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 Asha
started teaching for SAY in 2006 and we are very excited to be able to
introduce her hip hop class to our program! Asha
is a 25-year-old Psychology PhD student from Bonaire, Georgia.
She enjoys a variety of activities ranging from volleyball to sewing.
Dancing is one of her greatest passions!
 Kelly is an American
Council of Exercise (ACE) certified group fitness instructor and has been
with SAY since she began teaching in 1999. She currently teaches yoga and
Cardio Dance. Kelly has a PhD in Psychology with a concentration in
Humanistic Medicine. Along with being a yoga teacher trainer, the
editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Yoga Therapy, and a
frequent presenter at national fitness and yoga conferences, Kelly is also
a research and academic program officer in the department of psychology at
Stanford. She began teaching for SAY as a graduate student, as a way to
find balance and community during the challenges of graduate school. For
more information about Kelly, please visit her website. Kelly says: Find a class
you love, and do it for the joy it brings you.
 Kerri has taught for SAY
since 2003 in the early morning timeslots (kickboxing, step, and
conditioning), and is certified by AFAA. She is working toward her PhD in
electrical engineering, focusing on Mars atmospheric dynamics and
spacecraft communication systems. She is a cheerful morning person, and will
guide you from waking your body up through a
energizing workout to start your day. Before participating in and then
teaching aerobics, she was a collegiate rower, and also enjoys swimming,
cycling, and running.
 Lauren has been teaching
group exercise since 2000, including with SAY since 2005, and loves every
minute of it! Lauren has a cycling certification through AFAA, a kickboxing
and pilates certification through both AFAA &
the YMCA, is an ACE certified personal trainer, and is currently working
towards a dual master’s degree in sports medicine
& fitness management. Lauren loves anything having to do with sports or
fitness! “Fitness for Life” is what she lives by but also thinks you have
to give yourself a break occasionally and have some real fun! She loves
being spontaneous and is always trying to learn something new. Lauren says:
In life, if you don’t take risks you may
be passing up a great opportunity to meet someone great or learn something
extraordinary... Exercise until you feel great! You’ll
want to keep exercising because you feel the way you do. When you’re stressed, run around and even do something
totally out of your realm like running up a hill, roller blading, or outdoor cycling. You’ll
be surprised by how good you feel!
 Lisa has been teaching
for SAY since 2005 and has been teaching group exercise since 2001. She is
certified through American Fitness Professionals and Associates (APFA) and
Yoga Alliance
and teaches hatha yoga, vinyasa
flow yoga, and yoga for athletes. Lisa is in the Sociology PhD program and
is studying the role of music in social movements (for example, rap music
in the LA riots). She is also researching women’s
sexuality using game theory. More information on her yoga teaching is on her studio website.
One of Lisa’s favorite quotes:
The Dude abides. I don't know about you but I take comfort in that.
It's good knowin' he's out there. The Dude. Takin' 'er easy for all us sinners. Shoosh.
I sure hope he makes the finals.
–The Big Lebowski
(1998)
 Rachel was trained as a
group fitness instructor at Georgetown
University, where she taught
kickboxing, core conditioning, and group cycling for two years before
moving to Palo Alto
to pursue a postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Neurology at
Stanford. In addition, she is a member of the Stanford Triathlon team and
has been practicing Ashtanga yoga for several
years. In her SAY classes Rachel strives to provide a dynamic, challenging
workout for all participants.
 Susan has been teaching
group exercise for SAY for 2 years. She is certified in Pilates through the
National Exercise Trainers Association, and she studied with SAY’s Kelly and received her 200-Hour Yoga Alliance certification through Avalon Yoga in Palo Alto. She also
has a Yoga Ed certification to teach yoga to kids in grades K through 8.
Susan holds an MBA in Finance/International Business from NYU, and is a mom
to two budding yoginis, Emma (7) and Kendall (3).
One of Susan’s favorite quotes:
Let yourself be open and life will be easier. A spoon of salt in a
glass of water makes the water undrinkable. A spoon of salt in a lake is
almost unnoticed.
–Buddha
 Tal has been teaching
yoga since 2002 and with SAY since 2003. She is completing her studies at
the Iyengar Yoga Institute of San Francisco and
was previously trained also as a Sivananda
instructor. Her practice integrates a number of yoga traditions that
she’s been inspired by through her teachers here and while traveling
in India.
