I began practicing yoga more than 20 years ago. I now practice almost every day.

I’m serious about yoga, but I take a light-hearted approach to teaching. I understand that yoga may be intimidating for first-timers and older folks who might see the practice as something reserved for the slender, the youthful and the super-flexible.

Not true. Yoga is for every body. If you can breathe, you can do yoga. I want all of my students to feel confident that, no matter where they are in life, they can build strength, flexibility and agility. You will see positive changes if you commit to doing a little yoga at least once a week.

Some older people may feel more comfortable taking classes from someone around their own age who knows what it feels like to walk around in an older body. I’m 69. I’m not especially flexible and I have super tight hamstrings. I fall out of balance poses all the time. I know that with practice change happens. It comes slowly, subtly, incrementally – and reliably.

I’m a former marathon runner, who started gaining weight and stopped exercising in the 1990s. Then I found hot yoga: a series of 26 poses done in a room heated to 104-degrees. Off came the pounds. My strength and endurance returned. After practicing on and off for several years, I got more serious about yoga in 2010, eventually embracing an almost daily round of vinyasa-style yoga classes in a heated room or in my home studio.

In addition to the physical benefits of yoga, there is an experience of peace and tranquility that comes with the practice. These dividends can pay off during challenging times. In the past decade I was diagnosed with liver cancer. I received a life-saving transplant and then faced the unexpected death of a child. I believe yoga helped me find peace when faced with these emotional blows.

I received my RYT-200 certification after completing teacher training at Portland’s premier yoga studio, YoyoYogi.

My motto: Remember, you don’t get more flexible by not doing yoga.