Connections! in SW Florida - Featuring Callie with Honor Yoga

Good morning, Southwest Florida, and good morning to the broader Facebook audience. It is morning, and I can tell I haven't done these early morning ones in a while, Callie, and my eyes haven't woken up yet. So welcome to this edition of Connections in Southwest Florida. My name is Renee Hahn. I set up these connections really as an opportunity during a tough economic and, and really national time with COVID as a way to make sure that all of the wonderful businesses in our area have the opportunity to connect with people because we're not necessarily able to do that in person at all times right now. So Connections in Southwest Florida for me was about connecting local people with local businesses as a way to, to really showcase some of these businesses. So I am thrilled today to have Kali with us from Honor Yoga. And I want to give Kali an opportunity before we jump into the business aspects of Honor Yoga. Kali, tell us a little bit about yourself, please.

So my name is Kalantha McMillan. Um, that's the name that you'll see on a schedule, uh, if you come to one of my classes. I also answer to the name Kali, and I answer to them interchangeably. And I am an instructor at Honor Yoga. And Kelly Kiernan is our fearless leader and owner of Honor Yoga.

And Kelly, I think we were just talking about it. You are one of many that was attracted to Southwest Florida from other parts. You're raining from Minnesota, right?

Yeah, so I'm originally born and raised in small town Minnesota. I am familiar with the area. My grandparents wintered here. My parents still winter here in Bonita Springs. And I've been traveling, relocating for the last 12, 13 years. And when it came time 2 years ago to relocate with my boys and sort of build some roots, here's where I ended up. So I love it here.

Fantastic. I always say, Kelly, that's almost an IQ test, right? Who would know about this area and not want to move to paradise, right? Exactly. Well, we're thrilled to have you here.

I can't argue with that. No.

Well, Kelly, tell us, give us an overview of Honor Yoga. You know, most people know what yoga is, but even a refresher on you know, some of the principles would be good. But let's start with, tell us a little bit about Honor Yoga.

So Honor Yoga is a franchise, and franchising yoga studios is a newer concept. Franchises aren't, but franchising yoga in particular is a little newer. And so it is a franchise. And so we are a franchise that I would say I would say dials into the beginner yoga. We definitely offer a variety of classes, but we as a franchise dial into what we call our Roots class and our Slow Flow classes. And so that builds an individual's practice. They don't have to be fearful of walking in the doors and getting started on their mats.

That's wonderful to my ears because I can only speak for myself as someone who is— I'm 49 years old. I'm not quite as stiff as a board, but probably close. It can be really intimidating to think about going into a yoga studio where people can put their legs behind their head and everything. So, I think that's a great um, you know, a great bit of information.

Yeah, these Roots classes and Slow Flow classes that we offer, um, they take the class at a very slow pace— not boring, but slow pace— where you are able to really build the pose from the ground up and really dial into that mind-body connection. Um, and we offer other classes, obviously, um, Power Flows that move at a little faster pace. But we definitely open up the doors for those individuals. And even sometimes for me, having done this for years, it's nice to slow the practice down and dial back a little bit and really dial into those poses, getting into them in a slower, you know, connection.

Now that's fantastic. And I remember talking to Kelly when she was starting Honor Yoga here in Naples. That she was inspired as a student of yoga and how it affected her.

And that was one of the inspirations for and connections with Honor Yoga for Kelly. She's a registered dietitian. And so she often told her clients that yoga was a great option for them for getting movement into their bodies. And she tells the story how a neighbor finally got her to go. She's got some back issues and surgeries that she's had in her past. And even though she told her clients, she wasn't necessarily doing the practice what you preach. And walking in the doors felt such a difference in her body. And, you know, had that fearfulness walking in for the first time with her neighbor. But, you know, at the end of the practice, it was, if I can do this, even with my back surgeries and the different things that I've gone through in my life, anybody can do this. And wanted those doors to be open for everybody.

Yeah, Kelly, that's a great point. One of the things, if you don't mind my asking, you know, everybody kind of picks their— assuming people have some resemblance of exercise in their life, they tend to migrate to different things for different reasons, right? High impact, people probably think they're burning lots. They feel like they're, you know, on fire when they come. Yoga tends to be more stereotypical stretch and relax. But let me ask you, With all of the options out there, what do you think, what purpose, if somebody is trying to figure out a regime for themselves, how would yoga fit into that? So what do you think its benefits are?

