Share your passion and inspire others

Two young women met in Sydney 20 years ago and discovered they shared a passion for spreading the positive benefits of yoga for physical and mental health.


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Amelia Disspain moved to the Bellingen Shire, where she established her successful Yoga Bellingen school. Liz Bennett is a physiotherapist at Therapy Works in Newport and runs Yoga Essentia at the Warriewood Surf Life Saving Club.

Together, Amelia and Liz developed: ‘A Balanced Practice Yoga Teacher Training.’

In their 350 hour teacher training program, students learn to make their yoga practice safe, responsive, meditative and fun – and how to teach others to do the same.

“In our planning, we said to each other that we wanted to bring together the best aspects of our own trainings and the unique knowledge and skills we have, to create the best possible yoga teacher training, which we are proud of. As a physiotherapist, I teach yoga anatomy, yoga postures, how to vary them when people have certain limitations and how to language the ways we relate to the different layers of our being.” says Liz Bennett, from Yoga Essentia.

“The words we use are profoundly important to the relief of chronic pain, we need students to know that they are safe on their mat and in their own body.

“We support our students through the challenges that life often throws, guiding them to use their practice to help themselves. We don’t teach one particular ‘style’ of yoga.”

Amelia and Liz have done over a thousand hours of training with their mentors and they know that only through learning the authentic principles of safe sequencing can they be more creative and expressive in their yoga teaching, and not be limited to a particular form. Their trainees can develop the particular style that stokes their passion but they all deliver a range of classes during their training. They come away able to list a range of skills on their resume. That’s important to them.

“We believe that becoming a yoga teacher, whether to teach others or for personal learning, is most valuable when integrated into daily life. That’s why we include weekly mentoring for 12 months in the structure of our course.”

“Skills in inclusive, positive language, modifying yoga poses for diverse bodies, and subtle hands-on adjustments are important aspects of quality yoga teaching. They take time and practice to evolve. In a mentoring group, we can pass on our experience in the art of teaching, and learn from each other. We’re proud of our graduate teachers and to be able to contribute to community wellbeing through our yoga teacher trainings. ” says Liz.

Eager to learn more? Email Liz at: liz@yogaessentia.com.au or call 0405 543 263.