
physically, mentally and emotionally.”
Improving her practice of yoga was
rewarding but Wendy still felt drawn to
something deeper.
“At a certain point in life we begin
to reflect on our work and we want to
give something back. With yoga, I had
found my calling. I decided to open my
own studio to share the benefits of yoga
with others. I realized that everything I
had done earlier in my career prepared
me for this step.”
Wendy graduated from her teacher
training in 2009, she invested her life
savings to open up Bikram Yoga Morgan
Hill in 2011. She obtained a construction
loan to renovate a space in downtown
Gilroy and opened Bikram Yoga Gilroy
in 2015.
“It’s uncanny, but from the moment I
walked in to teach my first class, I felt this
deep sense of love for my work, and for
my students. When I teach, I feel the Holy
Spirit working through me.”
Wendy is meticulous in training her
staff and providing instruction that
balances safety with proper yoga postures,
breathing and movement. Postures with
names like half-moon, cobra, eagle and
standing bow can be challenging to the
novice but with consistent practice, young
and old can learn and benefit from yoga.
Wendy encourages all of her students to
push themselves a little, to test their limits
and grow.
As Wendy describes it, heat and
proper breathing are vital to the practice
of hot yoga. Warm muscles are more
relaxed, allowing a deeper stretch. This,
along with deep breathing, opens up the
veins and capillaries, increasing the flow
of blood and oxygen to organs, glands,
muscles and tendons. Heat also encour-
ages the body to sweat, which releases
toxins, while regulating body temperature.
Always mindful of the things she disliked
about her first experience with yoga,
Wendy has gone beyond the traditional
bikram methodology – providing some
classes of a shorter duration and with less
heat – while staying true to the breathing
and postures.
“By giving people more options, I’m
making yoga accessible to more people,
including older adults and kids.”
Wendy has added variety to her
program with “hot pilates,” a complement
to yoga that works the body’s core
abdominal and gluteal muscles; and
Zumba, a great workout to Latin music that
she described as “not too dancey.” She
also plans to add Vinyasa (non-hot) yoga
classes this fall.
She has also invested in special air
filtration and flooring in her studios to
maintain an uber clean and healthy
environment for her staff and students.
“I want to offer something for everyone
at our Morgan Hill and Gilroy studios,
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2016
and I want them to be comfortable while
they are here.” She recently rebranded her
business as Beyond Yoga Studios to reflect
a broader focus.
Clearly proud of her staff, Wendy
added “I’m very picky about who I hire.
I look at their technical skill but I also look
for people who have a sense of humility
and the capacity to be kind and loving.
When you teach from a place of love,
people feel it.”
At the end of each class, Wendy’s
gaze travels across the room as she says,
“Peace be with you. God is with you
always. Namaste.”
“I chose yoga as a way to jumpstart
a new fitness regime. It’s a great
workout, even in the middle of a
busy work day. I can almost feel the
toxins leaving my body and I have
this sense of well-being after class.”
Heidi Cayton
Since I took up yoga almost four
years ago, I’ve lost fifteen pounds,
and increased my flexibility, muscle
mass and balance. Yoga’s benefits
have carried over into other parts
of my life. I’m more focused, less
distracted, and I’m dedicated to a
healthy lifestyle.”
Stan Mucha
gmhtoday.com
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