Program co-leaders Christy Newsome, ERYT-500, certified Yoga Therapist, and M.S.Ed., and Karina Stewart Carmichael, ERYT-500, and owner of Giving Tree Yoga, have over 30 years of teaching yoga between them, and they have the expertise and skill to guide you through this inspiring and transformative course.

Participating in a Yoga Teacher Training program will forever change your life in ways you can’t even imagine! Get ready to nourish your mind, body and spirit and to dive deep into the heart of the practice and philosophy of yoga. This 200-hour certification program will give participants foundational and knowledge based skills for guiding students through safe and inspiring sequences and poses, while strengthening their own practices and understanding during the course.

Through this training, you will develop a full toolbox of fundamentals of teaching yoga: postures (asana), breath work (pranayama), meditation, anatomy (both the physical body and the subtle body), sequencing, yogic philosophy & history, adjustments & assists, and the business of yoga. The goal is that you will feel confident teaching when you graduate. But, just as importantly, you’ll go deeper: discovering who you are. What makes you unique in this world. How can you be comfortable with all of the layers that make up who you are? You’ll find and develop your own voice. You’ll learn to be fully present in a yoga class, knowing that it is what will touch and inspire your students. Yogic concepts combined with authenticity, honesty, and presence will help you become the best teacher you can be. You will begin to develop the heart of a teacher. This training is for those who wish to become yoga teachers or those who simply desire the transformative experience the program offers. Existing teachers who want to deepen their practice and teaching are also welcome to join us.

Although hatha/vinyasa yoga will be the primary focus of this training, you will receive information and experience with chair yoga, wall yoga, and have intensives in restorative yoga & yin yoga so that you feel comfortable teaching different styles. We will challenge the way it’s always been and dive into the anatomy and the science of movement. There will also be discussions on the business/marketing of yoga, the principles of practice, demonstration, observation, teaching, assists, practice-teaching sessions with fellow trainees, study groups, presentations, and observing & assisting “live” classes.

Christy Newsome, E-RYT 500 and Yoga Therapist, has been practicing yoga since the mid 1990s and teaching yoga since 2011. She has over 5000 hours of yoga teaching experience and over 1000 hours of yoga teacher training. She received her yoga certifications at Peachtree Yoga Center (with Graham Fowler & Elizabeth Nix) and Etowah Valley Yoga (with Sue Hopkins) and also has done intensive study in yin, restorative, meditation, and anatomy. She also has a masters degree in education and a gift for teaching others, having taught or coached in some way or fashion since she was 16 (gymnastics, cheerleading, technology, and now, yoga). 

Karina Stewart Carmichael, E-RYT 500, is the new owner of Giving Tree Yoga Studio located in the heart of the Smyrna Market Village.  Classically trained in Hatha Yoga, Karina embraces and brings influences from Iyengar, Yin, Sivananda, Karma, Raja, Mantra, and most recently completed a wonderful 500hr advanced teacher training in India in Bhakti Yoga. Originally based in Aberdeen Scotland until 2021 when marrying her American based husband brought her to reside in Atlanta, Karina ran regular classes and workshops as well as retreats both in the UK and further afield in India, Spain, Turkey and Portugal. Karina also ran 200hr Yoga teacher training courses and has qualified many yogis.