the unwind FAMILY
Ashley Ghattas
Owner & Founder
I am a biomedical engineer who taught in healthcare field for over 20 years. In my off time, I consistently kept up with fun friends skiing, biking, trail running, you name it. I only had one speed. Go fast, go hard, keep up, no whining. It worked well, until it didn’t. I tore ligaments in my thumb and was out of commission for many months. Devastated and not sure how I was going to stay healthy I finally went looking for answers from my friend, Dr. Sally Harris. She listened intently and lovingly handed me a handwritten script. It was for yoga twice a week. My reaction was complete disbelief. My nature was to be way too busy. “Not my speed,” I protested as I handed it back. She smiled, took a deep breath and said she understood. She scribbled again, handed me another prescription and said “yoga 5 times a week” and added that hot was acceptable.
I was floored, she knew me well and knew my perfectionist “I got this” spirit. Her last advice was that I had better find a studio. That was 2014. My RYT 200 was at Sweat studio, and I completed classroom and teaching hours for RYT 300 thru Blue Sky studio in Taos. Yoga changed my perceptions and my life. I quit my engineering job, and focused my energy and passion for yoga teaching. I derive joy from learning and inspiring. I want to empower others and my son and daughter with a positive attitude. I strive to teach from a place of authenticity and personal stories that resonate because after all, we are all connected. I pride myself on seeking training and education opportunities to stay up-to-date. I’m a true yoga nerd - a work in progress. I genuinely want to teach in a studio that is focused on the yoga students. I am a preparer, and I strive to make the complex poses, bends and stretches simpler to understand, perform and follow and gladly answer questions and engage in discussions. All yoga students are welcomed to my studio as they are my friends and extended family!!
Jonathan Hollinger
Co-Founder & technology administrator
THE TRANSFORMATION
I began my journey into the practice of yoga around 2015 as a supplement to weigh lifting, rock climbing, hiking and snowboarding. I quickly discovered the magical benefits of yoga, and I fell in love with practice and the transformations I began to experience.
In 2019 I found a link between my technical ability in engineering and entrepreneurialism, and people's desire to continue their yogic practices during the pandemic. I realized that the ancient art of yoga and our digital world had the opportunity to successfully commingle. I discovered immense joy in helping people connect to their practice, through the use of technology, during in a time of despair.
While I am not a instructor at this point, I am deeply rooted in all facets of Unwind Yoga, and its quest to spread
happiness, health, and prosperity through light-hearted and whole-hearted community wellness. Namaste
Kalani Col ter
Sound Therapy and Reiki Master Practitioner
Hi, I’m Kalani and I create group sound bath experiences and do one-on-one Reiki treatments at Unwind.
My journey to becoming a Sound Healing Practitioner, Reiki Master and Certified Life Coach will sound
familiar. I spent a couple of decades wrecking myself in the corporate world. Marketing is a place where
there is a lot of unhealthy living going on! I seriously remember one day sitting in an empty carpeted
cubicle saying to myself “My soul is dying.” I got married, became a mom, kept working and kept giving
to everyone else more than myself. I had always been healthy and active and now was having many
kinds of health problems – all stress related.
Along the way I picked up some Reiki and massage knowledge and was always seeking “self-help”. I
devoured anything that piqued my interest and spent so much time studying, learning, and putting little
things into practice. I frequently gave amateur massages and other alternative healing treatments to
family and friends.
Fast forward to Christmas 2020. After several years of extreme trauma and stress, I went to my first
sound bath. On the wall outside the room was a bulletin board covered with flyers. One for beginner
Reiki training. After years of limited Reiki knowledge, I thought “Gosh I should just go for it and get
certified!” I knew this was the change I was looking for and late that night I paid the deposit and
registered for the class. Despite my very broken state, it was a one-day event, and I thought it was
something I could handle.
