For the last several years, Julie Moore has been sharing the power of the breath and the movement. So, during the ongoing pandemic, Moore has been using her characteristic optimism on her social media posts and in her regular yoga classes. Moore, a Registered Yoga Teacher 200, has been teaching yoga classes in her backyard yoga studio, aptly named Moore Yoga, but she also teaches wherever there is a desire to learn, including at Balance Health+Body.
When the pandemic restricted group gatherings, Moore changed her programming to offer it through Zoom. Suddenly, friends from Washington D.C., Tennessee and Colorado were in her virtual classes, along with past clients who had moved away.
“Part of my practice and my work with people is to create space,” she said. “There is a thing between breath and movement.”
Moore believes that people have all of these emotions trapped in their head—the feeling of being overwhelmed, fear, chaos—and all of these wreak havoc on their minds, bodies and health.
“People often say ‘It’s no big deal,’ but keep going over it in their mind,” she said. “We aren’t embodying it and just leaving it…it’s ok to feel scared and overwhelmed as much as other, happier [emotions].”
Her classes are an opportunity for a person to “drop into it and release it,” and then create a space in the body through the movement, and in the mind through the release, which she said gives perspective, and hopefully the person can breathe better after.
“All of that overwhelming feeling can land in our body and when we’re moving, we aren’t letting it stick there—we don’t let it store,” she said. “Don’t hold your breath, don’t tense up…all of this signals the parasympathetic system.”
Prior to the pandemic, Moore had considered adding an online component to her teaching, but had not considered live classes. But now that she has taught virtually, she enjoys the connection, and knows the importance of sharing yoga.
For her, yoga is about the ability to go inward—through breathing, meditation or physical movement—and to connect herself with shape, and come out a more authentic self and better able to take care of others.
Moore is also known to share vulnerable moments on social media that offer insight and reflection on her parenting and relationship styles. The comments on these posts are genuine, and most seem grateful that someone can relate to how they’re feeling.
“I’m just showing up honest, and being authentic makes others want to do the same,” she said.
And through this, Moore has learned how to navigate a world that wasn’t aligning with her, and created one more as she would want it to be.
“It’s not anyone else’s job to do it,” she remarked, adding that it is easy to become distracted and stressed out, especially with the daily uncertainty of the present time.
When she is overwhelmed and stressed, and not showing up for herself, she said she retreats to her yoga practices to gain new thoughts and perspectives.
“It’s important to know what it is you need and lean on those resources—whether it is a person, a therapist, breath, yoga,” she said.
And many use Moore’s yoga teachings, social media posts and informal conversations as what they need to find some type of calm in this overwhelming space in which we are currently living.
“Through all conversations, I want people to know it’s ok to feel overwhelmed now—how can you not—and find what works for you and speak it into existence,” she said.
Moore’s yoga schedule can be found on social media and payment for most of her classes are donation-based in an effort for anyone and everyone to join, regardless of their financial situation.
“Pay what you are called to, and if you don’t have it that day, come anyway and pay it forward somewhere and sometime,” she said.
