our team

Meet the incredible family at Left Coast Power Yoga!

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Rachel Rajput (she/her), E-RYT 500
Founder + CEO / Instructor

Rachel started Left Coast Power Yoga in 2013 to bring Oakland its first heated Power Yoga Community! Over the years Left Coast has grown to include two vibrant locations, Teacher Trainings, local and international retreats, and more. Left Coast’s outdoor studio, Silent Disco Yoga Oakland, was formed in 2020 in response to the need for outdoor wellness and continues to offer weekly classes (Feb - Oct). Rachel got her RYT-200 from Laughing Lotus SF, RYT-500 from Yoga Tree SF, and is a certified Mama Tree Pre and PostNatal teacher.

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Carlita Pena (they/them), E-RYT 200
Director of Operations / Instructor

Carlita is an artist and dancer turned yoga instructor when a low back injury brought Carlita to yoga for healing. In 2015 they received their 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training Certification through Yoga District in Washington, DC, where Carlita was based for 9 years before packing up their car and driving solo across the country to relocate in the Bay Area in 2021. Carlita seeks to provide a safe, supportive space for students to practice radical self-acceptance and offers an upbeat music-driven practice that is equal parts adventurous, challenging, and meditative.

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Senia Lee (she/her)
General Manager

Senia is passionate about healthy living and especially enjoys cooking and baking wholesome recipes. Her toughest critics are her three young Foodies. An Occupational Therapist by background, Senia now works full-time as a Mom and part-time in administrative support roles. Senia loves “to do“ lists, going for long walks, listening to podcasts, and finding healthy recipes to justify her dark chocolate obsession.

Angela Craven (she/her), RYT-200
Grand Ave Studio Manager

Angela has been practicing yoga since 2007 and has found it to be a great source of personal healing, growth and discovery. When not working or practicing at the studio she is either at her “day job” as a behavior analyst for the state of California, swimming, reading, cooking or adventuring with her dog Taco.

Candi Martinez (she/her), Director of Media

Candi Martinez has over 25 years of experience in publicity, marketing, event curation, production and grant writing. She is committed to fostering equity, uplifting cultural arts, and supporting small owned businesses and nonprofits with promotions, marketing & fundraising. She is an Oakland Indie Award recipient for her work as a Cultural Steward and a Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Fellow. Navigating a life threatening illness led her to a dedicated yoga practice, and she received her YTT accreditation in 2004 from Yoga Source. Stewarding marketing for Left Coast Power Yoga is the coalescing of her yoga practice and her professional practices which she holds with enthusiasm and care.

Anthony Reed (he/him), ERYT-500
Instructor

Anthony offers soulful yoga instruction and wellness coaching for individuals, small groups, and businesses. He draws upon 15 years’ experience in the “corporate world” as a Product Strategist and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) consultant, along with continued study and deep inner work through yoga. Anthony is in service as a ‘bridge between worlds’ in order to help people navigate transitions, better life-work balance, and more authentic relationships through the direct experience of sustainable yoga practice. Group classes with Anthony incorporate strength, stability, and mindful movement in alignment with the flow of breath. Students are guided on a peaceful, yet invigorating, journey along with inspired music. Posture modifications and props are offered in order to meet practitioners wherever they are.

Nina Portugal (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor

As a public school educator, Nina is passionate about all her students, whether they are 9th graders or adults, see their strength and find their joy. In 2015, Nina earned her 200 YTT with Its Yoga International in Nicaragua to deepen her study of Ashtanga Yoga. In 2017, she studied Smart Flow with Annie Carpenter and in 2019 alignment with Jason Crandell. Nina is also a certified restorative Relax and Renew® Teacher with Judith Lasater and Mama Tree prenatal teacher with Jane Austin

Malka Lew (she/her), E-RYT-500
Instructor

Malka has been practicing yoga since she was 21 years old when she stumbled into an Iyengar Studio. She began focusing on alignment and later fell in love with flow.

In 2013, Malka moved to Thailand and discovered herself as a teacher as she started to teach everyday at a healing center. Feeling the call to heal more, she traveled to NYC in 2014 and received her 500 hours Yoga Certificate from the Master Dharma Mitra.

Yoga for Malka is a way to live this life in the most sacred way possible. It's about being present with each moment and deepening our capacity to love ourselves, and each other.

Catherine Vu (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor

Catherine discovered yoga in 2004 and what initially started as a physical workout quickly evolved into a deeply enriching form of meditation. In 2017, she began using it as a counter balance to indoor rock climbing, helping increase her flexibility, reach, and strength. 

During this time, Catherine worked in the fast paced tech startup industry, where the environment took a toll on her health. Feeling disconnected from her passions, she went back to her roots and returned to exploring yoga as a way to find balance and peace. Under Richard Rosen, Yoko Yoshikawa, and Annie Carpenter’s guidance, Catherine took her asana practice to new heights, honing her attention to detail and exploring transformative powers of pranayama breathing techniques. 