Doing anything in a more sustained effort was just impossible for me at that moment. My body was so
knotted up with tension that I was in extreme pain all day, sitting there -- but I did it! I went on to
complete Master Level training in Reiki, Sound Healing level one and two (professional) training and
earned a Life Coaching certification through the University of New Mexico, focusing on Betrayal Trauma
Recovery and general life coaching. I love working with clients and find joy in the connections we can
make through healing. I don’t heal anyone. I help them find peace so they can heal themselves.
The biggest lesson I’ve learned is how to both heal and take care of myself so that I am able to help
others in a healthy, sustainable way. I practice regular reiki and sound therapy for myself and meditate
in several different ways each day. My journey is still continuing.
It’s my desire to help others who find themselves in a similar place I was a few years ago and want to
pursue a healthier, happier, more peaceful life. Reiki, sound therapy and coaching are so helpful alone
and even more powerful in combination. Calmer bodies and minds allow us to make better decisions,
sustain our bodies to function in a more optimal way, heal and cleanse, help us to perform better at our
life’s work and have better relationships.
I am also the creator of the self-help books What’s Bugging Me: My Problem Solving Journal and Letters
To My Jesus available on Amazon. And I continue to consult for marketing and communications clients
through Colter Consulting. To learn more about my wellness practice, follow me on Instagram at
@nurturewellnessstudio and @surthrivingbetrayal.
Lisa Wade
Instructor
Yoga first appeared along my life’s path around 2005 when I was running an average of 40-50 miles weekly. I was navigating burnout, contending with overuse injuries, and
looking for a type of cross-training that would complement my training goals. The owner of the gym I attended pulled me aside one day and said, “I think you’d enjoy my yoga
class. Just try it. You’ll be surprised by the challenge and the benefits of the practice. Please come.”So, I did. I showed up and participated in my first Ashtanga yoga class the following Saturday. I was immediately humbled by the level of concentration required as I struggled to maintain a connection to my breath while moving in and out of asanas. The internal conversation happening on both the physical and mental planes was also surprising. Little did I know I’d only just begun a journey of exploring the physics of both
the gross and subtle energy of yoga’s sacred geometry by remaining aware of how I directed the flow of my breath.
I’ve learned as a practitioner over the years, and now as an instructor, that each pose and every breath is its own complete journey, complete experience. My hope is to
inspire my students to fine-tune their ability to listen to their bodies, yet always remain playful and curious.
It’s never the external appearance of the physical pose that matters, but rather striking the internal balance between the physical, mental, and spiritual plane. Yoga is both fun and therapeutic. It strengthens all the systems of the body. Most importantly, yoga is sustainable and accessible to everyone. ~Lisa Wade
Tony Chavkin
Instructor
Twenty years of demanding jobs took a significant toll on my body physically and emotionally. I was depressed and resorted to alcohol. I was only 38 but felt like I had aged. My wife had been practicing yoga weekly for a year. She felt fantastic mentally and physically. She persistently encouraged me to go to yoga with her. Eventually, one day I joined her for a yoga class. It was an amazing experience. Ha! Soon I would be going to yoga more regularly. In no time, my health improved every which way. I was emotionally far better and physically stronger. Yoga gave me a quiet mind. Soon, I would give up alcohol. There was no need for it at all. I continued to elevate my yoga skills and enjoyed the peace and happiness it brought within myself. With yoga, I began a journey of transformation for myself and it made me smile when I noticed it helped others who were where I was not so long ago. My goal became clear. I wanted to offer yoga to others for a healthier life and try to influence those who might have wanted to rid a habit privately or in cooperation with fellow yogis. I focus my yoga sessions primarily on lower back pain. I love to see others heal physically, emotionally and continually strive for a healthier lifestyle! Please let me know if there is any particular yoga aspect of interest to you so that I can address it for you during the yoga sessions. Namaste.
