TRAUMA-INFORMED YOGA THERAPIST & TEACHER
PERSONAL TRAINER
PILATES & BARRE INSTRUCTOR

Hi I’m Liz

When I walked into that hot yoga room back in 2011, I never realised the positive impact it would have on my life.

What started as a physical practice became something much more.
Today, I'm a Yoga Therapist and Senior Yoga Teacher based in Canberra. Working with people who want an individualised and accessible approach to yoga. I specialise in trauma-informed practice and offer yoga therapy as a complementary approach for people navigating injury, illness and other health challenges, alongside online coaching for those who want to build a sustainable home practice.

Yoga changed how I responded to challenges. It helped me understand my body differently and gave me tools I could draw on away from the mat. After nearly 15 years of failed attempts to quit smoking, yoga became part of what finally helped me stop.

Eventually, it changed the direction of my career too.

Before yoga took over, horses were a huge part of my world. I rode, bred and competed with my Arabian horses at national level. I had also spent around a decade working in the public service.

I could never have imagined that yoga would eventually become my profession. Or that the horses would make way for a very different path.

I wouldn’t be in the place I am today, without Yoga.

IN THE MEDIA
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My path to yoga therapy

In 2004, I fell from my horse, tearing my ACL and injuring my back. I discovered Pilates during my rehabilitation and experienced first hand how adapting movement to the individual could make a difference.

Years later, yoga added another dimension.

I began teaching yoga in 2012 and Pilates in 2015. Since then, I've taught more than 1,000 yoga classes across Canberra, Melbourne and Balii. In yoga and Pilates studios, gyms, schools, childcare centres, outdoors and online. Oh and even in a Church once!

I've taught people in large group classes and one-to-one settings. I’ve facilitated workshops exploring Lifeforce yoga for depression, anxiety and better sleep, as well as Yin Yoga and myo fascial release.

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Why trauma-informed yoga matters to me

I was diagnosed with PTSD when I was 11.

My life since then hasn't followed a neat wellness-story trajectory. I've experienced major depression and, before my ADHD was diagnosed, workplace bullying. I've experienced miscarriage and the loss of my mother to a rare cancer after being separated from her during the pandemic.

I've also lived through the impact of two significant fires, almost exactly 20 years apart.

That second experience was the inspiration for my podcast, Yoga for Trauma: The Inner Fire of Yoga.

These experiences don't mean I assume I know what another person's trauma feels like.

I don't. As we are all unique.

Nor, is it me complaining.

They have been impactful on how I teach.

I believe people deserve choice, autonomy and the freedom to practise in a way that makes sense for their own body and circumstances.

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Yoga is a state of being, not doing.

One of the biggest things yoga taught me was that yoga isn't about performing the perfect posture.

You don't need to be flexible. You don't need to fit a particular body type. And you certainly don't have to turn yourself into a human pretzel.

Asana (yoga postures) is only one small part of yoga. Most of the postures seen today, are modern inventions, inspired by gymnastics and martial arts.

I understand that just as people are different on the outside, so are their skeletons. Most human anatomy books and manual, show an ‘average’ skeleton, none of us are average.

That's why my approach isn't built around memorising universal alignment cues or trying to make every body look the same in a pose. Rather, I focus on what the function (purpose) of the pose is. Adapting the pose for the practitioner, rather than the other way around.

Your body isn't generic. Your yoga practice shouldn't be either.

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But there’s more to me than just yoga

  • A woman with dark hair, wearing a sleeveless top and leggings, is kneeling on her right knee and holding a dumbbell in her right hand while resting her left hand on the back of a folding chair in a room with white paneled walls and tiled floor.

    Barre Instructor


  • A woman with dark hair, wearing a sleeveless top, holding two dumbbells with 'VERPEAK 2 KG' written on them, in front of a staircase with white spindles.

    Advanced Personal Trainer

  • A woman is outdoors holding a pilates ring in front of her with her arms raised, and trees are blurred in the background.

    Pilates Instructor

  • A thermomix TM7 model with the screen on

    Thermomix® Consultant

  • Smartphone displaying an audiobook titled 'The Inner Fire of Yoga: Trauma and Healing' with a photo of a woman in a prayer pose. White wireless earbuds are in front of the phone.

    Podcast Host

  • Woman with black hair wearing a jacket, holding a Rode microphone, sitting at a wooden table with a laptop and camera in a room with a plain white wall.

    Guest Speaker

  • A young man with dark skin, short black hair, sitting on a wooden bench in a beige room, wearing a gray polo shirt and cream-colored pants, with shadows cast on the wall behind him.

    Survivor & Lobbyist

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Silhouette of a person sitting cross-legged, practicing yoga, next to text that reads "Yoga As Medicine" and "The Art and Science of Yoga Therapy."
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Logo for BIYOME, a bio-medical institute of yoga and meditation by Celia Roberts.
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The logo for LifeForce Yoga in purple cursive font.
Logos of three fitness and wellness brands: 'Tune Up Yoga' with yellow flower symbols, 'Tune Up Fitness Worldwide' with a stylized black 'T', and 'The Roll Model' with geometric shapes and red and black colors.
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How you can work with me

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Yoga therapy in Canberra and online

As a registered Yoga Therapist and Senior Yoga Teacher, I offer private yoga therapy for people looking for an individualised, complementary approach to support their wellbeing while navigating injury, illness or other health challenges.

Rather than giving you a generic sequence, we'll look at youyour needs, goals, circumstances and what is realistically sustainable in your life.

Together, we can develop a therapeutic yoga plan designed around the individual rather than forcing the individual into the practice.

Sessions are available online via live zoom sessions and the Thinkific platform.

Learn more
A woman practicing yoga on a blue mat, participating in an online session with an instructor on her laptop.

Online yoga teacher mentoring

I mentor yoga teacher trainees and established teachers who want to develop greater confidence and depth in their teaching.

My mentoring explores areas including mental-health awareness, sequencing, functional approaches to alignment and moving beyond memorised universal cues.

Most importantly, I want teachers to discover their own voice rather than becoming a copy of somebody else's.mentor yoga teacher trainees and established teachers who want to develop greater confidence and depth in their teaching.

Sessions are available online Via live zoom sessions.

BOOK A DISCOVERY CALL

Coming soon

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2027 yin yoga, myo fascial release and
‘myo yin’ yoga teacher training

A combination of pre-recorded lectures and classes (via Thinkific platform).,zoom coaching and a weekend intensive (live online or in person).

Workout equipment hanging on a wall including resistance bands, s-bends, and a lanyard in a gym or fitness room.

Home studio

A boutique studio that combines fitness and Pilates equipment. Aimed at people who want to exercise smarter and look after their bodies rather than thrashing them.

Equipment includes:

Pilates Reformer
Pilates Wall Unit
Pilates Wunda Chair
Pilates MOTR
Barre
Pilates Matwork
Suspension training
TRX
Hypervibe (vibration plate)
Free weights
Concept Rower
Myo Fascial Release Tools