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Patricia Wright (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor / Reiki Practitioner

Born in a tent on a beach in NoCal, Patricia was raised by hippies. Mom was a yoga teacher and by 8 years old her dad had taught her to meditate. Patricia has a diverse career history, ranging from the corporate world, to adventure travel/hospitality, to higher education. She is known for her color and brightness, and her fun and funky style. "More than a passion, it is my lifeblood to develop and enable the success of others." Patricia is a graduate of Left Coast’s Yoga Teacher Training 2021.

Rose Allen (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor

Rose’s offerings are a creative blend of dynamic, heat-building asana alongside movements inspired by her background and training in dance, functional neurology, trauma-informed yoga, and other movement practices.

Rose began her movement practice through dance, studying ballet intensively through high school and falling into modern dance in college. She gravitated to yoga asana as a natural complement to her dance practice after graduating, finding that it strengthened and balanced her body and awareness in her dancing. Rose hopes to share her passion for movement and yoga asana with humans of all ages and abilities and to support her students in finding ways of moving that help them find their power, grace, and curiosity in their movement and the rest of their lives.

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Tako Oda (they/them), RYT-500
Instructor

Tako's teaching style is attentive, exploratory, and playful. Reflection, introspection, and critical thinking are encouraged, as practitioners and their inner voices are ultimately their own truest teachers. Valuing collaboration in the student/teacher relationship, Tako gives hands-on support on an enthusiastic consent basis, offering physical support when asked for with a yes (not simply the absence of a no).

Having originally apprenticed under Alek Trail, Tako also completed an additional 500 hours of teacher training under Tamlyn Cohen, as well as Yoga Nidra with Deepa Negi Mira and Yin Yoga with Pawan Mahashwari.

As a singer and capoeirista, Tako emphasizes the inherent joy, musicality, & self expression of embodied practice. Fun fact: “Tako” is the Japanese word for Octopus, which has 8 limbs, just like yoga!

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Whitney Walsh (she/her), E-RYT 500
Lead Teacher Trainer / Instructor

Whitney’s alignment-based classes are vigorous and lighthearted with intentional and intelligent sequencing. She provides structure to transition her students safely through modified and advanced movements. Whitney is one of the original Left Coast teachers, creating community since 2013.

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Sadie Verley (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor

Sadie has been practicing Yoga for over 12 years. She holds a 200-hour certification from YogaWorks and is a Registered Yoga Teacher through Yoga Alliance. Over the years she experienced many forms of yoga and has particularly enjoyed Vinyasa style classes. In class, she teaches an energetic and strong modern yoga sequence with fun & funky moves to keep the mind engaged on the breath and body. She pulls from her Rocket/Ashtanga background to guide students in a moving meditation.

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Odisa Walker (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor

Odisa has been teaching yoga since 2002 and has been deeply influenced by her first teacher, her father, since childhood. She completed her 200 hour training in Washington DC at Down Dog Yoga, a Baptiste Power Vinyasa affiliate studio. She co-owned BelovedYoga, a studio in Reston, Virginia for over seven years where she taught, led teacher trainings and facilitated several retreats before moving to the Bay Area in 2013. Since moving here she has slowed way down and is enjoying teaching Yoga more than ever.

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Deb Hamilton (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor

Yoga has been a constant in Deb's life for over 30 years. Born in London, she has lived internationally since 2000. A move to Washington, DC during the pandemic created the time and opportunity to study for her YTT-200 remotely with LCPY. What started as pure curiosity in the process ended in a passion for teaching and sharing the enduring benefits of this practice. She has been teaching regularly since becoming a Registered Yoga Teacher.

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Mike Napolitano (he/him), RYT-200
Instructor

Mike came to yoga in 2012 to heal a bulging disk. He found so much more: a vehicle for reflection, personal growth, and greater flexibility and balance on and off the mat. Mike brings his love of music and yoga together in classes that build strength and flexibility through long sweaty holds, standing balances, and danceable vinyasa flows. Mike is a 2021 graduate of Left Coast’s 200-hour Teacher Training Program.

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Ekaterina Petrova (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor

Ekat began practicing over 15 years ago, as conditioning for ballet. Since then, she’s become a full-blown yogi, obsessed with exploring every facet of yoga from the physical to the metaphysical, from asana to mantra, and even to non-dual classical Tantra. Her classes are powerful and expansive alignment-based vinyasa flows, with creative sequencing and clear cues.

