Jess Blake (RYT-500) grew up in a family of athletes and always gravitated towards various types of movement, particularly as it related to fitness and athletics. But in her early twenties, it was in a yoga class when she realized that movement doesn’t have to have a goal. She discovered that movement could simply be a pathway for self-exploration, expression and pleasure. Jess completed her 200-hour yoga certification in 2009, followed by her 300-hour certification in 2011. With hundreds of hours of study in anatomy, restoratives, somatics, meditation, prenatal/postnatal, trauma-informed, and therapeutic style practices, her current classes are joyously informed by a love of humanity and a wonder for the natural world. Jess’ hope is that students will leave her classes feeling more present; more embodied and aware of their aliveness and all that connects us. Jess was born in Utah, raised in Minnesota, and lived in NYC for 12 years before relocating with her husband and twins to the Hudson Valley, where they currently live in Clermont. Jess loves to dance, read, hike, swim, and drink coffee in the earliest hours of the morning.