Bio

Krista Lee Hanson, a short version

Krista Lee Hanson lives in Seattle, home of the Coast Salish people, with her partner and two children. Krista loves helping things grow: wild yeast into bread, seeds into an accessible garden, audacious ideas into organizing strategy and piles of paper into stories to be shared.

Krista Lee Hanson, a longer yoga storyPhoto of Krista, burgundy shirt, small silver earrings, against a browning concrete wall
I started practicing yoga in college eons ago, but it was the birth of my son thirteen years ago that led me to my deep dive into yoga study.  Yoga has helped me ground, grow, heal and become more flexible mentally and physically, and I feel lucky to be able to share these practices with my students.

I have taught yoga to all ages and abilities, including open level yoga classes, prenatal yoga, private yoga therapy, yoga for children with disabilities, yoga for activists, yoga for beginners, and yoga for athletes.  I know that all people can find joy and peace in our bodies, even if it’s just a tiny bit at a time.  My family is affected by multiple disabilities, so I am especially committed and interested in making my classes accessible to everyone.

My training as a teacher and yoga therapist began in Washington DC with teachers in the Iyengar yoga and the Scaravelli yoga traditions.  More recently I have studied with Jenny Hayo, AnnePhyfe Palmer and Melina Meza through the 8 Limbs Yoga.  I also practice meditation and completed the Mindful Self-Compassion teacher training in 2018.  My best teachers are the people I spend the most time with – my students, my colleagues, my friends and especially my family.  I have had no better mindfulness teacher than my children, who constantly ask me to bring my attention back to the present moment.

When I teach, I weave together the wisdom of all these lineages and people.  My hope is to offer my students space to go inside and deeply connect with them selves.  Despite what our culture teaches us, we all have the right to live fully and comfortably in our bodies, and my teaching aims to help students on their path to that full embodiment.

Krista Lee Hanson, the writer

Krista’s life as a writer began when she got a Cabbage Patch Doll pink square journal in the first grade.  She immediately wrote in crayon MY MOM IS ANNOYING ME and then a list for Santa, and she has been writing into paradox ever since.

And a picture of non-perfection…

And finally, about the pictures on the blog.  I went back and forth about whether or not to include pictures of me “doing yoga,” since I feel so strongly that there is no perfect pose, and that anyone with any kind of body can do yoga.  And yet… in my body I love playing with balance.  I especially love doing headstands.  And especially outdoors.  And if nothing else, yoga should help us discover joy in our bodies.  So I compromised.  Three headstand shots, none of them perfect.