Syena has been a Fitness Instructor since 1971. She’s taught many types fitness classes including Step Aerobics, Resist-a-ball, Dance Aerobics, Slide Aerobics, Core Sculpting, Pilates, and Yoga, to name a few. Working as a personal trainer she understands how difficult it is for many to become balanced in their approach to fitness and wellness. Our Western culture obsesses about the physical body, ignoring our amazing body-mind connection. Syena’s personal weight loss experience in her twenties validated her understanding about obsession with the physical body’s attractiveness; totally ignoring the impact that our body-mind has on our health, well being, and weight issues. Any obsessing takes us ‘out of balance’ and when we’re not balanced we struggle with our weight more, self image, happiness, etc. Not everyone wants or even should exercise as if they were training for the Olympics, working out too hard can actually create more stress. Certain body types can handle harder work outs, and a bit more stress. What may be healthy for one, is not the best approach for another. We are all different, from our blood type, to body type, and of course our personal preferences, especially when it comes to daily exercise. Some like to work out as if they are in boot camp! Others may prefer, yoga, tai chi, tennis, dance, biking or swimming! Listening to our body is key to our success when we do find a class or a sport that we enjoy doing! The important thing is that we like it enough to do it over and over again so we can get all the many benefits!
Our soul craves meaning, playfulness, a juicy life, things that make our hearts sing.
This understanding inspired MoTiYoGaChi’s birth.
- 2010, Access Bars Facilitator
- 2002, YogaFit Training Level 1.
- 1998, AFAA (Aerobics Fitness Association of America) Personal Trainer.
- 1995, Third Degree Reiki Master.
- 1994, Exersafety Personal Trainer and Slide Instructor.
- 1985, Group Fitness Instructor with AFAA
More…..
Syena witnessed many struggling with stress, dehydration, poor eating habits, exhaustion, lethargy, and belief systems in which the only solution was to work out, ‘harder and longer’ to loose weight. When Syena’s weight was at an all time high, and struggling to reduce her size from a 14 pant size… back to her comfy size 7… she knew this ‘harder, longer’ approach was not working.
In Syena’s words….
I’d been miserable at 147 lbs and was beginning to realize how obsessed I’d become with getting back to my comfortable goal weight of 125 lbs. At this time I was teaching about 12 classes each week, so I knew I was getting plenty of exercise. My diet was healthy and balanced. So, I asked myself some serious questions like… What if I never got back to my desired weight? Am I willing to focus so much attention to NOT being at 125 lbs for the rest of my life? All the hours I’d spent thinking about what I could eat, what I should not eat, how can I knock off more calories and still have enough energy to teach 12 classes?
I knew I was eating good food, and not too much. I wasn’t eating from emotions… which I’d done before. The only thing I did realize is how obsessed I’d become with ‘not’ being able to get to my goal weight for well over a year. I realised how, out of balance my obsessing about my weight had become. I didn’t really like weighing 147 lbs and being a size 13, so I decided I’d fill my days with important (to me) family goals, family fun, and some interesting hobbies when I wasn’t teaching class. Another words, begin to love my life and ‘live it’, no matter what my pants size! I committed to NOT giving any more energy to my ridiculous obsession with weight. I even threw my scale behind the dryer, so I wouldn’t be tempted to weigh or even think about my weight if I looked at that scale! This made sense to me… and worrying about my weight had become futile and exhausting. So, I set new intentions for my day to day life like; to envision my new garden, to plan summer’s activities with my daughter, and a focus on family fun. We adopted a sweet golden lab puppy from our local pound. I began to really enjoy my life. I took time to decide what was really important to me. Setting pesonal priorities which for me was the importance of family, over self absorption. This actually felt really good. I ordered some fruit trees to set out in our yard, and spent time envisioning my future passive solar home, greenhouse and garden to be. When any thoughts of weight or diet came to the forefront of my thought I’d say the word ‘cancel’ to myself and put a new thought into my thinking. Sometimes by just asking a question to myself, such as ” What exactly do I want to create in my future? and What do I want my home to feel like inside, outside?” This seemed to stimulate images and feelings as my creativity stirred. The amazing thing was… after about 6 weeks I noticed how ‘loose’ my jeans fit. Then I realized they’d come out of dryer this way. Wow! I hadn’t worn them and stretched them out yet! Hum, I thought. That’s strange. Maybe they were my husbands 501 jean, then I looked down, nope, they were mine. I tugged at the scale behind the dryer until it was free, stepped on it. Wow, I weighed 126 lbs. I was in a mild state of shock. I kept going over and over in my mind, how this could be. The only thing I’d really changed was my focus, releasing my obsessing… So I guess that was enough stress reduction to balance my hormonal reactions, (my chemical soup) and bring my metabolism back to a normal state. My ‘challenge to loose weight story’ demonstrates perfectly our mind-body connection and how linked our physical body is with our mental and emotional states. I was very excited to understand this, and to have this experience to share with others, so that they might be inspired to shift out of their stressful states. This understanding gave me a new approach to fitness and also was a huge factor in the inspiration behind MoTiYoGaChi’s birth. This is why the element of stress reducing movements and breath is so important in Moti! Back to MoTiYoGaChi…
Syena wanted to teach a class where participants felt more energized when they left class, yet very calm and completely de-stressed. Syena created and combined rhythmic’Tribal’ movements and added fluid synchronistic movements similar to Tai Chi and Yoga. This unique blend combines to energize every cell in the body and calm our busy brains every time, whether we are 8 years old or 80, out of shape or fit as a fiddle! MoTiYoGaChi is more than a physical exercise program. The movements are put together in such a way to dissolve blocked energy, and inspire a stress reducing, ‘peace of mind’ that carries one into a deeper state of relaxation at the end of class. This new ‘peace of mind’ may be one’s personal reward right after doing this movement class, but also one may even notice a calmer mind extending well beyond into the next day or two after doing MoTiYoGaChi… How much better can it get than this?
Syena is also a Certified Reiki Master Teacher, Access Bars facilitator and believes proper body movement allows our energies to flow, supplying energy to our organs, our cellular tissue, which is one of the keys to living a long and healthy life. Eastern Cultures actually have words in their language to describe this energy available to us. In China it’s Chi, in Japan it’s Ki, in India it’s Prana, and in Hawaii it’s Mana etc…
Certifications:
- 2010, Access Bars Facilitator
- 2002, YogaFit Training Level 1.
- 1998, AFAA (Aerobics Fitness Association of America) Personal Trainer.
- 1995, Third Degree Reiki Master.
- 1994, Exersafety Personal Trainer and Slide Instructor.
- 1985, Group Fitness Instructor with AFAA