Kim Chavkin
Instructor
I used to lament that I didn’t start to practice yoga until I was past the age of 40. Just imagine how much more I could have evolved my practice had I started at a younger age! But, I have come to realize that yoga entered my life at the precise and perfect time when I was ready to fully receive it. Prior to practicing yoga, I had engaged in many forms of physical fitness over the course of my lifetime. I had my preferences and physical activities I liked best like hiking, weightlifting, dancing, and group fitness classes. But after experiencing my first yoga practice and savasana, one auspicious Sunday afternoon, I was hooked. I immediately knew there was something different about this “exercise”, something that was special and worth exploring further. I continued to return to my mat, again and again, and I began to see progress in my flexibility and strength. Yoga also offered a place where I could quiet my mind. It was the physicality of the engagement in the moving meditation of yoga that captured my attention enough to calm my thoughts and bring me rare and beautiful moments of peace. I began making connections with parts of my body I didn’t know existed. I was amazed to realize that I didn’t actually know how to take a full, deep breath prior to practicing pranayama. Amazing yogi teachers showed me how to truly stand in my power in mountain pose and I finally understood why I suffered a lifetime with poor posture. No one ever taught me how to stand up, nor did I have the chance to intentionally know and strengthen the muscles responsible for good posture. There was so much more to it than I had ever imagined. In 2020 in particular, my little yogi practitioner community along with yoga practice became more important than ever to keep me going. Yoga became more than just a way to keep physically fit.
It was now an integral part of my life. I was also most fortunate in 2020 to take RYT 200 teacher training to deepen my practice and learn more about the yogic path. And now I am happy to experience yoga as both a student and teacher, sharing all of the possibilities the practice has to offer with others. My classes include weaving pranayama practices with asana flow into a dynamic, well- balanced, and fully embodied experience. I like to get into the mechanics of the poses and breathwork offering many ways to modify up or down. I focus on alignment, building strength and flexibility while also taking conscious, kind, and gentle efforts to push the practice to the next level. All shapes, sizes, and ability levels are welcome as we explore our bodies and minds together in a safe and inclusive environment. I am pleased to share my passion with others in hopes that they might as well find the joy as I have in yoga and that I may also learn from them.
Emily Haynie
Instructor
Emily has been teaching pilates as well as practicing yoga for over 20 years. She is a native New Mexican, an RN and a mom to two young children. Pilates is a great compliment to yoga. I love how strong it has kept me for all the other important aspects in my life.
Marci Calabrese
Instructor
Marci Calabrese 500 hr RYT
Marci has been practicing and teaching yoga for over 10 years.she is certified in Anusara yoga, Ashtanga yoga, The Barkan Method of Hot Yoga and Rocket Yoga. She continues to study with her teacher, David Kyle (Progressive Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga - Puerto Rico). Marci is passionate about facilitating classes where students move with the breath and she challenges each yogi to progress along their individual path. She believes that the joy is in the journey and her classes meet you where you are that day. She believes that obstacles have hidden lessons, and "progess, not perfection" is a great mantra. Marci enjoys assisting students and breaking-down difficult yoga postures making fun and interesting poses accessible for all!
Kara Rock Blattman
Instructor
Yoga teacher and Wellness educator.
I have been practicing yoga for over 30 years and teaching for 20 years. I first came to yoga because I was looking for a movement art that was more than just a physical practice. I needed a better connection to my body and knowing myself. Yoga changed my life and led me on a path of total body, mind, and spiritual wellness. I have studied many yoga styles and I like to bring in the teachings that have affected me the most. My favorite yoga practice and style of teaching is a Vinyasa Flow. It is a moving meditation of body and breath. I like to teach an energetic and healing flow that allows students to feel strong, open and quiet in their physical and mental body. My background is natural healing and mind-body awareness, with a degree of science in Occupational Therapy, Certifications in the Science of Ayurveda and Yoga Teacher Trainings in Hatha Yoga, Ayur-Yoga, Vinyasa Yoga, Yoga for a Happy Back and The Rocket. I am a founder of Doterra International in Israel. I have an amazing and supportive husband, Ishmael, and I am a mother of 4 beautiful children, Sofia, Chana, Levi, and Sapir.
Kylee Hickmott
Instructor
Kylee is a 500hr yoga and meditation guide, a certified holistic life coach and Founder of The Practice Of, a multi-passionate well-being business. She was trained under the immersive care of Eastern Monks, Sufis and Indian Philosophers alongside Western experts in anatomy and physiology in the healing jungles of Guatemala and Bali. Her expertises include Vinyasa, Yin, Restorative, Hatha and meditation.
