Julie Schwalm | Yoga

As a perpetual student of life, Julie has found a balanced existence between supporting health and wellbeing in her community, and freedom within herself. A Thai Yoga Practitioner since 2009 and Massage Therapist since 2003, she has substantial knowledge of the structure and function of the body, from the superficial muscular layer to the energetic systems. This knowledge is demonstrated in her teachings as a supportive connection with her students, allowing them growth through bodywork. In 2010 she received her 200 hour yoga certification from Sandra Carden at Union Yoga in Lake Leelanau, and completed her 500 hour certification in October of 2016. As a connected and dedicated student, her study of the science and philosophy of yoga is continuously evolving. She believes that yoga is an ongoing process, without limits and without an endpoint.

Julie is the sole proprietor of Thai Yoga Bodywork, LLC and the co-founder of Yoga on the Beach, a program offering donation based beach yoga in Grand Traverse and Leelanau County for the support of local environmental organizations. She is also a mom of two amazing young men, and an artist who uses many different mediums but is best known for her work with glass. She finds inspiration in everyday objects and events, often using her knowledge and appreciation of the human form to create pieces of art.

Julie was initially drawn to yoga as a way to find inner peace and connection with the Self. “With a full life like mine, my body is moving nonstop, I don’t need my mind to do the same. Yoga has helped to focus my mind, and to live and move with intention.” She loves teaching yoga and the opportunity it brings to guide a person to find the same stillness in their own busy lives as well as the awareness it cultivates on physical, emotional and spiritual levels. “If students will recognize just one thing about themselves or their body, the session will have a long-term impact.”