Kelly is a perpetual student of yoga, as well as a certified yoga teacher practicing in Montreal. She completed her training with Wanderlust Yoga, under renowned teachers Terri McCollum, Jill Campbell, Mari-Pier Turgeon, and Patricia Letendre.
Yoga completely transformed Kelly’s relationship with her body and mind, and now she channels this ancient practice to connect with others as they follow their own journey.
Since the very beginning of her life, Kelly was haunted by developmental abnormalities in her right knee. She spent the 18 months of her infancy in a full-leg cast, was in and out of physical therapy for her entire childhood, and underwent two corrective operations in her adolescence.
And still, there was the chronic pain and the reccurring injuries. Worse was the constant fear, the constant feeling of disharmony with her own body.
At 18, she fell in love with yoga after moving to Montreal to study at McGill University. She tried it out hoping to relieve some university-related stress (and maybe the allure of yoga pants had something to do with it as well). She fell in love because of the feeling of bliss she discovered only an invigorating class could provide.
With that love came a brand new awareness of the functional interconnectedness of the body. Her knee was vulnerable, but for the first time she became truly aware that it was connected to the rest of her leg, which was connected to her feet, her hips, and her pelvis, which in turn was the root from which the spine grows, which is the central column that supports the upper body. For the first time ever, she learned to let go of her painful obsession with the problems in her body, and began instead to view it as a dynamic whole, one that could work together and become stronger as a unit. As this shift in perspective took place, she was able to become more mobile and to develop more support for her joints. She was able to move through the world every day with greater strength and stability.
For the first time, she felt she could trust her body. She felt in it. Connected to it. One with it.
That feeling of oneness – union – is the essence of yoga, and in time, and with deep exploration, that feeling led her to discover a sense of union in her mind. Through the practice of mindfulness, she was able to transform how she related to herself, and from there, the world.
Yoga is a vast, transformative practice that encompasses so much more than physical movement, but Kelly believes firmly that the strength of the practice is its ability to meet anyone exactly where they are, regardless of their current physical state, mental state, or even their motivation for beginning. No matter how or why you start, if you can find joy in the practice, you will continue. And if you continue, the practice will transform you.
Kelly’s teaching focuses on finding that joy while connecting you to your body and freeing your mind. She is passionate about the power of yoga to transform lives, strengthen the body, increase mobility, boost mental resilience, and improve our ability to relate to each other from a place of peace over comparison.
No matter how or why you start, if you can find joy in the practice, you will continue. And if you continue, the practice will transform you.
Please get in touch with any questions or to inquire about private lessons, or check out Kelly’s teaching schedule and come practice!
KELLY BENNING YOGA 