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Amy Whoa (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor

Overcoming childhood obesity and three near-death bicycle accidents as an adult fuel Amy's fun and functional classes. She is a NASM Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Yoga Instructor (RYT 200), and Certified Health Coach. She found yoga in 2007, right before one of her accidents. That beginner's practice helped her heal a broken neck and other injuries, and transformed her into a lifetime yogi. HIIT Yoga Flow burns calories, builds strength and endurance, and enhances your traditional flows. Amy is a graduate of Left Coast Yoga Training 2018

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Mike Hearn (he/him), RYT-200
Instructor

Mike’s style of training and coaching is all about leveraging basic forms of movement to improve health, fitness, athleticism, and vitality. He is a certified yoga instructor (RYT 200 through Left Coast Power Yoga), as well as a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. Mike’s yoga classes are ideal for students at all levels. Modifications and props that work favorably with a student’s alignment are offered to improve overall muscle activation and mechanical efficiency.  

Outside of yoga, Mike enjoys personal training and working as a strength and conditioning coach.  He’s a certified nutritionist, an avid backpacker, and enjoys embarking on new adventures and seeing new places. 

Liz Jonas (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor

Liz began practicing yoga 20 years ago as a pessimist with very little proclivity for physical activity. Since then, yoga has allowed her to feel good physically, as well as to find alignment both mentally and spiritually.
Liz attended her yoga teacher training with students from 40 different countries and loves witnessing people of such different personalities, shapes, sizes, and backgrounds all find their own benefits from practicing. A born-and-bred Berkeley girl, Liz has lived and taught yoga in Oakland for nearly ten years. Off the mat, Liz loves playing pickleball, hiking, and cooking with her 4 year old.

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Dana Lawton (she/her), RYT-500
Instructor

Practicing yoga since 1990, Dana has studied Bikram, Ashtanga, Iyengar and Hatha Yoga. Bringing her extensive investigation of the body through her dance training, multiple anatomy courses and various somatic studies, Dana is excited to share her knowledge with students studying asana.

Dana has been a guest teacher at numerous yoga retreats and is a tenured Professor of Dance at Saint Mary's College

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Jessie Saenz (she/her), RYT-500
Instructor

Jessie is happy to be practicing and teaching right in her little Upper Grand neighborhood. She teaches a strong flow-based class. Drawn primarily to an Ashtanga-based practice, she’s been on the mat since 1997. Grateful for all teachers and teachers’ teachers, she’s been especially influenced by her trainings, workshops, and years of practice with Larry Schultz and It’s Yoga, Alice Joanou, and Lorin Tailor (formerly Laura Camp). Jessie is also a practicing environmental engineer, and can be found in yoga shalas and workshops throughout the bay area and beyond.

Joel Key (he/him)
Instructor

Joel has been joyfully practicing yoga since he first started teaching art and Spanish to New York City high schoolers 20 years ago. Since then, breathing, stretching, running, and hiking have come in and out of his life—like the ebb and flow of the school year.

After moving back to the Bay in 2008, he became a regular Left Coast Power Yoga student and earned his 200 YTT with Left Coast in 2023. Joel loves teaching, whether that be yoga or art; in a classroom or outside in nature. His love of restoration means he always includes that extra reminder for breath and intention with every powerful movement.

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Kiko Nascimiento (he/him)
Instructor

Kiko is a Yoga instructor, Reformer Pilates Instructor, Certified Massage Therapist, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Crossfit Coach, as well as an accomplished MMA fighter. He has been involved in fitness for decade, during which he has amassed an amazing number of skills and certifications. Kiko os a veteran Left Coast teacher, formerly leading classes at our Uptown Studio. and we are excited to have him back at our Laurel Space. His classes combine a sweaty, vigorous flow with breath work and intention.

Kate Tran-Lane (she/her)
Instructor

Kate is a yoga teacher, sound healer, and workshop facilitator.  For the first ten years of her professional career, she has always thought that she just needed to continue pushing herself to her limits. Her mind & body was frequently overcome with anxiety. It eventually led to her burnout. So Kate began the deep work, and committed to a personal practice & self-inquiry, rooted in contemplative & modern day mysticism, yoga, sound healing and shamanic healing. The shifts were gradual, but profound.

Now Kate guides others on their journey to tune into their inner peace & true nature in shared moments of sacredness. Her classes & workshops include a blend of tools & styles, all uniquely designed for her students to inhabit deep inner transformations, one session at a time.

Sarah Knapik (she/her), RYT-200
Instructor

Sarah has been practicing yoga since she started at her neighborhood studio in San Francisco 18 years ago. Since then, it's become a way of life for her. Sarah fell in love with Bikram Yoga and in 2010 attended an intensive 9 week study.

Sarah has always found yoga to help calm her mind, connect to her Divinity, and be in the present moment with her breath. In Summer 2023, she decided to try Vinyasa yoga and loved the strength she was building. She enrolled in Left Coast's YTT program in 2023 to further expand her practice.

Outside of the yoga room, Sarah is a spiritual transformational coach, leading retreats and courses with her heart. Devotion to spirituality is at the core of all of her teachings.

