Practicing yoga transformed me from a shy and introverted person into a confident yoga instructor - guiding others to move with ease and find balance in body, mind and so life.

If I can do it, you can too!

Namaste!

I am Laxmi, a yoga instructor by my inner calling. As you continue to read, you will know how it all happened.

First off, I am a mother of three, living in Houston with roots tied back to India- the home of yoga and yours truly. Although I have a degree in engineering, I decided to embrace the role of a homemaker. I am also the kind of person who will happily break into a Bollywood dance routine in the kitchen, usually with a spatula in hand.

Now, my yoga journey did not begin with a sunrise on a mountaintop or in a candle-lit retreat. It started when I was 37, completely wiped out after baby #3, nursing a cranky knee, and running low in energy with a lack of sleep. If you find this relatable, you are not alone.

With so much going on, hitting the gym was a hard pass. But yoga? That felt… possible. So, I found a studio a mile away, unrolled a mat, and just hoped I would not fall asleep in the child’s pose.

Spoiler alert: I didn’t.

And even better, I kept showing up. Slowly but surely, my body started to rebuild. My mind stopped racing quite so much. And for the first time in a long time, I began to feel like me again, a mom who could face the chaos of life without always needing a nap or crying over spilled sippy cups.

But, let me be honest, showing up wasn’t always easy. My “me-time” happened in the evenings, after my husband got home from work. By then, my energy levels were somewhere between “zombie” and “don’t talk to me.” Some nights, the only thing pulling me to the studio was the sweet promise of lying still in Shavasana. However, I kept showing up. And that made all the difference.

As the months passed, my strength returned. Not just the kind you feel in your arms or legs, but the kind that settles in your core. I was healing. I was growing. That was 2019, and I haven’t looked back since.

Of course, the road wasn’t all sunshine and stretchy pants.

Like everyone else, my world came to a pause during the pandemic. But once things started to ease, I found myself craving that yoga space again. I rejoined a new studio and signed up for a yearly membership, my way of planting my flag and saying, “This matters the most to me!”

Then something unexpected happened.

One day, I noticed a flyer for a 200-hour yoga teacher training. I wasn’t seriously considering going down the yoga instructor path. I was simply curious about what separates a student from a teacher. Don’t we all do the same poses on the mat? What skills were missing in my yoga practice?

That curiosity became a turning point.

As I delved deeper into training, I realized yoga wasn’t just how I moved on the mat. It was shaping how I lived. I learned that asanas (poses) are just one of the eight limbs of yoga. The real magic was in the quiet discipline, the breathwork, the mindfulness, and the mindset.

Somewhere along the way, something shifted.

Friends and family started to notice the changes in me, not just a physical transformation, but also in how I navigated life. They started joining me on the mat, one by one. What began as shared practice quickly blossomed into actual teaching. Before I knew it, I was holding space for others on their yoga journeys.

These days, as a certified Vinyasa and Yin yoga teacher, I focus on movements that feel kind and gentle on the body, especially if you’re over 40 and not in the mood to twist into a pretzel just to feel “fit.”

My classes are all about finding that sweet spot between strength and softness, between breath and stillness.

If you have ever thought yoga wasn’t “for you,” I get it.

But maybe it’s time to give it another shot. Not for the perfect pose or the ideal body, but for the peace, clarity, and balance you’ll discover along the way.

Let’s breathe, stretch, laugh, and cry a little in pigeon pose together.

Because wellness isn’t about chasing perfection.

It’s about finding Samasthiti within you, your steady, joyful, grounded self.