Our Team
Erika Smith Iluszko Studio Owner | Meridian Yoga Practitioner
My love for movement and spirituality was evident from an early age. I started Dance, Karate, and learning about Eastern Medicine in my childhood. After devoting and following the eight limbs of yoga for about 2 decades, I decided to do the 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training in Madras, India. Since then, I have attended numerous trainings and workshops which had a huge impact on the way I teach.
My teaching style is a unique blend of all the knowledge I’ve gathered, compassion, and playfulness. My classes are inclusive, catering to practitioners of all levels, from beginners to seasoned yogis. With a focus on alignment and breath, I try to guide my students to deepen their practice, cultivate self-awareness, and develop a profound sense of mindfulness. I see nothing external to my yoga practice as I find everything in life is deeply connected and that ultimately no teacher is greater than the one within.
Lisa Waygand Yoga Teacher
My Yoga Journey started about 8 years ago by randomly trying out different classes at a gym. I always thought Yoga wasn‘t for me but there I was, finding the peace of mind I desperately needed.
What you need in life, will always find you, if you let it happen.
After years of practicing and joining retreats, I wanted to learn more about Yoga and its‘ philosophy, getting a better understanding of what I was actually doing, which led me to finish my first Hatha Yoga teacher training in 2022.
I didn’t feel ready to teach until I recently completed another 100-hour Meridian teacher training here at Manas with Erika.
Yoga had such a positive impact on my life and I simply wanted to give something back.
It taught me, that whatever happens in the outside world, I can always come back to myself.
Jovita Susanna Horn Iyengar Yoga Teacher
One of my favorite sayings is: “With deep gratitude I say YES to life – let’s go”.
I worked for many years domestically, and internationally for companies in project management. The last 5 years I worked in the health care industry. After that I changed my direction semi-spontaneously 😊 and have been teaching yoga for several years now in group, private classes and on retreats and am a certified Iyengar Yoga teacher. I am a Shiatsu therapist and offer coaching for personal development.
Nico Horn Yoga Teacher
One of my favorite sayings is, “Together we can do it.”
I have worked in medical equipment sales for 14 years. I came to yoga through my wife, who is a yoga teacher herself. For me, yoga has become a permanent part of my life, as it both constantly challenges me and gives me strength for my everyday life. It is a unique way for me to relax my mind and improve my body and my health.
Annemarie Lombard Puntschart Yoga Teacher
AKA Annemarie VENUSfrequency is an Austro-American, Yoga and Meditation Instructor, Reiki Master, Holistic Body Wisdom Guide, Public Speaker, Photo Storyteller, Radio producer and DJane; in short, Soul Artist and Modern Medicine Woman.
I started practicing yoga in the Jivamukti tradition more than 20 years ago in New York’s East Village. In 2003, a severe skydiving accident dramatically, yet mindfully and gently redefined her connection to body, mind, soul, PRANA (LifeEnergy), her yoga path; and community.
Kieana Shirzadeh Yoga Teacher
My mom signed me up for my first ballet class before I turned 3 years old and took me to my first yoga class as a teenager. But it wasn’t until I moved to Vienna about 10 years ago, that “things got serious”. I did my first training in 2015 and started teaching full-time shortly after. With the years, some more teacher trainings all over the world, as well as a lot of dedication, my practice as well as my teaching style have changed and evolved a lot.
Yvonne Oswald Yoga Teacher
My yoga journey began 8 years ago, looking for a solution for my back pain. Pretty soon I noticed the positive effect a regular practice had on my body and mind, making yoga a big part of my everyday life. Yoga challenges me and at the same time it is my haven of peace.
Through my yoga teacher training, I was able to improve my own practice and discovered my passion for teaching. I work a lot with yoga beginners and love to accompany them on their own yoga journey.
Daniel Plötzl Ashtanga Yoga Teacher
In 2016, I had an accident with my bicycle after which I needed to use crutches for around one month in order to be able to walk. After my recovery, my mobility was still not 100% the same again as it was before the accident. Many muscles degenerated while I was walking on crutches and the tissue of the area where I had injuries had hardened. Moreover, in general, I noticed that my body was quite stiff due to lack of movement and sitting on chairs many hours per day because of my desk job.
