Valerie Seely
Valerie's love for paddling began with canoeing in the waterways of Northern Wisconsin. From there she honed her SUP techniques in the Lake Michigan. After moving to Seattle in 2013, she began teaching SUP lessons at Surf Ballard.
The corporate grind lead Valerie to yoga and in 2010 she completed her 200RYT training at yogaview in Chicago. She discovered WASUP Yoga in 2014 and was immediately hooked.
She describes SUP Yoga as her trifecta of goodness; yoga, paddling and nature all rolled into one beautiful practice. Valerie brings a sense of curiosity, wonder, and humor to her Vinyasa style classes.
Jess Rush
Jess (she/her) was born and raised on the waters of New England and has found life and inspiration in the Pacific Northwest since 2003. Through her love of all things water, Jess first found yoga on a stand up paddle board through WASUP and has dedicated Seattle's short and beautiful summers to that practice for nearly 10 years.
Through her yoga practice, Jess has found a pathway to healing: physically and emotionally. She has found strength of body and heart, flexibility of body and mind. It was a realization of just how much yoga had helped Jess heal and grow that moved her to become a teacher herself and to share this practice with others. Jess' practice and teaching is holistic and rooted in traditional yogic teachings. Her classes are inspired by the energy of Mother Earth, grounded, and playful.
Gwendolyn Payton
Gwendolyn took her first paddle board yoga class 10 years ago and fell immediately in love with everything about it! She has been teaching on the water ever since. Coming to yoga from a dance background, Gwendolyn brings joy to partnering with students to help them maximize the multitudes of benefits of a yoga practice on the water. Gwendolyn began studying yoga in 2000 and has been teaching yoga for over a decade throughout the Seattle area.
Drawing from extensive studies in classical and modern dance, Pilates, Gyrotonics® and other modalities, Gwendolyn brings her love of movement to teaching yoga in a clear, effective and efficient way. Gwendolyn’s classes are prefect for both absolute beginners to yoga and/or the paddle board, as well as experienced practitioners of both. She offers customized classes to meet the needs of the student, focusing on alignment, conditioning, and most if all, fun! The paddle board is an amazing way to learn about our own mental process, alignment issues and to connect with this beautiful place we live.
Jay Holby
Jay Holby grew up around yoga with trips to Kripalu Yoga Center on the East Coast as a kid.
His mother Karen has taught Kripalu style yoga for close to 40 years in his home state of Ohio. After competing in track and soccer as an intercollegiate athlete, Jay was initially drawn to the physical aspects of yoga. In 1995, he started a career in personal training and has been helping people of all fitness levels lead more active, enjoyable lives.
A trip back to Kripalu for a week long pranayama workshop as an adult opened the door further and deepened his mental and spiritual side of the practice. He loves the intertwining of the outer and inner journeys that practicing/teaching yoga can bring to your life.
Jay believes there is room in everyone’s practice for humor and laughter, hard work and dedication, patience and acceptance.
He supplements his regular yoga practice with yearly yoga retreats to various locations to unwind, recharge, and learn!
Ben Grieshaber
I fell in love with this floating yoga practice when I began taking classes at WASUP Yoga in the summer of 2011. Each time I came to my board on the water I was offered a new challenge and a unique experience. Whether attempting crow pose on a buoyant surface or observing a fish flopping onto and off of my mat right before my very eyes, I discovered that each journey on the water is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gunna get!
Marinating in the flow of this practice gives me a sense of wonder and excitement. Add a splash of the sights, smells and sounds of nature, and I’m constantly reminded of the greater flow that is life. I am eternally grateful to share this practice with you!