Sarah Spencer - From Student to Health & Wellbeing Advocate and Yoga Teacher!
From the moment I first stepped onto a yoga mat in 1994 at the tender age of 29, I felt a change, and knew something magical had just happened, because by the time I stepped off it, the world looked just a little bit brighter. I was intrigued, I wanted to know more. I was ready to explore and learn how I could help myself and those around me, and that is how my journey began.
I have learned from many health professionals, including Patrick Holford, Dr Rajendra Sharma, Dr Bradford Weeks, Dr Zita Csomai as well as many other health professionals, nutritionists and naturopaths.
Some 15 years after stepping on my yoga mat for the first time, I was introduced to Simon Low co founder of TriYoga in London and Principal of The Yoga Academy, and my journey to becoming the teacher I am today started. I have since been extremely fortunate to have studied with many inspirational yoga teachers – to name just a few of these – Julie Gudmestad, Donna Fahri, Peter Blackaby, Gary Carter, Zoe Knott, Sama Fabian and most recently with Susi Aldous Hately, a world renowned teacher combining modern science, functional movement and yoga. I have continued my yoga training through to the present day with teachers such as Jason Crandell, and in November 2022 I qualified as a Science of Stretching Teacher with Lucas Rockwood.
Today I would describe myself as a health and wellbeing advocate as well as a yoga teacher. Through my experiences and training I have learned to view the world from a different, more balanced perspective. And it is now, more than ever before, I see that so much of our lives and environment are far from being conducive to leading a healthy life – and that is becoming a big problem for many of us.
Health and wellbeing is clearly not only about preventing disease, it is also about how we feel, look and perform. It’s about finding a mental and physical balance in life that allows our body to heal, grow and adapt to the world around us. It’s also about functional movement and living a pain free life. But recognising the right way to go about this in our present world, a world full of so many demands on our attention and our time, seems to be harder than ever.
This is where I feel I come in. I view my role as a go-between (a filter and a translator of all the well-meaning, but often confusing information out there) for all those people who simply want to improve their health and quality of life. I don’t offer a magic pill – rather, I bring together all my skills working with people to find ways that help each and every individual take responsibility for their own physical and mental wellbeing.
I love discovering simple and inexpensive lifestyle strategies that work for people. Yoga and Seed nutrition have become my key strategies - based on the latest scientific and medical research, as well as on my own practical experience of what works for me and through what I have seen and done with others over a period of approximately 14 years. If there is one thing I have learned it is that you really don’t have to do a lot to make a huge difference – you just need to know what to do and do it on a regular basis.
Sarah Spencer