Marie-Louise Lobmeyr Yoga teacher
As a yoga teacher, Marie-Louise aims to cultivate your connection to yourself on three levels: body, mind, and soul. In her Vinyasa Flow classes, you will engage in various aspects of yoga such as pranayama, meditation, and mantra chanting, alongside movement through asanas. Marie-Louise is deeply fascinated by the timeless wisdom of yogic philosophy, which has remained accurate and relevant throughout history, persisting into the current timeline.
Sabrina Künig Creative Movement and Yoga Teacher
Sabrina is a pianist, music and movement educator and Yoga teacher. She joined her first Yoga class in her tiny home village when she was 10 and since then never stopped exploring all the different aspects of the teachings of Yoga and tries to incorporate them in her own classes. Teaching Yoga for kids is one of her biggest joys as this was how she found Yoga herself, which helped her through not always easy years as a teenager and still accompanies her life.
Iman Said Yoga Teacher
For Iman, movement is synonymous with life, and she embodies this philosophy as a long-distance runner and avid sports enthusiast. Her belief extends beyond the physical; it’s a core principle that permeates every aspect of her being. Yoga, to Iman, is not merely a set of postures but a profound way of living.
She strongly believes that yoga is not about how it looks but how it feels, inviting each one to explore the depths of their own experiences on the mat.
Sandra Walkenhofer Yoga Teacher
After exploring various styles of yoga, I found my home in Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga back in 2013, and it has remained a steadfast part of my life ever since. While I initially embarked on my yoga journey for its physical benefits, I soon discovered its profound depth beyond the postures alone.
Yoga extends far beyond the mat, encompassing virtues such as patience, mindfulness, consistency, and discipline. It’s about pushing boundaries, embracing challenges, and occasionally stepping back to let go of the ego. The practice continually shifts our perspectives, both physically and mentally.
Daniela Haas Kids Yoga and Yoga Teacher
It is my heart’s desire and gives me great pleasure to explore the world of yoga with children in a playful way, through a combination of fun, movement and relaxation. I have been practicing yoga enthusiastically for over 15 years, and so yoga has become a fixed part of my life. For me, yoga is an attitude towards life, a path.
Jasmin Khafagi Yoga Teacher
My Yoga journey started on a retreat in Nepal. After this wonderful introduction into the world of Yoga and meditation my whole life turned around and I had no other choice but to commit myself fully to the practice and the teachings of Yoga. These teachings have helped me through various stages of life and gave me the stability I was always craving for.
What I love about Yoga is that it teaches us to walk through life with mindfulness and compassion. Through the asana and meditation practice we can discover how emotions and sensations arise and fade.
Mimi Grünwald Yoga Teacher
Dancing led me to yoga 25 years ago and I am learning everyday since. It has given me the tools to endure, focus, integrate, heal and so much more.
I am trained in Hatha, Vinyasa, Yin and Aerial Yoga and love to use the magic of breath and the frequency of music to get into the flow. Yoga can be a holistic healing system if you‘re ready to dive deep. It‘s not only light but also integrating the shadow aspects and embracing ALL aspects of self.
Stella Trokhymets Yoga Teacher
I used to say: “Everything comes in time”. It was a transformational period in my life when I understood I must change the way of my mind and my life path. Yoga has come gently, and I know it will stay forever.
Through yoga we remember about the connection with our feelings, thoughts and inner obstacles by practicing different types of breathing and asanas.
Yordanka Naydenova Yoga Teacher
My name is Yordanka, and I am 33 years old, originally from Bulgaria. Yoga with its various aspects has been accompanying me through my life since I was 15 (on and off.) I started learning meditation to improve my concentration and ability to sit still, which I needed as an active chess competitor back then. What I initially started as a tool to optimize my performance turned out to be something to protect my mental health and help me deal with anxiety and depressive episodes.
Vasiliki Karydopoulou Rocket Vinyasa Yoga Teacher
My yoga journey began 10 years ago. When I was facing some physical problems. Then I said ”I’d give it a shot and try visiting a yoga class”.
That was it!!! When I got home my partner noticed that something had changed…and so did I! Since then not a day has passed that I am not in touch with yoga, with life itself. The path was paved!
So after the birth of my first daughter I decided to do the first yoga teacher training in traditional Hatha yoga and from there to continue my personal practice with Ashtanga. Rocket yoga came my way after 2 years where I did my first teacher training.
Marlene Zoebl Yoga Teacher
The beauty and pleasure of movement has been a big part of my life since I started dancing as a young child. After dancing ballet and jazz until 19 I lost my movement practice for a while but found myself back again within my body through the beginning of my Yoga Journey which opened up a whole new world of body and soul awareness.
