Erin LoPorto

Erin LoPorto, IAYT Certified Yoga Therapist, E-RYT 500 found her home in yoga the moment she first practiced in 2001. She experienced such personal healing and transformation over the years from the 8-limbed path that she has felt inspired to pass the knowledge on.  Yoga is not only her passion but her full time profession. Erin completed a two-year internship at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health where she was able to study with world leaders in the fields of yoga, Ayurveda, energy healing, meditation and the mind-body connection.  She is certified teacher of Kripalu Yoga, PranaFlow and TriYoga Therapy. Having collected over 1000 hours of training in Yoga Therapy, Erin was one of the first Yoga Therapists Certified by the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT) and has been a practitioner since 2012.  She is also a talented bodyworker holding Reiki I and II, Multi-Dimensional Transformational Healer and Lotus Palm Thai Yoga Massage certifications.  Additionally, Erin studied somatic expressive therapy through the Leven Institute and has a particular interest in trauma treatment. She has been teaching yoga at Walden Behavioral Care for Eating Disorders since 2013 and Revolution Community Yoga since it first opened in 2012. To her classes, yoga therapy and bodywork, Erin brings a playful, intuitive and compassionate spirit. Her classes range from powerful yoga flows to the still style of yin and restorative yoga.  She offers clear instruction and options for everyone. Her bodywork is made of powerfully deep tissue work and an intuitive energetic touch. Her private sessions unfold organically to meet the needs of each individual. Her expertise and approach to her work come from deep within and you cannot help but feel spiritually renewed.  Learn more about Erin’s Thai Yoga Bodywork and Yoga Therapy offerings at https://erinloporto.com/

What do you remember about your first yoga class?
My first yoga experience was in an acting class in college. I remember being guided into relaxation and feeling my jaw and shoulders release in a way they never had before.  That release brought tears to my eyes. I wanted to know more.  Another professor used “power yoga” as the warm up in a dance class. When that semester was over I bought myself a VHS of Bryan Kest’s “Power Yoga” and practiced to that almost everyday for 5 years.  I admit it took me a couple years to listen to the talk he gave at the beginning, to actually breath during the practice and to not turn it off right before savasana, but eventually I learned that yoga offered more than exercise.

How has practicing yoga impacted your life?
So it is really fascinating for me to reflect on this… the first year I started seriously practicing yoga I was missing a lot of key components (like breathing and savasana as previously mentioned) and yet so much shifted.  Bryan Kest would say multiple times in his video “this is your yoga for the day” or “this is your practice” and my practice became the first thing I really felt was mine and as a result there was an ownership I began to take responsibility for over my entire life. At the time I saw yoga as exercise and yet simultaneously, with no knowledge of yoga philosophy, I was working the 8 limbs of yoga – I was adding these other spiritual practices to my life that I thought I was genius for creating at the time… and then I found out 5 years later that what I really happened was that I tapped into this ancient consciousness and all the power that exists within it. I have healed from chronic and debilitating hip pain, migraines, and an eating disorder in the first year or two.  Since then it is even more broad – I have an ever increasing tolerance for most all situations, a deep sense of self, and an inner strength that has touch every area of my life.

What is your favorite yoga asana and why?
Pigeon – we’ve moved through a lot of stuff together. And you should know while there’s a picture of me in mermaid on the website, my pelvis was a good foot off of the ground when I began practicing yoga years ago.

What is your favorite yoga-related book/movie?
If I was better at absorbing concepts and ideas from books/movies I probably wouldn’t have attended so many workshops… I think every yoga practitioner needs to see Paul Grilley’s “Anatomy for Yoga” which demonstrates how different poses can look in different people – not based on strength or flexibility but on bone structure itself.

What is your favorite inspirational/spiritual passage or quote?
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. – Marianne Williamson

And you may have heard me say this one in class: “The fastest way to disrespect yourself is to compare yourself to someone else.” Bryan Kest

What is something others might not know about you?
I have a 15 year old weimaraner named Angel. I love camping and singing and hope to learn to surf one of these days.