Featured Teacher: Paul Newell

Featured Teacher
Paul Newell

Many of you know Paul for his contagious belly laughs, funny questions of the day before his classes, drumming or reggae music during class, his welcoming hugs, or his animal flow inspirations! These are a few of the puzzle pieces that make up the fun-loving yogi, Paul Newell!

Paul first tried yoga long long ago when his brother, Wayne taught, but he was reacquainted with his yoga practice when he created a fusion class that combined suspension training and yoga. "What does yoga mean to me? Yoga means life. I'm not sure what my path would have been like without it." Paul explains, "Yoga has made me more aware of all things. It has given me an opportunity to see myself in all things good and bad. It's a humbling yet powerful experience."

Paul has been teaching at Indigo Yoga since day 1 when we opened our doors in December 2013 and he says it has been so amazing to be a part of such an amazing community. "I like to have fun and educate in my classes." His class is never a "traditional" yoga class. However, he adds with a laugh "at this point, I'm not even sure what a traditional yoga class is." Because of course, yoga has grown and expanded so much over time and so many new styles of yoga come up all the time that "traditional" is becoming a very broad idea. His personal practice of yoga is Animal Flow which has a lot of yoga and mindful movement components to it and he tends to always go back to his mantra "stay open and trust."

Paul's positive outlook on life and his warm attitude and personality inspire us and help to brighten Indigo Yoga. We asked him where he finds inspiration. Paul is inspired by courage, honesty and support. "Those things are in our nature, yet so few people model it. So when someone does, I am inspired." This seems pretty accurate to Paul's character- courageous, honest and supportive.  It also seems to tie in perfectly to how he answered when we asked him about his favorite yoga pose... his favorite poses are the Warriors- the personification of righteous anger and the noble impulse to defend the innocent.

Anytime we think of Paul we can't help but think that he is just a GOOD GUY. He is kind, he is fun, he is lighthearted and silly most of the time but serious and supportive when necessary. He's a great listener, is super understanding, and always knows the right thing to say. Paul is one of those guys that you give a big hug to when you meet him and you immediately feel like you've known him for years. He is a great friend and loving father, and we are so grateful to have him in the Indigo Yoga family (not to mention, he's a great guy to represent for the men in yoga! Real men do yoga!)

Check out one of Paul's Yoga Basics/Yoga For All Levels classes on Saturdays at 10:30am and Wednesdays at 7:45pm to catch the good vibes from Paul!