Her teaching is rooted in the belief that our bodies hold infinite wisdom, remembrance and power. Kylee cultivates a trauma-informed, inclusive space where you can tune into your body’s teachings, reconnect to your intuition, and harness the transformational power of self-love through movement and breath. Her teaching style is attentive, contemplative, honoring, and full-hearted. She balances flexibility and facility in her teaching by attending to and accommodating for the unique and diverse needs of her yogis while maintaining the essence of each posture. She distills the heart, philosophy, and movement of yoga in each practice. These skills allow her to co-create with all who attend her classes; she is passionate about making entry points into a yoga practice accessible and visible, such that all who want to practice are empowered to do so in ways that are natural and intuitive to them.
Kylee hopes to empower you to tune into what your body needs on any given day, hour and moment. She encourages freedom, autonomy and a deep listening. She intends to create a space that is loving and nurturing while also inspiring you to step into your personal power and authenticity.
You can learn more about Kylee by accessing her website here or clicking here for her bio on her website.
Monique Johnson
Instructor
I’m probably one of those outgoing weirdos you have randomly met on the street. I love developing relationships with others and love to laugh. My movement history started 21 years ago when my mother introduced me to ballet. Soon after I added on tumbling and acrobatics, jazz, modern, hip hop, lyrical, cheerleading, ballroom, tap, clogging and more. I also got involved in musical theatre, the filming industry, academic decathlon, sewing, website development, business and way more. Eventually I went to college and started my own business with my amazing husband. We moved out here to Albuquerque (where he is from) so we could be closer to his family. We are huge animal lovers and have two sugar gliders and a Siberian husky. Recently, we now have a beautiful new baby boy who arrived here in October of 2022.
Teaching is my passion. I have been assisting and teaching for the past 12 years in wide varieties of movement and have loved every minute of it. In Albuquerque, I opened my own dance and acrobatics studio working with children ages 3-18 years old, and learned about Pilates. Pilates is a game changer. I had no idea how the benefits would help me! It helped me to strengthen my knees resulting in reduced knee pain that I had picked up from my cheerleading and tumbling history. I learned how to stand properly to avoid back pain, strengthened essential minor muscles to support my major muscles, and loved every minute of it.
Acrobatics and Tumbling is a combination of intense flexibility and strength training used to fluidly connect movements together. In this class, we will be building specific muscles and lengthening them in order to develop the support needed to connect acrobatics. This class is structured very differently than a Yoga flow class. However, if you have always wanted to do a backbend, backflip or an ariel, this class is for you!
I look forward to meeting you in person! Come talk to me and ask me any questions you have! I love to help educate others on health, form and alignment. Looking forward to helping you on your strength, acro, Pilates and Yoga journey to shape yourself into the best version of you!
Sasha Carter
Instructor
Sasha is your local desk Yogi Goddess and Instructor. Sasha has been an elementary teacher for 8 years, she’s about to start a new year teaching kindergarten at Altura Prep! She obtained her 200hr yoga teacher training in Mallorca over the summer (2022) where she studied Hatha, Vinyasa, and Yin yoga. She loves learning about how different postures can benefit the internal organs, detoxify, and re-energize both body and soul, and how they can be modified to fit different people. She struggles to bring yin and restorative practices not just into her yoga but into her everyday life, and with a baby on the way she’s trying to work on this balance.
When she’s not doing yoga, Sasha loves traveling, exploring, cooking, and finding fun things for her new home. She loves nothing more than to spend time with friends and family, her everyday family consists of her husband, dog and cat. When she’s at the front desk “Goddessing”, feel free to ask her any yoga-related questions! She would love to help you out or hear you out. Or stay off-topic and ask her about what book she’s reading or show she’s watching, she would love to talk those topics with you too!
Reinhard Lorenz
Instructor
I look forward to meeting you in the studio.