So this is a fantastic question and one that I'm incredibly passionate about. I've been in the industry for well over a decade. So I've done your variety of long runs and weightlifting. And though I don't necessarily fully let go of all of those parts of me. I still am very passionate about just moving the body in many ways. Um, having yoga and slowing down and having that mindful breathwork, which we refer to as pranayama, um, and getting into lengthening the muscles, um, in addition to those other activities that you do, at least 3, 4 times a week. If you're, you know, yes, everybody does a nice little stretch after their run, but it's very different, the poses and lengthening of the muscles that you do when you show up to a class, even if it's just a gentle class or a Roots class or any of the ones that we offer. So yeah, it, as far as like weightlifting or running, Your range of motion will change drastically by having an active yoga practice in addition to the other things that you do.

Very helpful. And I am by far an expert, but I understand not only does it help with the muscle stretching, but I've heard it has a benefit to bone structure and stuff too with circulation and things.

Oh, circulation and bone structure is huge. Um, and again, those tendons and fascia and those things that start to, um, tighten and get restricted, not only if you're an avid runner or lifter, but just in the everyday things that we do by sitting at a desk or driving in a car. So it isn't always about the extra activity that you do, it's just the daily things that we do to our bodies. By again, taking the time to slow the breath down and let your body set in a lengthening position and getting that connection so that your mind can connect with your body. It's great for everyday living and sleeping.

Well, and I even have the mental part you sort of allude to with the sleeping and stuff. I have friends that got into yoga that either had anxiety or stress issues. And they said that's like the medicine for their soul.

Oh, and it is. It's amazing. I talk to people day in and day out all the time that, you know, hesitant or just didn't get started or it took them so long. They, you know, they kept hearing about it and finally walking in and, and telling about how it's just changed their everyday life and the way that they rest.

Yeah, no, I've heard the same. So Kali, obviously with yoga being, at least the model for Honor Yoga being in-person classes, I imagine COVID's had a little bit of an impact on that. Can you tell us about the status of the, the, the businesses? Are they, are they open for classes? Any plans you can share?

Yeah. So we aren't open for classes per the governor and the CDC. It's just not the safest choice right now, right? But the best thing, or the greatest thing about the franchise here is that we have teamed up with all the other Honor Yoga studios and we have been able to offer online classes. So not only the instructors that the people here in Southwest Florida are familiar with, myself being honored to be able to teach some of those classes online. But we are having other teachers so that their people, our members, are being able to show up and, and get to experience teachers from New Jersey and Connecticut and, you know, different locations.

So that's great. Well, they say variety is the spice of life, right? Yeah. Yeah, that's fantastic. So those that have already joined didn't necessarily— although the setting that they did their yoga in may have changed, they've been able to continue to work out with Honor Yoga during this time of COVID challenge, it sounds like.

And that's, that's the great thing about yoga. It's the length of a mat. That's the space that you need. So you know, move a chair and roll out your mat, and that's all the space that you need to, to get your practice going.

Good. So let's talk for a moment. How many classes are you guys offering in a given day?

So in the beginning, when we were, um, when this first started, there were lots of classes. Right now, um, I believe it's anywhere from 6 to 10 classes a day, depending on the day, weekend, different things and the variety of classes. So anywhere from your gentle or roots class all the way up to, you know, that power flow or core conditioning class.

Fantastic. And when, Kelly, when things eventually get to open back up— I can't, I still can't believe that they have— I can get my hair done now, but I can't stretch my body. But that's okay. Um, once that opens up in the normal operating, you know, structure that Honor Yoga would have under normal circumstances, how many classes are usually in a given day?

Yeah, 6. Again, you know, it's that range of 6 to 10 classes. You know, in season we obviously offer some more classes due to the increase of people in the area. And what the variety of classes, again, which I haven't touched on yet, yoga barre and yoga aerial Yoga— sorry, yoga barre and aerial yoga are all also two different classes that we offer with Honor Yoga. And it's a great just sort of get out of your normal everyday routine and challenge yourself a little bit.

So wonderful. So I imagine people buy a membership, there's a monthly fee with that, and then they just sign up for classes that they're interested in and, and until that availability is full.

