Provided by Stacy Valenti

Stacy is the manager of Yogasphere Richboro, Yogasphere’s exclusively hot yoga studio.  She has been teaching and practicing there since this locations inception in 2013 and has been with Yogasphere since 2011. Weather your new to hot yoga or a seasoned practitioner you may not know there are many benefits to the practice.

Here are Stacy’s top 4 benefits of Hot Yoga:

Lisa Rostelli-Visco joined the Yogasphere teaching community in November of 2015.  She has been dedicated to her own practice for 30 years and teaching for over 20 with formal training in Iyengar Yoga. That training has been the foundation of both her own daily practice and her teaching, although she has also studied Viniyoga (yoga therapy) and Dharma Yoga more extensively. Lisa is a lover of learning and travels often to practice with other teachers from various backgrounds in order to expand her own understanding, to deepen her own practice and to share those experiences with her students. She believes that we as humans, are a sum of our experiences and our yoga practice should reflect same. Keeping an open heart and an open mind to what others have to offer is necessary for self-awareness and growth. Lisa has also been pole dancing for three years, competing for two. She has placed 2nd/3rd in the North American Pole Dance Championships – Masters Division, 1st place in the Masters Division in Paragon International 2014, and 1st Place in the Masters Divison of the Pole Championship Series 2015. Even her experiences as a competitive pole dancer has deepened her yoga practice and her love of movement. She lives in Doylestown Pa, where she and her partner raise their three children.

Lisa took her first yoga class at 16. “I thought it was weird and my parents were worried I was joining a cult,” she says. At this time she was also a ballet dancer so she already had an understanding of movement and body awareness. It was several years later that she would seek the path of teaching yoga. “I actually taught my first class because the teacher didn’t show up! So occasionally I would fill in here and there. Keep in mind this was a very long time ago. There were very few teacher trainings and many teachers weren’t ‘certified.’ I attended my first teacher training long after I started teaching.”

For any teacher or practitioner there are always poses or sequences that feel amazing, whether it is from the challenge, the feeling of expression and openness, or simple delight. For Lisa it is Backbends. “I love backbends. Love love love. There is something about all that front body opening that is so freeing,” she says. This is no surprise to me because when you meet Lisa whether it is in class on on the street she exhibits genuine warmth and kindness. When you open the front body you are also opening your heart center (Anahata Chakra) which is our center for love and compassion. As a teacher she is also always encouraging students to trust and believe in themselves. She says, “I want you to know and believe that you are limitless. Any limitation you may feel is a false perception.”

Lisa also has many other passions in life. She is currently training with a contortions trainer via Skype. “I would like to sit on my head in a chest stand by my 50th birthday. I may or may not do. That end result isn’t the point. The fact that I am trying is,” she says. Lisa has a zesty and courageous spirit that wholeheartedly embraces all there is to learn from the journey no matter the outcome. She never gives up. This could because to her, “Inspiration is everywhere…all I need to do is open my eyes in the morning and I am set.” Among other things she enjoys is football. She says, “I am a die hard Steelers fan. And can be quite unbearable during football season.”
If you haven’t tried one of Lisa’s classes I highly recommend it. Her knowledge of anatomy and alignment is superb. Her classes are wonderful if you are trying to advance your practice. She will challenge you to believe in yourself and face certain fears we all experience in our practice. You can follow Lisa on Instragram @LisaRostelliVisco Facebook @Lisa-Rostelli Vissco

Her current class schedule at Yogasphere Doylestown is:
Wednesday 7:00 PM Yoga Lab Level 2/3
Saturday 9:30 AM Power Flow Level 2/3

www.yogasphere.net
Article by Ali G