Instructors

The instructors at Just Breathe are amazing instructors and amazing people. All of them have transformed their lives and bodies through their chosen movement practice.

		Diane Butera - Yoga Diane describes her journey as, "..through Ashtanga, Anusara, Iyengar and into Forrest Yoga. I arrived at Forrest Yoga as I sought healing for not just the chronic back pain I was experiencing but for healing the emotional and spiritual upheaval that permeated my midlife experience. My yoga wisdom is the anchor that keeps me connected to my wiser self." Join Diane as she whole heartedly assists you through your own personal transformation on and off the mat. Her focus of breath and body awareness opens the gateway to wellness. Using the Forrest Yoga model of healing and wellness, combined with years of yoga practice, she provides foundational tools of alignment and breath work, insight and enthusiasm to guide her students of every age and fitness level to whole health wellness and mending the hoop of the people. Diane is a Registered Yoga Teacher with the Yoga Alliance (200 RYT).
		Xo Xo Solrana - Yoga Xo Xo has been practicing yoga for about 7 years. Many of her teachers have been trained in Anusara, and her teaching incorporates this but also aspects of other schools of yoga, physical therapy and anatomy, and - largely - her own experience. Xo Xo credits yoga with helping her accept her body, quiet her mind, deepen her breath, and approach challenges gently but steadily and without self-judgement. She teaches to address the individual needs of students and to help students find their edge and then breathe and play along that edge for a challenging, fun and rewarding class. Xo Xo holds a bachelor's degree in Religious Studies from the University of Oregon. Off the mat she enjoys herbalism, gardening, biking, hiking and reading fiction. A native Oregonian, Xo Xo is most at home in the forest or at the ocean's edge.
		Penny Edwards - Pilates Penny was first introduced to Pilates at Ballet West's summer intensive program in 1987. After years of classical ballet training and living a life of movement and health, she began teaching Pilate's in 2007. In July, 2008 she completed the certification course for mat class at the STOTT PILATES studio, Pacific NW Pilate's in Portland, OR. She has been teaching classical ballet, jazz dance, and modern dance classes for the past 20yrs. Penny believes that Pilates acts as a wonderful compliment for cross training and strength building. If you're a golfer, a post-pregnancy mom, a young person that needs core strength to prevent injuries in your school sports, Pilate's in is meant for all ages and types. Penny looks forward to sharing a warm, supportive class setting while creating a challenging and approachable workout for you.
		James Fox - Intermediate/Advanced Tai Chi Chuan & Medical Qigong James has nearly 30 years of experience teaching traditional Yang style Tai Chi Chuan, and approximately 20 years experience with traditional Chinese medical qigong. He has extensive training in China, Tibet, and the USA with the best known masters in each art. He completed four years of post-doctoral study in Chinese Traditional Medicine at Huazhong University in Wuhan, China and is also the Director Emeritus for the Yang family - the family lineage of the founding family of Yang style Tai Chi Chuan. In 2007, he won Bronze medals at the International Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan Tournament for each of the three events entered. James integrates Traditional Chinese Medicine theory, practice, and applications into his classes. His primarily interest is on practicing and teaching the use of Medical Qigong as a primary treatment modality for a range of chronic disorders. James ran his own own school in Buffalo, NY for twenty years before moving back to Eugene in 2005. He is a retired university professor from the State University of New York system.
		Erin Kirkpatrick - Stability Ball for Back Pain Erin is a Senior Fitness Instructor at Sheldon Oaks Retirement Home. She teaches body mechanics, stretches, exercises, breathing, and relaxation. Erin taught private flute lessons at McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland for 6 years before relocating to Eugene. She began studying Therapeutic Exercise & Rehabilitation in 2006 under Shannon Gaul during a struggle with thoracic outlet syndrome. After her successful recovery she wanted to help others, so she continued studying Fitness Assessment & Exercise Prescription with Marisa Haiste in 2007, Injury & Prevention with Shannon Gaul in 2008, and Therapeutic Exercise & Rehabilitation with Shannon Gaul in 2008.
		Kristen Mico - Yoga Kristen's practice is focused on realizing yoga's capacity to enhance life beyond the mat. Seeing the body as a vital tool and vessel for the spirit, she brings the mind, body and spirit together for a greater experience of yoga and the life it exists within. Studying primarily Anusara yoga, Kristen has been practicing yoga for over ten years, with the strength and flexibility of the practice continually guiding her to places of beauty and wonder.
		Donna O'Neil - Yoga Donna is a certified and registered yoga teacher who has been practicing yoga for 20 years and teaching yoga and meditation in Eugene since 1995. Donna has a wide range of experience in teaching to all levels. Her gentle teaching emphasizes alignment, yet with space for our inner spirit to shine in each pose.
		Cameron Parker - Beginning Tai Chi Chuan Learn the Tai Chi that Communist China wanted to eradicate! Traditional Yang Family Tai Chi Chuan is pre-cultural revolution (which means the secrets of the Yang Family have been preserved in this line during one of China's most devastating social upheavals). Cameron has studied under the instruction of James Fox, a representative of the Yang Family and center director emeritus. The conscious body mechanics and fluid interchange of energy within this art creates a vital flow of energy in the body which increases stamina, flexibility and peace of mind. Cameron brings over a decade of experience as a martial artist and devotee of health and well-being to his classes. His style employs easy to follow demonstration, hands-on instruction and passion for this style of martial art.
		Deborah Skell - Feldenkrais Deborah is a Guild Certified Practitioner of the Feldenkrais Method®. She discovered its benefits as a result of major hip surgery. She was still using a cane after nine-months of rigorous treatment in traditional Physical Therapy. Three Feldenkrais lessons in ten-days led her to dramatic breakthough and full recovery. The Feldenkrais training is four years of experiential, hands-on learning, to refine skills for observation and the teaching of the client.