About Us
HEALTH THRU YOGA is the name chosen by Lesli Kotloski, founder and director, to describe the way in which a student can achieve health. This title incorporates the importance of yoga as a way of life and the importance of wellness through meditation, breathing, conscious eating, and positive thoughts and actions.
OUR MISSION is to provide thorough and accurate teachings of the philosophies of Iyengar Yoga, thereby bringing knowledge and awareness to a student of the spiritual, mental and physical practice. Health Thru Yoga encourages students to acquire optimum health and well being and to bring that consciousness through ourselves to our community and our world. Health Thru Yoga promotes the growth of our inner selves to serve our higher consciousness; to eat, speak and think in a way that epitomizes and radiates health, compassion and love, helping others on their journey to acquire a more conscious level.
Lesli Kotloski, Director Lesli began Health Thru Yoga in August of 1997 following her recovery from a life threatening disease. The healing benefits of Iyengar yoga helped Lesli to become well and inspired her to teach and share its lessons with others. Lesli’s vibrant personality and love of poetry, art, and music create classes that flow with imagery, learning, and humor. She combines intelligent instruction with imagination to inform and inspire students. Lesli is passionate about health as the union of body, mind and spirit. As an experienced yoga teacher, she focuses on the spiritual, mental, and physical dimensions of yoga and she illustrates lessons with creative examples of everyday life.
Lesli's academic background is grounded in metaphysics as a student of Religious Science and Health Education at the University of Michigan. Lesli studied yoga at the Siddha Yoga Ashram in South Fallsburg, New York. She has studied with numerous well-known instructors such as Lilias Folan, Bekir Algan, Judith Lasater, Gabriel Halpern, William Prottengeier and Manouso Manos to learn the Hatha and Iyengar styles of yoga along with chanting and meditation. Several times a year Lesli and the Health Thru Yoga teachers continue their studies by attending workshops with senior Iyengar teachers.
For an in-depth explanation of how Lesli teaches, and what influences have informed her style, click on her picture.
For some of Lesli's favorite quotes, affirmations and poems, click on the scroll.
Our Substitute Teacher, Heather Perinis
When Heather took her first yoga class in 1999, she felt immediately drawn to yoga because it offered so many benefits – she felt stronger, centered, relaxed, and increasingly flexible. She loves yoga because yoga makes her feel well, helps her through changes, teaches her mindfulness in making decisions, deepens her appreciation of others and of nature, grounds her in Spirit, and reminds her that the unruly ego is always at work to move her out of balance.
Heather has been studying yoga with Lesli Kotloski since 2000. Heather has completed 200 hours of Health Thru Yoga teacher training and several years of apprenticeship under Lesli’s tutelage and direction. Heather encourages yoga students who would like to study yoga at a deeper level to consider teacher training as an opportunity to develop greater personal awareness on the mat and in life. She discovered that the greatest value of teacher training is what it teaches you about yourself. Teacher training does not require you to teach. It is a life changing journey to explore yoga beyond the classroom in a close and supportive student-teacher relationship – to learn, observe, respond, and grow.
Currently Heather teaches Health Thru Yoga classes as a substitute teacher and is continuing her studies by attending Health Thru Yoga classes and developing a daily practice of yoga to further integrate yoga into her home and family life. She has attended intensive yoga workshops with noted teachers including Gabriel Halpern, Dean Lerner, Manouso Manos, Lois Steinberg, and Judith Lasater.
Why Should you choose Health Thru Yoga?
There are several different styles of yoga, and HTY incorporates many of them. Life offers many choices to us, and here are some facets of HTY and our teachings:
- Assists the student in entering poses
- Helps students remain in the poses for increased benefit
- Reduces discomfort in the poses
- Addresses students' pains, issues, and fears
- Alterations in poses for injuries or physical conditions
- Provides variety to the classes
- Benefits both beginning and advanced students
- Adapts to the seasons, students, and the energy in the room
- Safely address students' physical needs, pains, & injuries
- Educates the student on the benefits of certain poses and actions
- Provides poses to address particular needs due to injury or discomfort in the body
- 6 years at Mellon Bank of New York
- 11 years in the Pittsburgh area
- Franciscan Center
- HCR Manor Care
- Privates
At HTY, we pride ourselves on being more than "just an exercise class" to our students. Students will get some exercise in our classes, but you will also learn how to breathe, meditate, and reduce stress. The reason that we are here is to provide you with the tools to live and work a healthier and less stress-full life. We hope to see you in class!