Tal was raised in Israel,
holds a PhD in biology, and is pursuing a post-doctoral fellowship in
cancer research at Stanford.
Tal says: Yoga promotes my own health and well being, frees my body and
fills my heart with joy; I just love sharing those benefits by teaching.
A favorite quote:
Submit to a daily practice.
Your loyalty to that
is a ring on the door.
Keep knocking, and the joy inside
will eventually open a window
and look out to see who's there.
–Rumi
 Kanaka began teaching fitness and dance classes as a college student. In her
capacity as chair of Harvard Aerobics, she pioneered a training
program for student fitness instructors. She taught group fitness at
several health clubs in Boston
and ran the Boston Marathon. Graduate school brought her to
Stanford and she continued to teach group exercise in the peninsula
bay area. Dance has
been a lifelong passion of hers and she trained as a Bharatanatyam
dancer at Kalakshetra. She served as Treasurer
and Vice President of the Stanford Ballroom Dance Club and has taught ballroom, swing and latin dance
classes. She enjoys mixing elements of dance into fitness routines and vice versa.
She also enjoys challenging her students but if you bribe her with
chocolate, she might let you off easy! One of Kanaka’s favorite
quotes:
It is exercise alone that supports the spirits, and keeps the mind
in vigor..
–Marcus Tullius Cicero
LaToya teaches yoga with SAY. LaToya is a PhD student in
Sociology and will also be attending Stanford Law
School as part of their
joint JD/PhD program. When she is not spending time with her husband and
kids, she enjoys going to the gym, reading, doing crosswords and singing
karaoke.
 Bridgette teaches Advanced Step and
has taught with SAY for over 5 years! She also works in the Psychology
Department at Stanford. Bridgette loves teaching and taking all sorts of
classes, and encourages SAY participants to embrace new challenges:
"We are often afraid to try something new at the risk of messing up
and looking like a fool. But if you don't mess up, then it means you aren't
learning anything! Remember that it took you a year, and many stumbles and
bruises, just to learn to walk. So try a new class; feel uncoordinated for
a while; stay determined when you mess up; and take joy in how much you
learn and improve over time.
Candice
teaches Pilates with SAY. She also works in the Life-span Development
Lab in the Psychology Department at Stanford. Outside of the lab and the studio,
Candice enjoys exploring the Bay Area, trying out new cookbooks, and
laughing at her kittens' antics.
 Marja is a
PhD candidate in the chemical engineering department. She teaches
circuit training and would one day like to teach strength training and step
aerobics.
Soon, she will be an ACE-certified personal trainer. Marja is originally from Kingston,
Jamaica, but has spent
many years in Marietta,
GA. When she is not
spending time at school or teaching with SAY, she enjoys trying out new
recipes, reading good books,
hanging out with her fiancé and catching up with old friends.
 Lynny really
enjoys teaching cardio conditioning with SAY. :) She's been teaching
group exercise since 2004. She's a firm believer that the phrase "Woo Hoo!" has healing/rejuvenating powers...that and
it helps you remember to breathe in class. :) When she isn't wandering
around randomly woo hoo'ing at people, Lynny spends her time in the basement of Bldg 120,
where she highlights as a PhD candidate in Sociology. You can easily
get trapped listening to her gush on (and on and on...) about group
attachment, social roles, and her cat. :)
 Nancy
is a certified Nia instructor at the Brown Belt
level who has been teaching Nia since 2003, and Nia for SAY since
2005. She also works for the University Libraries at Stanford as a
Data Analyst in the Digital Libraries Systems and Services Department. When
she is not spending time helping to build digital libraries or teaching Nia, she enjoys dancing,
hiking, gardening, birdwatching, and
skiing. Nancy
believes strongly in the concept of dancing through life, and experiencing
the joy of movement in whatever she does. As a teacher, she strives
to provide opportunities for others to experience their own joy in movement.
 Brandy began her training in
southern California
under the tutelage of Naader Shagagi
in traditional hatha yoga. Since then she
has looked to enrich and deepen her knowledge in both the states and
abroad. She has gone on to complete the Yoga Institute of
India’s teacher training. Additionally, she has completed
teacher-training intensives with such as notable teachers as Shiva Rea,
Baron Baptiste, and David Swenson.Brandy
is a fifth year PhD student in the Sociology Department. She is
currently studying how shared information within communities promotes trust
especially for precarious economic situations.
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