Whitney Maas

Whitney Maas (she/her) discovered yoga in 2007 via a DVD checked out from the library in college. As a Religious Studies & Philosophy major she spent years studying ancient philosophies and religious systems that eventually led her to yoga. In the beginning, it felt intimidating and stressful, but that was due to her own competitive and perfectionist nature. Years spent playing competitive soccer and striving for academic excellence left little room for patience or grace, but then came the practice of yoga, opening her heart to the practices of contentment and acceptance. She eventually discovered the joy and elation of practicing inside a studio and with a community, and she hasn’t looked back since. While asana is still among her favorite ways to practice and meditate, there has been nothing more life-changing than the mental and emotional practices of yoga for her over the years.   

Whitney transitioned from the world of library management to health and wellness rather abruptly in 2013 and became a full-time Personal Trainer with specializations ranging from corrective exercise recovery and MMA conditioning. After finding the groove of that new direction she knew it was time to find a 200-hour teacher training program. Trying out studio after studio, looking for just the right one, and much like Goldilocks, The River spoke to her after class #1. Since that moment she began an unexpected journey, year after year making the life of yoga and studio management her prime career. An E-RYT 500, Yin, Deep Stretch, Align & Burn, Barre certified instructor teaching everywhere from in a hot studio to 3,000 people at Yoga on the Rocks. 

Whitney’s approach to teaching yoga very much matches her approach to life; if the practice of yoga cannot bring us joy then what are we doing? Her classes are uplifting, loud, and musically driven to unite us all in a shared rhythm, strengthening, patience-testing, Vinyasa emphasis always including 4-5 breath-to-movement flows, and navasana (boat pose) ALWAYS! You’ll walk away feeling supported, and challenged, with some kernel of wisdom to contemplate and a sneaky soreness the next day. Always ask her to share her playlist with you too! 

Outside of the studio, you can find Whitney living in Las Vegas, NV soaking up the desert sun and exploring the surrounding areas from Death Valley National Park to the beaches of California with her hubs Kevin and 2 pups Kira and Hugo. When not road-tripping or wandering you can generally count on her to nerd out with you on all things books, covering everything from comics to smut, horror movies, and music, creating with her Cricut, and throwing down on some Settlers of Catan.