Yeah, we work or are in the Mindbody app, and it's really easy to sign up for classes. You go on, you book your class, we send you a link to view and practice through Zoom. We're all familiar with Zoom by this point, right? So our classes go through our Zoom app. And yeah, anywhere, anytime.

Yep. And Kelly, if somebody was interested, there's obviously a membership that they can do, but do you have trials that they could come in and they're not sure it's for them?

Yep. This is the most exciting thing. So Kelly is offering right now 30 days, um, for $30. So you can hop on the honoryoga.com/naples website, um, for any new members. You can sign up for $30 and you have full access to all these different classes for 30 days. Um, and we are going to be continuing online classes, so just as people may be hesitant to, even if the, you know, we start to be able to offer classes next week, we are not going to stop the online classes. So if by any, you know, if for any reason you, um, are hesitant to—

I'm sorry, Kelly, I don't know if you knew, for some reason things, things, um, froze up for a moment. Okay, so, um, if you don't mind repeating that. No, I'm so sorry.

No, not at all, not at all. So I was just explaining that we have a great offer, $30 for 30 days. Um, hop on to the honoryoga.com/naples website. And, um, what I was saying is that even if we open up tomorrow, even if they say that we can start offering classes and we open our doors tomorrow, we aren't going to stop um, offering online classes. So if you are new to the practice or have been wanting to get started with a practice, now is a great time to do that in the comfort of your own home, and you're going to be supported moving forward. And once you're comfortable, you know, walking through those doors, we will be there as soon as we are able to because we're all itching to get back to teaching. I know myself and many teachers are missing you know, having that connection with our members. But we are grateful for these online classes that we're getting to offer to people right now.

Great. And for a yoga novice like myself, if I wanted to get into yoga and I was interested in Honor, do, do people bring their own mats? What are some of the things they need to be able to get started? Or do you guys provide that? Tell us a little bit about that.

So when you walk through the doors, I'm going to say that we're not going to be able to offer you a mat right away. Typically, you know, before all of this took place, we have had mats, especially for first-time people that walk through the doors. It's a complimentary use of our mats. Otherwise, we have mat rental. Again, I'm going to be hesitant to highlight that because we don't know what that'll look like moving forward. We also have lots of props for people to use. And again, what will that look like moving forward? I'm not sure. But within the comfort of your own home, as an instructor, we give you options and things to reach for that can help as in place of those props if you don't have them. So maybe you just have a yoga mat because you purchased it you know, at one point because you were going to get going, you know, with your practice and it's been sitting in your closet, go grab that mat. That's all you need. Yeah, you're not the only one, I can guarantee it. Go grab that mat. You can get started because when it comes to props, especially being in our homes, we as instructors offer different things—pillows, books for blocks. Move your mat closer to a wall or closer to a door. So we offer those different variations. Oh, good. That's great.

You guys make it very easy. So, you know what I heard, if you're— if you have already been well into your yoga experience, there's classes that Honor Yoga would offer that meet. You've got a lot of variety of adding yoga with some of the other things like aerial and barre, which is great. And then if you're a beginner and you've been thinking about trying yoga, not only do they have classes that are targeted at people who are newer with what I heard, the SoFlow, but you've also right now got a unique opportunity that you don't even have to have anybody else watching you while you try it. That's right. Sometimes the anxiety, right? Yes. Even though when you're in a class, nobody cares what you're doing. They're there to work their body and their mind.

Exactly. Oh, hey. So that's comforting. It's really funny. We all think that somebody's seeing us. And yeah, when you're in the midst of trying to figure out what's happening within your own body, you're not seeing anybody else.

Or else you're doing it wrong. If you keep watching everybody else, you're missing the purpose, right? Just in case there's one of them talking. Well, good. I wanted to ask you, Kelly, during this, you know, challenging time with COVID and how it's affected people's lives, people's health, people's livelihood, all of those things, you know, anything that you would like to share on behalf of yourself or Anna Yoga for the viewers that are out there in Facebook and LinkedIn and YouTube world?

Well, from my perspective, all I can say is keep moving your bodies. Stay healthy, you know, find that mindful space to connect to your breath. And we cannot wait to be able to open our doors again and get back in full contact with all our members.

