Kelly Stine

Trainer Bio

I graduated from the Pennsylvania State University with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology. While at Penn State, I volunteered as an anatomy teaching assistant. Throughout the academic year, my responsibilities included dissecting, displaying and preserving human cadavers. Through this experience, my intellectual curiosity about the human condition began. It may sound morbid, but as I worked with the bodies of the departed, it was clear that they were just that- bodies. There was no person in there anymore and I often wondered “What is it that makes us more than just a body?”

Outside of the classroom, I competed as an intercollegiate athlete rowing for the Penn State Crew team.  My boat went undefeated during my senior season, winning gold at two national championship regattas. This success came from dedication and hard physical work. I was up at 5am every morning for crew practice. I closed down the gym most nights with a strength training session. My personal value was derived from what my body could achieve on the water and in the weight room. Through strength, I pushed and my body achieved great things; however, it came at a cost. Replenishing and recuperating were 4-letter words. Even though my boat took gold in my final collegiate race, my body informed me that my rowing days were behind me due to a severe back injury suffered in the heat of competition.

After graduating, I continued my athletic interest professionally. I became an American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) certified personal trainer.  Through these certifications, I developed a new interest; how to physically train smarter rather than harder. I trained general clientele as well as populations with chronic disease and resultant physical ailment (e.g., stroke, multiple sclerosis, brain injury).  Through working with these populations, I developed an interest in corrective exercise which I reinforced by attending the District of Columbia Athletic Conference (DCAC) Fitness Convention annually. I established a niche area in functional training as a means of correcting muscular imbalances. However, despite all the knowledge I acquired on how to train a body correctly, my clients were not succeeding. They would get stronger or lose weight or heal from an injury, but no matter what I did, the changes were unsustainable. It was as though they would hit an invisible wall and bounce right back. What was that wall? The answer soon came unexpectedly through my first Baptiste yoga class.

It was a Wednesday and I arrived ten minutes late. I walked into the Baptiste-affiliated Down Dog Yoga studio in the heart of the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington D.C.  I was the only person in the studio lobby at the time. Feeling anxious, I met Lana at the front desk. I remember how kind she was about my tardiness. She soon ushered me into the yoga room. What I walked into was pure chaos. Patty Ivey was teaching, but of course I had no idea who that was at the time. The room was hot and crowded with people. In the middle of the room, I found the one spot that remained and set myself up. Despite the extreme conditions, I remember how arrogant I felt. After all, I had won collegiate rowing championships and had been an athlete my entire life. Compared to that, this was going to be a cake walk. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

In rowing, it is quickly possible to physically numb out through extreme effort. In Patty’s class, I kept waiting for the numbing feeling to happen, however, it never appeared. My body was screaming with sensation. Each pose felt like five minutes when in reality it was a five-count hold. Ten minutes into a 90 minute class I wanted out. If it hadn’t required stepping on top of five people, I would have bolted for the door with or without my mat. I stayed because I couldn’t leave inconspicuously. With envy, I watched people twice my age and twice my size flow with grace and ease while I sucked down wind and tried not to pass out. How was this possible?!

When the class was over, I grabbed my things and all but ran out of the studio, avoiding everyone. I hit the door and was floored by what I experienced. It was as though I had never seen color before – everything was vibrantly alive in high definition.. I could smell the cupcakes they were making at a popular cupcake shop three streets away. I could hear everything – every conversation, every bird chirp, every car going down M street. I spent the next hour like that until my senses slowly returned to normal standard definition. I had no idea what had just happened. Something shifted. I glimpsed what was on the other side and I knew I had to go back for more.

Through this and many classes that followed, Baptiste yoga became the journey home. I quit my job as a certified personal trainer and started teaching at Down Dog Yoga. I discovered the wall by confronting it in myself. My wall was numbness. Through attending program, teaching, and practicing, the Baptiste methodology has empowered me. I now choose to stay and to feel. I stand for others to do the same. I have discovered that my body can be both strong and flexible to be healthy and that recovery is just as important as strength. More importantly, I am discovering what makes us more than just bodies – deep relationship, authentic expression, honest conversation, and true connection. For all that the Baptiste practice has required of me, it has given back ten times more. I’ve been practicing and teaching Baptiste yoga for over ten years now (currently at Evolution Power Yoga) and will continue to do so for the rest of my life.

When I’m not on my mat or teaching, I’m at home with my husband, Jon, and our two children, Austin and Evelyn. In addition to the human family members, our house is home to one dog (Bonnie), two cats (Hudson and Empacher), three tarantulas (Emelda, Azul, and Charlotte), and seven chickens whose names I forget but my daughter Evelyn always remembers. I love reading, watching old movies, walking Bonnie, gardening, vacationing at the beach, camping, sky-gazing, and watching sporting events.