Our instructors are all different, with diverse lives, styles and backgrounds but what is consistent is that all of them are kind, committed and inspirational.
Joey
Yoga Teacher
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Jessica
Yoga Teacher
Jessica received her 200-hour yoga teacher certification in 2017. She is a Level 2 Aromatherapist with experience teaching meditation in a corporate setting and is certified in kids’ yoga. She has an associates degree in sports and exercise science and will be pursuing her bachelor’s degree in exercise physiology at WVU in January 2025. In addition to yoga, Jessica enjoys hiking and reading.
Jessica F.
Yoga Teacher
Jessica has been a yoga teacher since 2019. She is very excited to be joining the Empower Yoga and Fitness team! Originally from Washington, PA, Jessica moved to Morgantown in 2013 with her partner. They have 6 cats. Jessica loves Halloween and horror, and she loves to read. She is passionate about making yoga accessible for everyone, and she loves using all the props!
Lexi
Yoga Teacher
Lexi began practicing yoga by taking teen yoga classes in her hometown. Yoga has become a part of her life ever since her teenage years as it is a great way for her to relieve stress, incorporate physical activity into her busy life, and continue to grow both physically and mentally. She completed her first 200-hr classical yoga teacher training in 2016, followed by a second 200-hr training in yoga and leadership in 2020. Outside of the studio, you can find Lexi studying for a Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology at West Virginia University. She continues studying exercise physiology, following a bachelor’s and master’s degree in it, because of her love for using movement as medicine. Her goal is to better define yoga as a form of physical activity to inform others of its numerous benefits! Lexi also enjoys spending time outdoors, engaging in other forms of physical activity, spending time with family, and going to Disney World.
Madison
Barre Teacher
Madison started taking barre in Charlotte, NC pre-pandemic. After moving back to her home state of West Virginia, she continued her barre practice at Empower Yoga & Fitness and quickly fell in love with the workout and the studio. She then decided to make the exciting leap to become an instructor. Madison is a mental health therapist in Morgantown and values taking care of your body as well as your mind. She enjoys the up beat pace of barre as well as the fun music and the friends she has made along the way!
Mercy
Yoga Teacher
Mercy is a 200 HR Registered Yoga Teacher and Buti Yoga® certified instructor. In addition to her passion for yoga, she is equally passionate about her other loves –pole fitness, running, Muay Thai kickboxing, and boxing. She found yoga in 2011 in Houston, Texas following a yoga DVD to improve and recover from her Muay Thai and pole fitness training. In 2012 she moved from Houston to Morgantown, WV and continued her yoga practice. It was not until several years later, when she hit a difficult spot in life, that yoga became much more to her than a physical practice. Through sweat and hard work on her mat, she found space to breathe, to let all things go for the moment, to focus on the present, and to move with purpose. With her yoga practice, she found the mental clarity she needed to rise above the struggles she fought. What she found in yoga she wanted to help others find. In 2019 she found Suncrest Yoga’s teacher training program and became Yoga Alliance certified. Mercy’s classes are upbeat and offer plenty of opportunities for a challenge.
Rebecca
Yoga Teacher
Rebecca was first introduced to yoga by a very good natured, relentless friend who insisted that she go to a yoga class with her. After some weeks of convincing, Rebecca reluctantly ended up in a hot vinyasa style flow class. After reaching a sweet, sweaty savasana (resting pose) at the end of class, she realized she couldn’t wait to come again. Because of this, Rebecca enjoys inviting the most skeptical of friends to come to yoga with her still to this day.
In 2019, Rebecca did a yoga teaching training with Nicole Yost Ross at Suncrest Yoga in hopes of furthering her own practice. During her time in the program, she also developed a passion for sharing the practice with others and will be completing a 95 hour children’s yoga teacher training in 2020. When attending a class with Rebecca, you can expect to find your breath, move mindfully through your practice, and focus on letting go of the tension that isn’t serving you on your mat.
When not in yoga, some of Rebecca’s other favorite things include reading, helping her rescue animals live their best lives, and sitting down alongside her husband, Jarrett, for a cup of a warm beverage.