“Yoga is a lot like surfing to me,” said Megan LaBernz, the owner of the studio. “I can kind of just get away from everything, find my soul and just be there.”
LaBernz, an ex-collegiate volleyball player and avid surfer of 20 years, first started her yoga practice in 2007 after her mother suddenly died from breast cancer.
“I couldn’t quiet my mind,” LaBernz recalled. “I was running and lifting [weights], and then finally my sister suggested I try yoga. As cliche as it is, it completely transformed my life.”
After practicing yoga as a student for two years, LaBernz became certified to teach and opened Barefoot Girl Yoga in League City in 2014. She outgrew that location and moved to Clear Lake Shores.
What sets Barefoot Girl Yoga apart is that LaBernz and her seven teachers focus not only on the physical aspect of yoga in their teachings but also the mental and spiritual aspects, she said.
“It’s about slowing down; not thinking about everything going on; and taking care of your mind, body and soul all at one time,” LaBernz said. “It can be very emotional because it can bring up things you stuff down and put away.”
Helping students deal with life challenges is one of the most fulfilling parts of teaching yoga, she said.
“I get to see the progress my students make physically but also how it has changed the way they look at the world,” LaBernz said.
Despite “Girl” being in the name of the studio, LaBernz wants people to know her studio, and yoga practice in general, is not exclusive to women.
“Yoga is for everybody: men, women and even kids,” LaBernz said. “Come here for one hour of your life, and forget about everything else.”
Barefoot Girl Yoga
828 Marina Bay Drive, Clear Lake Shores
281-536-3270
www.barefoot-girl-yoga.weebly.com
Hours: Mon.-Tue. 10-11 a.m., 6:30-7:30 p.m.; Wed.,
Sat.10-11 a.m.;
Thu. 10-11 a.m., 7-8 p.m.;
Fri. 6:30-7:30 p.m.; closed Sun.