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Mike Giannico (he/him), RYT-200
Instructor

Mike Giannico is the founder of Outdoor Yoga Berkeley, a donation based outdoor yoga program started in May of 2020 in response to community needs and studio closures. Mike uses and shares his practices to help people find peace and joy. MIke's style is straight forward, fun and empowering.

Matt Toy (he/him), RYT-200
Instructor

After burning out from overtraining and taking life way too seriously, Matt is all about learning to play mindfully with movement. He draws from a multifaceted background in Mixed Martial Arts,  Yoga, the GMB method (rings, handstands, locomotion aka monkey stuff) and as a Pilgrim on the Camino de Santiago (500 mile hike in Spain). He’s here to help students move better in their athletic pursuits, yoga practice and daily lives. Classes are playful with an emphasis on slowing down to build physical skill and mental prowess.

Kristin Shellhammer (she/her) RYT-200
Instructor

Kristin took her first yoga class in high school P.E. and soon fell in love with the practice. After becoming an educator herself, she introduced yoga as a learning tool in her classes for students with special needs. She completed yoga teacher training in 2020.

Kristin aims to facilitate a yoga environment where participants feel safe and at home in their bodies, able to release the stresses outside the studio. She believes that intentional breath work is central to the practice and that progress can be measured many ways. 

Aja Griffin (she/her), RYT-200

Instructor

Aja became a 200-HR, certified Yoga Teacher in 2019 (Hot Spot Yoga - Oakland), with an additional 50-HR certification for prenatal yoga in 2021 (The Dolphin Method). She considers it a privilege to guide people through their own mindful practices. Yoga is a deeply personal and introspective practice, and she honors this philosophy with each of her students. With specialties in Vinyasa, restorative, and prenatal yoga, she curates yoga sequences with breath work and/or guided poses, inviting all of her students to stay present, curious, and to explore the connection of mind, body, and spirit.

Melissa Holland (she/her), RYT-200

Instructor

Melissa took her first yoga class in 2018 and fell in love with the practice. She had to pause her in-studio practice at the start of the pandemic but joyfully found Left Coast after the shutdown to relieve body pain and manage stress. After experiencing the intentional and grounded yoga that Left Coast offers, Melissa knew she wanted to deepen her practice and joined their 2023 Yoga Teacher Training. She graduated from Left Coast’s 200 YTT with an even more profound appreciation for the power of yoga to heal the body, calm the mind, and provide an important connection to the local community.

Heather Yuen (she/her), RYT-200

Instructor

Heather has been practicing yoga for over 2 decades. Her view on yoga is that it is an art that reminds us of our mental fortitude and resilience allowing one to connect with our inner being inside out.  It inspires presence, gratitude, grace, integrity, and forgiveness through movement and breath. As a 2022 graduate of LCPY,  she is excited to share the practice. Heather is a musician and teaches piano in the community.  She enjoys hikes with her pup Elsa, cooking with her son, climbing, and swimming.

Moses Omolade (he/him), RYT-200

Instructor

Born in Brooklyn, New York, and raised on 3 different continents before the age of ten, Moses’ love for fitness and the body started during his time as a collegiate athlete. After playing Division-1 basketball, professional basketball overseas, and some time with the Harlem Globetrotters, he suffered many injuries. These physical setbacks taught him important lessons about the body and its function. He believes all bodies are not only different but our relationship to them is what determines our happiness and capacity for JOY. Yoga & Hot Pilates have transformed his approach to fitness. Before his journey to becoming a Fitness Instructor, yoga and low impact exercises helped him strengthen, while gaining mobility, balance and mental grit. With an eclectic ear & taste for music, as well as a cosmopolitan approach to all things, his class becomes an otherworldly & fun space for people to connect to their mind, bodies, and spirit. 

Zach Beach (he/him), RYT-500

Instructor

Zach's passion and love of yoga is contagious, as his dynamic and invigorating classes bring together heart wisdom, playful teachings, and anatomically-informed sequencing. He invites his students to listen to their bodies and open their hearts as they explore the incredible potential for personal and spiritual transformation that yoga offers.

Committed to building a world based on unconditional love and connection, Zach regularly leads retreats, workshops, and transformational trainings on opening the heart and discovering our loving nature.

Lyz Keating (she/her), RYT-200

Instructor

The first time Lyz found yoga, she was an aimless teen looking for something to do. The second time Lyz found yoga, she was recovering from serious hip injuries that left her immobile for entire years of her 20s. The third time she found yoga, Lyz was again aimless, now at 30, seeking a new approach to discipline, focus, and growth. It's been nearly a decade since then and she's never looked back. We change constantly, and yoga is always there to catch us. That's why she practices and why she leads. Inspired by her ballet teacher Kat, and influenced by many yoga forces along the way.