Hi everyone! My name is Amanda Kerpius and I'm the new head coach of Yoga and Strength for the #BadassLadyGang! If you've been using our on-demand video library, you may have seen some of my new yoga videos, functional movement videos, and how to foam roll series! 

I can’t believe how many years have passed since I taught my first yoga class in 2012!  Since then, I've taught thousands of students over thousands of hours both in yoga studios and production studios reaching people locally and around the world. So much has gone into where I am today. 

Everyone has a story and an answer to this question: Why did you start running?  In college, I felt like I had to lose weight and look better in my dance uniform.  When I moved to NYC I felt like I had to have a “better body” in my dance classes, performances, and auditions.  So I started running and running and running.  Soon I was completing the entire six-mile loop in Central Park and running up and down the Hudson River path for over an hour.  My sister said, why don’t you sign up for a race?  In the start corral of the women’s NYRR Mini 10K, thousands of women around me started cheering when the announcer asked “who’s running the NYC marathon?”  I boldly said, “I’m going to run the NYC marathon,” to which my sister replied, “but you haven’t even finished this 10K yet?”  Since then, I’ve raced 10 marathons, and eight of them in NYC.  In Chicago, I qualified for Boston and I’m training again for #11–the love affair continues…

No good love affair goes without its ups and downs.  All of this endurance I built over the years has helped me through the trials of adulthood: career changes, college degrees, marriage, divorce, financial debt, pregnancy, and now, motherhood.  Running is my moving meditation and it’s when I feel most alive.  So, when I get injured and I’m forced to stop, it feels like a piece of me has died.  I lean on my yoga and strength practice to help me through both training for a goal and recovering from injury.  I know I’m not alone when it comes to goals, training, recovery, and rehab.  I feel this powerful connection to everyone who runs.  There’s that unique “crazy” in all of us and I believe we are all connected in this web.  Even though I haven’t met you, I have this inner desire to help you be the strongest athlete you can be.   

And, when I say strength, I mean more than just the body’s skeletal muscle.  I’m here to help guide you to your own path and build your own strength and resilience in both body and mind.  In addition to functional movement and yoga posture, we will explore breathing techniques and ways to focus the mind for both relaxation and performance.  One of my favorite meditations to teach is the pre-marathon meditation where we create a personalized mantra for your big day.  

I’ve worked hard to get the education I need to coach you on your path.  I completed over 850 hours of yoga training, studied in a year-long program for functional movement and I'm a licensed massage therapist.  I've also worked in a physical therapy clinic for endurance athletes and was mentored by physical therapists for five years (this is where I met Kelly!).  Today I hope to deliver all this wisdom and education straight to your home.  

No experience or flexibility required--everyone is welcome!  Starting next Monday 2/28 at 6:00 PM EST, I'm delighted to offer weekly live yoga sessions to those participating in a training experience or who are on the BALG training team.  I promise it will be the ultimate in cross-training for running, mobility, and strength as well as help you destress. Here are some supplies to have on hand: two to five-pound hand weights or water bottles, yoga blocks or a chair/books, and a sticky yoga mat.  

Now for the important stuff: WHAT ARE YOU TRAINING FOR?  

I'll go first: BOSTON! This will be my 11th marathon, and it took me 10 years to qualify for it. :) I LOVE running.

See you every Monday for our live Yoga class!