Barbara Clayton

Rising Lotus Yoga

Barbara has been a scholar of specialized movement since the age of five when she began dance lessons. Ballet emerged as the standout amongst the varieties of dance and she left home, at the age of 13, to board at a Russian Classical Ballet School in Dallas, TX. Barbara earned her place as a principal dancer and holds her roles as both Grahn and Grisi in Pas de Quatre and a standing ovation for her Giselle as some of her fondest memories. A hip injury her sophomore year at SMU ended her career.Years later, after attending a fitness class at her local recreation center, Barbara was sought out by the owner of an MMA school in Chino, CA, where she was trained in the martial arts and worked as a Cardio Kickboxing Instructor for 16 years. Very pleasingly, the technique of the ballet melded with the skills of kickboxing was just the right combination for the flow of the class and the cueing required for skillfulness.In 2010 Barbara found herself a single Mom of two teenagers and diagnosed with Colon Cancer all within an 8 month time span. It was during her recovery that Barbara began a yoga practice at her local YMCA while her daughter attended soccer practice. Although the real yoga of the mind and of the self eluded her, the asana and the opportunity to rebuild strength whileallowing her balletic skills to seep into her practice proved to be a saving grace mind, body and soul.Barbara landed at Rising Lotus Yoga Studio in 2017 when she moved from the suburbs to the big city. The kindness, the skill and the caring attention of the teachers at RLY have been a major influence in her healing journey following two reattached biceps, hip replacement and, most importantly, self esteem. Barbara has long attended Daniel Stewart’s, Sunday Yoga Church (IYKYK) and began her Structural Vinyasa journey with Claire Hartley in 2023. Claire’s structural stability, functional biomechanic techniques and movement pattern approach have had a dramatic, life changing effect on Barbara’s yoga practice and on her overall well being in everyday life. Essentially, she doesn’t hurt anymore after decades of suffering.In 2024 Barbara finally followed her heart and completed 200 hours of Yoga Teacher Training at Rising Lotus Yoga Studio as well as an additional 50 hours of Structural Foundation training specializing in the core concepts of evolved movement and breathing. It is Barbara’s genuine delight to share her knowledge and her enthusiasm for the practice of yoga coupled with the joy of stability in the asana that is true to Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra 2.46, “Sthira Sukham Asanam, Postures should be steady and comfortable.” When the structural foundation is strong and the body is biomechanically supported and aligned, then, the student can find ease in the steadiness, and joy and lightness in the heart of the practice. Perfection is a myth that’s why it’s called a practice!