I love it. Well, let me take a pause for a moment. I wanna highlight some of the segments we have coming up in the future here. I'm just scrolling over. So again, I mentioned that Connections in Southwest Florida is all about connecting local people with local businesses. And so that's been the boundaries that I have used in partnering with some of these businesses for highlights. I have turned some away, not because they weren't great businesses, but because we want to support local businesses. And so I've got, gosh, today's Wednesday. Tomorrow I have Beth from Life on Your Own Terms. I round out the week on Friday with Chris at Master Touch. We start off next week, I've got Jack Price, and he actually owns two businesses, Price Moving and Vision Homes, but we're going to focus on Vision Home for Monday's segment. On Tuesday, I have Vicki from Naples Home Watch. Wednesday, we've got Mallory coming on from Boring to Bombshell Nails. And then Thursday, I've got Tiffany with Clear the Clutter. So I've still got a spot on Friday. If you happen to be a local business owner or you know someone who would benefit from these, these are free. I don't ask for anything from the businesses other than a half an hour of their time. It's easy to set up. I schedule them. You click on a link. You have to be comfortable in front of a camera. And that's about it. Even if you're not comfortable in front of a camera, I tell people we're just having a conversation. So, you know, I've had a few people get nervous and say, oh, but I haven't colored my hair in a while, or oh my gosh, I'm really nervous. I said, look, I haven't colored my hair either. I'm gonna talk to you. If you've got butterflies in your stomach because you're not used to being on livestream, we'll work through that. So again, anyone who's interested in having a local business highlighted, just connect them to me at renee@yournaplesexpert.com, and I would be delighted. Again, no obligation, no cost. Just a way of giving back to the community. It's awesome. So, Kelly, as we wrap up, um, a couple of things. Number one, I think that on your website, if I'm not mistaken, not only can people get information about membership, but can they also see classes and what's available?

Yeah, so they'll be able to read description of classes, um, if anything that I said wasn't clear. Um, so they'll, they'll have a description of the classes on that link. There's also a contact space if you have any further questions. Please reach out, um, to Kelly or myself. We'll get back to you. Manager Jen, somebody will reach out to you for any questions.

Absolutely fantastic. And I know with Honor Yoga, um, you know, having been relatively newer in Naples Yeah, I know this can be a big hit when you just start getting your momentum and COVID comes and takes your breath away, but I am confident with Kelly's leadership and the talents like you, Kelly, that you guys will make a really good strong start once things are gone. Where, location-wise, where can they find Honor Yoga?

So Honor Yoga Naples, which is at Logan's Landing, the new strip center there at Logan's Landing, right next to Sunflower Market. And then there is another location in Lely that is currently open.

Fantastic. Well, two locations hitting both ends of Naples. If you're on the north end of Naples, it's in a new plaza, and you could even time it as such. There's some great restaurants nearby. You've got grocery store right around the corner. So line all your things up and then you only have to go out once again, once the studio opens back up for in-person classes. Yes. And then for those of you that are on the south end of Naples, you've got the Lely location, which is conveniently located where Collier and 41 intersect in that area. Um, so with that, anything else, Kelly, that you'd like to share before we wrap up? Otherwise, um, we'll, uh, we'll tie up here.

As I said, I'll meet you on the mat. Go ahead, pop on the website, take a look. Hope to see you all in classes soon.

Fantastic. Well, Kelly, thank you so much for coming on and introducing our audience to Honor Yoga and, uh, for sharing your talents with the world, um, so that those of us who don't know what we're doing in that space can do it in a healthy, safe environment So thank you very much, and please pass on our thank you to Kelly as well. I will.

Thank you so much. We appreciate this. This is a fantastic outlet for people. It's just really great what you're doing.

Fantastic. Well, thank you, Kelly. For those of you online, we'll be wrapping up. I so appreciate you tuning in to Connections in Southwest Florida. And again, honor yoga. It makes a good— by the way, if not for yourself and you've got a loved one, It would also make a great gift. Yeah. Just past Mother's Day, we have Father's Day coming up. And despite the fact that the higher percentage of yoga exercisers may be female, I'm telling you, men out there do it too. And it provides the same health and wellness benefits. Most definitely. And mental benefits. Absolutely, it does. Yeah. So don't be afraid to go out there and do it again. You can purchase it as a gift or sign up for yourself. And thank you, Kelly with Honor Yoga. Everyone have a great rest of the week.

You too. Thank you so much. Have a good afternoon.