JEFF LICHTY

After sixteen years as a critical care paramedic, Jeff Lichty knew that learning to manage stress and anxiety was a top priority. Jeff's physical and existential inclinations led him to Ashtanga Yoga and direct study with Sri K Pattabhi Jois and Sri R Sharath Jois. He has traveled to India 19-times to study with the spiritual masters of Ashtanga Yoga and was also blessed to work directly with Mother Teresa in 1993. As the director of Ashtanga Yoga Canada and the Calgary Ashtanga Yoga School, Jeff oversees two successful online yoga programs; Anxious to Awesome and Introduction to Practice. He is also the lead teacher of the hybrid virtual/in-person Mysore Yoga program in Calgary, Alberta. 

Jeff is one of a small group of Level II Authorized Ashtanga Yoga teachers in Canada. Jeff has studied Pranayama* with Sri O.P. Tiwari, the current president of the Indian Yoga Association and the treasurer of the Kaivalyadhama Institute. He has taught Jeff directly for over 16 years. Jeff is currently one of the only Pranayama teachers in Canada with a direct tie to Sri O. P. Tiwari, a student of Swami Kuvalayananda (the teacher of Gandhi.) Tiwariji is one of the few Hatha masters left in the world. 

*Pranayama is an ancient skill that utilizes breathwork to increase energy, focus, and clarity while decreasing feelings of restlessness, irritability, and discontent.