Held on February 7, 2017 at YAS Fitness Center, the first Tuesdaynights event of the year featured one of the biggest names in the yoga industry – Kimberly Fowler, Founder of YAS and “Godmother of the Hybrid Movement.” Sponsored by Renew Juicery, Vibetrek, and Green Bunnies Kitchen, and highlighting the nonprofit organization Cancer Support Community, the fireside chat and networking sessions made an inspiring evening of health and wellness.
Photo Credit: Lindy Huang Werges
Though YAS Fitness Center has now expanded to five locations, with thousands of loyal members and new ones joining every day, the journey of Kimberly has not been an easy one. During the fireside chat, Kimberly shrared that while she was in law school, she was diagnosed with brain cancer and was told she had six months to live. Refusing to succumb to illness, she fought on, sought solace in yoga, and was able to make a miraculous recovery to everyone’s surprise. But that’s not all – at age 40, Kimberly got into a terrible climbing accident that took her a full year to recover, and that left her feeling lost and unmotivated to go back to law. It was then that she decided to create a business around what she is truly passionate about – yoga.
Photo Credit: Lindy Huang Werges
By combining yoga and spinning to form “Yoga for Athletes,” unheard of at the time, Kimberly was disrupting the yoga industry and was ridiculed by yoga purists for mixing hard-charging cardio with yoga. However, none of these obstacles stopped her; instead of allowing the criticism to take the best of her, she saw herself as an innovator, a pioneer in the fitness movement. Now, not only is she a master yoga instructor, but also a dedicated philanthropist, speaker, and published author. She said, “I want to empower my students to become their own teachers. I hope they leave my class feeling good about themselves and what they are capable of doing.”
When asked what advice she would give to women who might want to start their own business, Kimberly said, “Just do it. Jump and figure it out on the way down.” This is what she did, and with hard work, dedication, and unwavering belief in herself, she has become one of the most well-known names in the yoga industry. She reminded us, “I’m not your guru, YOU are.”
Green Bunnies Kitchen
A certified organic kitchen that takes great care to deliver healthy, delicious meals to your house, Green Bunnies Kitchen uses only USDA-certified organic ingredients sourced from local family farms and ranches, featuring grass-fed beef, free-range chicken, and pesticide-free, non-GMO produce. Its Founder and Chef Makani created Green Bunnies Kitchen out of her passion for clean eating and providing meals with integrity, and the belief that eating well should be easy. Inspired by the teachings of her father and growing up in Hawaii, the philosophy of her kitchen follows the Hawaiian mantra “Living Pono,” which means “to do things the right way.” Her dishes include Mary’s Chicken Scarpiello, Turkey Meatballs with Roasted Spaghetti Squash, and Mary’s Oaxacan Chicken Mole, all prepared fresh daily.
Photo Credit: Lindy Huang Werges
Photo Credit: Lindy Huang Werges
Cancer Support Community
The nonprofit organization featured at this Tuesdaynights event was Cancer Support Community, a wellness community that provides psychosocial support to not only cancer patients, but also to family, friends, and caregivers. As the world’s largest professionally led nonprofit network of cancer support, the community strives to ensure that all people impacted by cancer are empowered by knowledge, strengthened by action, and sustained by community, “So that no one faces cancer alone.”
Photo Credit: Lindy Huang Werges
Photo Credit: Lindy Huang Werges