My name is Mikey O’ Dwyer, and I was first introduced to Yoga twelve years ago when I was suffering from back pain and tight hamstrings after surfing too much in April. I remember feeling very relaxed while doing a Hatha style yoga practice. I tuned into the breathing techniques, and this breathing transferred to my long-distance running and surfing.
Soon after my first yoga class, I met my long term Yoga teacher, Donal Quirke. His classes were a mixture of Hatha Yoga, Vinyasa Flow, and he had an attention to detail that showcases his Iyengar training. Donal also introduced me to some great movers around the world such as Ido Portal, Coach Sommers, GMB Fitness, Doug and David Swenson, and Joey Miles. As I dug deeper into the history of Yoga, I read Light on Yoga by B.K.S Iyengar, Yoga Mala by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, and The Heart of Yoga by T. K. V. Desikachar.
The lesson that really hit home for me, after reading those books and attending classes, is the importance of daily physical yoga and breathing practice. I started to see the real benefits of yoga which have helped in all aspects of my life, (as a Swim Coach, Lifeguarding, Swimming, Skating, Surfing Running, etc) which inspired me to become a Yoga Teacher and share this practice with others.
My Background in Swimming Coaching helped me understand the importance of controlling the breath and the posture of the human body as it moves through the water, this helped my teaching eye when I began the YOGABODY Teacher Training in 2018,
I have been teaching now for 15 months and I love every minute of it. it has helped me develop my own practice and it excites me to see how much the people who regularly come to my classes have improved.
