I hadn’t danced in 10 years. I had hardly participated in regular exercise in 5 years after becoming a mom. I was asked to perform (dance) in front of thousands of people. About 5 weeks before the performance I thought, hey Carly, you might want to stretch and move your body a bit before you get on stage again. I walked into Dragonfly Hot Yoga 2 years ago and now my day doesn’t seem complete without it.

I tried yoga the first time about a year before I got pregnant with my first baby who is now 6 years old. I had full intentions of practicing throughout my pregnancy but unfortunately I was so sick for the first 8 months. My dry heaving and vomiting schedule was not conducive to a yoga class. It wasn’t pretty – there was no pregnancy “glow” for me!
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My first class at Dragonfly was a free pop-up flow in Middleton with the teachers in training. It was a little over 1.5 years ago, and I was 60lbs overweight with very little yoga experience. It was my first HOT yoga class, and although I ended up spending most of the class in child’s pose, I was hooked right away (I blame all those hands on assists–it was like a mini-massage)! I tried the introductory month and became a member as soon as that ended. As someone who hates being hot/sweaty and is a huge fan of air conditioning, I am still shocked at how much I enjoy a heated class–there is just something about the heated room that I find incredibly comforting & healing; even in the summer months!
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I have been doing yoga on and off for about five years, ever since a friend talked me into a Bikram class. I went as a favor (she got a free class for bringing a friend), but I ended up loving it. I had never been into sports or athletics of any kind, so I was thrilled to find a physical activity I actually enjoyed. I’ve been doing yoga ever since, switching over to Vinyasa in college. When I moved to Madison two years ago, finding a new yoga studio was high on my to-do list. I took intro classes at a few studios around town and settled on Dragonfly for the welcoming atmosphere, convenient locations, and varied schedule. Now, it’s hard for me imagine my life without yoga.
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I started practicing yoga at Sangha Yoga in 2003 when I was in graduate school in Kalamazoo, Michigan. My teacher, Karina Ayn Mirsky, helped me understand that yoga is a lifelong practice. I appreciate that now more than ever as I approach 50!

I moved to Madison for a position with UW System Administration in July 2014 and tried a couple of other yoga studios. I was delighted when Dragonfly opened a downtown location that I could walk to from where I lived. Natalie and the staff are always so friendly and welcoming, which I especially appreciate as a natural introvert!
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