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Meet Laura Allard-Antelmi

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Allard-Antelmi.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Laura. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I started Iyengar yoga in my teens for severe sciatic pain. I was fortunate to meet my teacher BKS Iyengar in 1990.

I changed how I was standing, sitting and during this time i found myself immersed as a student of Iyengar Yoga.

My first studio was the Crested Butte School of Yoga in my hometown of Crested Butte, Colorado in the late 1980’s. I opened the Iyengar Yoga Center of Boulder. in 1991 and have taught there continuously. The studio is fully equipped with a yoga rope wall and yoga props.

Nowadays the studio and my work is focused on working with kids with rare and ultra rare genetic disorders as their mobility specialist as well as providing joint care programs for adults. I have an offspring studio Anatomy Study Studio where i teach experiential science classes here in Boulder, at local schools and workshops for yoga and pilates teacher trainings.

I offer a kids program called Wonders of the Human Body and work with special topics for adult groups such as anatomy of the Spine, Hip and Knee Joints, Feet, Shoulders, Arms, Hands. The course material includes the heart, lungs, digestive system, nervous system, senses of perception.

Students learn by experiential classwork and engaging and fun explanations of the anatomy and their application to yoga postures and daily postures. For the vital body, I share how my teacher BKS Iyengar taught yoga to uplift the heart and make space for the lungs, place the digestive organs, twist the kidneys and stimulate the pancreas, balance the thyroid, soothe headaches and tension.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has been an easy and wonderful path. When I started I was working in a chiropractic clinic for 17 years and so most of my clients were looking for pain relief, to learn relaxation skills or to become more flexible while taking into account an injury or limitation.

In working with kids with special needs I had been in the the studio for several decades over 30 hours a week and it has been a natural growth to help them. These families need the kind of support that will teach their children sit, stand and walk and even to lay down in alignment. We work with these basics and have the luxury of time to include both active and passive. I bring yoga props and supports and many options into their daily lives.

As I was meeting more special needs kids and other students, I had to slow down my out of town anatomy workshop schedule so I could work with the thriving community of students in Boulder.

Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
About Laura Allard-Antelmi. Laura specializes in teaching people how their yoga practice can help them heal from physical injury or chronic issues. She has been a dedicated student of yoga for 29 years. She is a Certified Iyengar Yoga teacher and studies with BKS Iyengar and Geeta Iyengar. One of the most sought after Anatomy teachers for her enthusiastic and knowledgable teaching style, Laura teaches classes with clear instruction emphasizing the therapeutic aspects of yoga practice.

Laura teaches students of all levels and creates a refreshing and fun environment in which each student is encouraged to connect to their understanding of their body’s limits and ability. -Laura teaches from her experience and views yoga as a lifelong practice for her students. Laura works with kids with rare and ultra-rare neurodegenerative genetic disorders and has a community of families who gain support from the studio in many ways. Supporting her knowledge of asana, Laura has spent the last 26 years immersed in anatomy education that Laura weaves into her classes. Laura’s classes will challenge even the most advanced practitioner with practical insights from her years of study. Teaching publicly in Boulder, Laura’s experience includes leading local and international anatomy and yoga retreats and workshops and supporting the growth of the Iyengar community.

By serving as an Iyengar Assessor, National Conference organizer and serving the IYNAUS Board for over 11 years as a volunteer. Proud to be part of Stephanie Quirk’s three-year Therapeutics Trainings in both Los Angeles and NYC teaching the anatomy component, Laura has also taught at Ramamani Iyengar Yoga Institute in Pune, India and most recently presented at the Yoga Journal Conference in Moscow, Russia, Open Sky Yoga in France and Brussels and for Yoga Wisdom in Italy.

Laura is currently in Boulder, Colorado.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I have not had an agenda other than to help others where I see the need and to break the learning materials down into easily understandable pieces. It has always happened naturally.

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