It all began with “Aloha”…

I was in college in Hawaii when I first learned how powerfully uniting the word “aloha” (hello/goodbye/love) could be. The church I attended there on the north shore of Oahu had 13 different nations represented. Each week members of the congregation would speak from the pulpit and every time they would begin by saying “hello” in their own language or “aloha” and everyone in the audience would warmly respond in kind. It was the most welcoming diverse atmosphere I’d ever experienced and I promised myself that I would share “aloha” where ever I lived for the rest of my life.

I discovered yoga a couple years (and a couple states) later in the hills of West Virginia. The first time I tried it, I did not like it. That first time, in a big old gym surrounded by complete strangers, I looked at the clock every 5 minutes wondering when the class would end. Yoga was so much slower than the sports I’d played in high school and so different from the exercise classes I’d taken in college!

But I could not deny how I felt after class. And not just right after either! For days after I felt more content and my body began to feel more flexible. I continued to do yoga. I started going once a month, then once a week, then I was hooked and I knew that I wanted to not only incorporate it into my daily life; I wanted to share it with others.

I certified through Peace through Yoga’s yoga teacher training in 2010 and began to teach at official yoga studios all over the Indianapolis, Indiana area. Over the last 20 years I have taught yoga “from the womb to the tomb”; teaching prenatal yoga, mommy and toddler classes, teen classes, a wide range of regular adult classes as well as chair yoga classes with students in their late 90’s!!

Ever since I certified I have desired to “shout from the rooftops” the amazing benefits of yoga and spread the Light and Love of God and the Universe that I have felt myself through yoga. I knew it meant using technology and I knew that I had zero skills, so that desire remained a dream for a decade. That seed desire came into fruition in 2021 when I signed up for a business class and was challenged by life coach, Jody Moore to get very specific about who I would want to offer yoga to online. I knelt in heartfelt prayer asking God who I was meant to focus on.

“Teens need this.” was my answer.

Within a week of praying, I was asked to be a leader over all the church youth programs in my local area.

“Teens in your community need this.”

Within a month of praying, I saw two dear dear friends handle the devastating aftermath of teen suicide.

“Teens all over the world need this.”

Month after month I read the statistics of a worldwide mental health crisis as COVID and its myriad of aftershocks rocked the globe.

“Your own teens need this.”

My eyes were opened to the struggles of my own beloved children who were dealing with the heaviness of depression and the fear of anxiety panic attacks AND to the struggles of trying to find them help! We waited nine months to get one of my teens into a therapist! I realized this was a common occurrence and I knew yoga could offer relief and support immediately at minimal cost!

So I answered the call.

With zero experience in technology and zero money to get started, I 10x my study of starting a business and what I’d need to do to begin a podcast, teaching online etc…and dove in.

In March 2022, Isha Warriors was born.

I am so grateful for the hundreds of teens I have had the opportunity to connect with in person and online through yoga as well as all the amazing people I have had the privilege of interviewing for my podcast. My life has changed as I have seen lives change. I had one teen come to me because they had been suspended from school. I got to be a part of him choosing to change trajectory of the his life. I’ve had teens tell me doing yoga with me was what motivated them to come to school that day. Time and again I see the struggles our teens face daily. I hear their stories. I share in their heartache and celebrate their successes. I create yoga classes and podcast content always with “What do our teens need to hear?” on my mind.

And I do the best I can to help them with the tools I know best; yoga and aloha.

Thank you for being a part of my journey in helping heal and guide our rising generation-

Hugs,

Alli Louthain, Isha Warriors Founder