Featured Business
Ani O Yoga Studio; Shaping Life with Trisha Curling
BY SIMONE J. SMITH
“I believe that everyone deserves the right to know that we have the ability to choose the life that we really want.” ~ Trisha Curling
“It was my birthday, and this woman, who owned her own yoga studio, reached out to me and told me that she was leaving the business to go on another path. She asked me if I wanted to take over the studio, and my first thought was, Oh wow! This can’t be a coincidence; this is the perfect birthday gift. So even though I was scared as hell, I said YES!” This type of fearless determination is one of the reasons why we have chosen to honour Ms. Trisha Curling, and congratulate her for walking into her purpose. It was a long time coming, but we know that the community will learn a lot from her story. We would like to present to you, your business feature of the week, Ms. Trisha Curling and her new studio Ani O Yoga Studio.
Trisha’s story is not an uncommon one, but it is unique to her, and worthy of telling. Trisha Curling’s journey into the holistic fitness world began over 15 years ago. She had started off as a personal trainer, and did this from 2001–2007. Deciding that it was time for a career change, Trisha went into teaching, and did this for nine years. During this time, Trisha felt unsatisfied; it was not that it was not a great career choice; it was just not the career choice for her. She knew this because she felt unfulfilled while teaching. She had gained a lot of weight, and had dealt with some injuries, but what really changed her life was the sudden and unexpected death of her brother who she was very close to.
What hurt her about his death was that it was unexplained. He was in his early 40’s at that time, in very good shape, no health conditions, and yet he was gone. For about four years, Trisha was in a state of shock; she was unsure what to do. “I can admit now that I was very depressed, and living my life reactively. I felt even more unfulfilled then before, but as I slowly began to come out of my haze, I recognized the fact that I only have one life to live. There is no dress rehearsal for life. You have one chance, and I knew that I would have to make the absolute best of it. It was what my brother would have wanted. It was time for me to start living again.”
This was exactly what Trisha started to do. In 2015 she left her teaching career and became re-certified as a Personal Trainer. In just four years, Trisha was able to complete her 200 hours of Yoga Teacher training, which includes completed courses in:
- Yoga Medicine (Working towards 500 Hrs.)
- Yoga Medicine Teacher Training (200 Hr.) – Napa, California (August 2016)
- Spine Immersion (25 Hrs.) – Vancouver, British Columbia Nov. 2016
- Hip Module (60 Hrs.) – Cadiz, Spain, May 2017
- Shoulder Module (60 Hrs.) – Catskills, New York, Sept. 2017
- Strongfirst Kettle Bell Instructor Level 1
- Internal Medicine I Module – nervous system & Restorative Yoga (60 Hours) – Boone, North Carolina April 2018)
Her biggest move came this year, when on her birthday a yoga studio was transitioned over into her possession. “This is not something I had even considered doing,” Trisha told Toronto Caribbean Newspaper, “My vision had been an online platform, but sometimes things come into our path to take us to where we are supposed to go. I try to listen to my gut as much as possible, and when the offer came, it felt right.” Although she was a little apprehensive at first, Trisha is starting to find her grove in the new place she calls home. “Coming here, being on the mat is what I like to call a return to self.” Trisha explained. “What this means is that an exploration of self occurs when you are on that mat. It all begins with the breathing; if you watch a baby breathe, they take deep breaths. You can see their little stomachs moving up and down. This is the natural way to breathe. Somewhere along the way, we lose the ability to breathe deeply; our breaths become shallower and hastened. Breathing allows one to centre, and practiced along with meditation it can have a tremendous effect on your life.”
Along with an excellent team of trainers and holistic experts, Trisha has created an environment where people can come and feel safe, have fun, and be challenged. It is a great way for the members to feel like they have personally contributed to the construction of their lives. “I could not do any of this without a strong team behind me, and I want to take some time to shout out my mom and dad who have been very supportive, as well as the members of the staff at Ani O Yoga Studio.” This fabulous team consists of: Eden Marchand (YOGA TEACHER), Mallory Cheung (BARRE & PILATES INSTRUCTOR), Mia Manito (Yoga Teacher), Rocio Castillo (YOGA TEACHER), Becky Yin (YOGA, PILATES INSTRUCTOR & THAI MASSAGE PRACTITIONER), Nicole Lau (YOGA INSTRUCTOR & THAI MASSAGE) PRACTITIONER), Rebecca Courvoisier (Yoga Teacher), Dena Sotoudeh (Yoga Teacher), Cassandra Deluca-Griffin (Yoga Teacher), and the Front Desk Staff, Christina Ciccone, and Natalie Cliche.
Ani O Yoga Studio is located at 354 Newkirk Road, Richmond Hill (Unit 1), and you can check Trisha out on Facebook, Instagram, and on her new show on MYTCNTV Network Shaping Life, where she, along with experts from the Health Industry share their knowledge on living a health conscious life. “We do not have to be overweight. We do not have to live with pain. I believe that our best life can be achieved by choosing a holistic approach to health. Eating delicious, nutritious foods and performing exercises that compliment our individual needs will lead us to a happier and healthier life all around.”