Already during my first Yoga Teacher Training I started to share what I love, mindful moving that brings one in deeper connection to ones body and self. With big enthusiasm I assisted several Teacher Trainings as nothing brought me more joy as witnessing people on that same journey. During my time in Bali I found my passion for dancing again and got inspired by new ways and perspectives of conscious movement.
Volker Lobmayr Yoga Teacher
Yoga entered my life in 2005 upon the recommendation of a friend who noticed that I was struggling with anxiety and pain in my chest. I started attending a weekly Yoga class and soon my body began to loosen up and become more flexible, I learned to breathe openly and my chest pain subsided.
This sparked my curiosity about what would be possible if I trained my body and mind on a more regular basis. After a 5 week-long Yoga training in Thailand with 4 hours of Yoga practice and 2 hours of yoga philosophy a day while sticking to a vegetarian diet and refraining from coffee, alcohol, and nicotine I felt physically and mentally better than ever before.
Alicja Zobniow Yoga Teacher
I had been looking for a sport that captivated me for years and had already tried a few things until my father enthusiastically took me to an Ashtanga yoga class 8 years ago, and I can still remember the incredible moment of success when I managed to do a headstand on the wall. In the beginning, like many beginners (but also advanced practitioners), I practiced yoga with a lot of zeal, ambition and pressure so that I could experience these moments of success again and again. I became addicted to pushing myself to my own limits and trying out new styles again and again! For this reason, I traveled to Rishikesh, India in 2018 for the Yoga Teacher Training to get better and fully focus on it, but also a bit of an escape from my poor mental state at the time.
Darya Kondrateva Yoga Teacher
For me, Yoga is an awakening through the discipline of body and mind. The senses become clearer and more vivid, and once can see the connection between everything: you and me, and others, the outer world and the inner, your body and your spirit.
It reminds me of the Russian doll, Matreshka, where one doll is inside another, and they can be unvieled one after another, endlessly. It’s the same with Yoga. You can start with the first layer – physical body- and gain access to an incredible amount of knowledge within.
My class is an intense flow, suitable for all levels of practitioners, combined with breathwork, meditation and relaxation at the end.
Sabine Wagner Yoga Teacher
Raised close to nature and with an affinity for movement, I did orienteering and ju jutsu for years before I stepped on a yoga mat for the first time during an internship in India in 2011. There, my yoga journey started with the Sivananda sequence. In the following years, I kept practicing and tried various styles from Ashtanga to Yin, eventually completing my first teacher training in 2020. I have been offering classes ever since. At the same time, I have always remained a student and keep learning more – in yoga classes, trainings, and from participants of my classes.
Blanka Moryc Yoga Teacher
“Everything is born of vibration (motion) and it always flows. Nothing is constant.” That’s what she loves about dancing and Yoga practice. As a teacher and performer she is the most fascinated by sharing group flow and bright energy that is able to softly raise up your whole being. Every style of yoga is in her heart, currently ashtanga is the winner in her own practice. Eastern cultures and martial arts are a large portion of her inspiration as well. Her yoga lessons are dedicated to those who want to restore energy through strong, deep and peaceful practice. In her class, you will always learn breathing techniques and rest in a long relaxation.
Lydia Nagel Yoga Teacher
“Practice seriously, but don’t be serious” – this motto, which I adopted from one of my Indian Acharyas (yoga teachers), accompanies me not only in my yoga practice, but also in everyday life. For me, it means practising with dedication, but still keeping it fun and light. I like to laugh with myself, for example when I lose my balance in a new asana.
My path to yoga began when I realised in my work as a project manager that I didn’t want to sit on an office chair with back pain forever. So I decided to do a Hatha yoga teacher training in Vienna. Three years later, I travelled to India…
Sophie Jasinska Faceyoga Teacher
My biggest fascination was, and still is, how much power each body possesses the ability to change and heal itself. When we allow ourselves to practice from a place of compassion and dedication to our well-being, we unlock superpowers. My relationship with yoga began in India in 2008. My yoga practice has taught and continues to teach me many of the things in my life. Through regular self-study, I have been able to transform depression, anxiety, trauma, karmic burdens and shadows. In 2016, I decided to become a Hatha and Kundalini yoga teacher and was certified in Rishikesh. I find my body to be sacred, a space in which my soul can express itself freely.
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Franz-Josefs-Kai 41/17 | Vienna, Austria, 1010
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