Dana Smith

Dana A. Smith, E-RYT 500, CLC, founder and owner of Spiritual Essence Yoga and the creative visionary behind the international YES! Yoga Has Curves movement, is an active member of the Black Yoga Teacher’s Alliance. She is a wife, mother, certified yoga instructor, author, yoga teacher trainer, master life coach, and holistic health practitioner. For nearly 20 years, she has been a pioneer for inclusive yoga in the West with a simple, yet profound, message: Yoga is for EVERYbody! As the creator of Jiivana (L. I. F. E.) Yoga^®, a National Yoga Alliance–approved and registered yoga style, Dana guides students and teachers-in-training in a dynamic experience of yoga as a powerful tool for total life transformation. Even though she has trained nearly 300 yoga teachers since 2008, she considers herself a lifelong student and continues to seek inspiration through workshops and advanced studies. Dana’s style of teaching draws on Ashtanga, Iyengar, and vinyasa roots, ushering practitioners to be inspired, fearless, and empowered every day both on and off the mat. Her work has been featured on NBC4, FOX5, The Examiner, Essence Magazine, WHUR, NPR and Black Enterprise.