Our Teachers | Pure Yoga Studio

Meet Our Inspiring Yoga Instructors at Pure Yoga Studio

Experience Yoga Excellence with our Expert Teaching Team.

With our passionate, experienced, and dedicated instructors who are committed to your growth, we hope to help you discover the joy of Yoga and self-care.

Irene Bobocel

Something happens when we practice yoga. Whether we are in a room, in a field, on a beach, or on a mountain.... something shakes us and brings us to the understanding that yoga feels like 'home.' As my practice deepened, I became certified in Level 1 and 2 Baptiste Power Yoga and Art of Assisting ( June 2015). I softened the edges with Yin training, Sattva Kids yoga and as many workshops and festivals that I could sink into. I am also AFLCA certified and instruct many forms of fitness. I encourage you to take your practice to another level on and off the mat. Be brave. Be bold. Create Space and see that yoga is already in you.

Christina Mohr

I started yoga back in university after leaving competitive sports. I will never forget my first class and how a posture as simple as child's pose gave me relief from chronic pain I was experiencing. I practiced for many years gaining back mobility and freedom from pain. I decided that I wanted to help others to heal as well and decided to take my 200hr training with YogaWorks. After I started teaching I realized I wanted to take a step further and took my 500hr training in Yoga therapy. Using breath work, Thai massage, Asana, Ayurveda, and meditation to weave an individual practice to wellness. Yoga is just not an hour on the mat everyday, I am here to offer tools to extend your practice to your life.

Krystal Prout

Krystal's journey with yoga began as a physical practice but quickly evolved into something deeper and more meaningful. Drawn to the spiritual aspect and experiencing healing and inner strength, she found her passion in yoga. After two years of practice, encouraged by others, she completed her 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training at Yogalife Studios in April 2018 and began teaching in October of the same year, specializing in Vinyasa flow. As an eternal student of the practice, Krystal remains dedicated to continuous learning as an instructor. Her teaching style is authentic, fun, and nurturing, creating a safe space for students of all levels to explore their body, mind, and spirit.

Alyssa Retzlaff

Alyssa's journey with yoga began as a complement to her technical dance training. After retiring from dance, she found solace and passion in yoga, recognizing it as much more than just postures. Yoga became a way of living and breathing, encompassing calmness, serenity, and fiery passion. Alyssa's love for healing led her to become a Registered Massage Therapist in 2015 and a 200hr Yoga Instructor with Empowered Yoga in December 2016. Her purpose now revolves around self-care and caring for others. She believes in making yoga accessible to everyone through modifications and variations, creating a safe space for all ages and levels to practice, cultivate self-love, and grow. Alyssa's mission is to empower others through self-care and bodywork, providing a platform for healing, growth, and transformation.

Michelle Chen

Throughout 8 years of University, Michelle practiced yoga intermittently as a method to relieve stress. She took a break from yoga when she graduated from Pharmacy school and ultimately had a poor work-life-balance. She returned to yoga in 2013 to change her lifestyle and discovered her love for asana.

Finding a regular yoga practice and integrating her life in the community was the ultimate stepping stone for Michelle to blossom out of her shell. She was not athletic growing up and did not have a dance or gymnastics background. This journey of yoga continued to push her out of her comfort zone and allowed her to follow a path that she didn’t quite envision. Michelle had a love for travel which allowed her to experience the power of being present. In 2015, she followed her heart, left her job and decided to travel the world for six months where she attended the Bali Spirit Yoga Festival and other various yoga retreats. Through this experience of meeting various, amazing world renowned instructors, she discovered that Ashtanga yoga was the practice for her. After her travels she returned back home and practiced Ashtanga 6 days a week as a transition to use her body as a tool to find her way into the present. The use of breath and the alignment of the body helped quiet her mind while returning to a busy lifestyle once again.

In January 2017, she attended TattvaaYoga in India and received her 300 RYT Ashtanga yoga certification. Since her YTT, Michelle has travelled to Bali and India to learn from Mark Robberds and Deepika Mehta. During these yoga intensives, Michelle has adopted many strategies into her own practice and teaching methods. In addition to her regular Ashtanga practice, she supplements her physical practice with calisthenics and bodyweight training, HIIT workouts and running. She enjoys teaching a strong Ashtanga influenced vinyasa flow and consistently motivates her students to challenge themselves to see what the body and mind is capable of doing. She will be attending a month-long Ashtanga Yoga Teachers Immersion with Ty Landrum during the summer of 2024 to broaden and enrich her offerings.

When she is not teaching yoga, she is working full time as a community pharmacist and has a side hustle as a home baker.

Janelle Snow

Janelle Snow (she/her) – RYT-200, 50hr KYT

Finding joy in your body through movement and stillness, is how I describe my relationship with yoga.

I’ve never really enjoyed sports and athletics, but yoga changed that. I found joy in movement and after years of practice, I took my teacher training.

So many of us have such a hard time trying new things – especially when it involves movement – and feeling silly or unsure of what to do can stop us from trying.

When teaching, I try to create that space for you to step out of your comfort zone and embrace falling (safely, of course). Through practice, we build so much more than just muscle memory and strength – we create new pathways in our mind, staying mobile and building longevity. As I always say, practice makes progress, not perfection because the only things that are perfect are puppies!

I describe myself as a macabre bohemian swamp witch, meaning I’m a whimsical romantic who doesn’t take myself too seriously.

Along with teaching, I’m a writer by trade. I love animals, a good cup of coffee and connecting with others. I might be the only yoga teacher who hates the beach and sunshine, but don’t hold that against me.

Certifications:

RYT-200 - 2019 Higher Love Yoga Academy
30 hr Yin - 2021 Jennifer Raye
50 hr Kids' Yoga Teacher Training - 2023 Rainbow Kids Yoga

Currently studying:

300 hours - Yoga Renew
20 hours Mindfulness Certification - Yoga Renew

Brayanna Retzlaff

My yoga journey began like many others. I started attending hot yoga classes about 8 years ago, mainly as a workout. As a previous dancer, I felt as though the poses and alignment were something that came naturally. It wasn’t until I began a dedicated yoga practice that I realized that yoga is so much more than just the postures. I began to understand everything that yoga offered physically, mentally and emotionally. Instead of solely being led by my ego, I lead my yoga practice by listening to what my body needs each day, which varies so much. I have always felt a love of caring for others, leading me to a nursing career. Although I love my job, the long hours and shift work can be extremely mentally and physically draining. I needed something else to keep me grounded, which led me to take my 200 hr yoga teacher training with Empowered Yoga in the fall of 2016. As an instructor, I aim to guide you through a practice that allows you to play on your mat and step to your edge while still listening to your body. I’m grateful for the opportunity to share my love of this practice with the Pure Yoga community!

Roxanne Vanhecke

My whole life I have been into fitness and competitive sports. I am trained in various disciplines and have been teaching for just over 15 years. I am currently teaching cycling classes, barbell classes, core classes, non heated yoga, hot yoga, and yin.

My journey with hot yoga began 8 years ago with a little yoga studio in Fort Saskatchewan that you may have heard of; Pure Yoga Studio and I quickly fell in love.

I used yoga as a way of stretching and disconnecting. I like the way my mind can wander and be at peace all at the same time. I took my 200 hour yoga training in 2022 and the rest is history. In my free time I love to watch my kids play sports, bike, hike, paddle, and travel.

Ian Mactavish

Ian’s yoga journey began back in 2015, shortly after pure yoga started. After getting his butt totally kicked in one of Irene Bobocels hot flow classes, a light bulb went off. Shortly after, he completed his first 200-hour Teacher Training @Yogalife studios in YEG 2016, then continued on to complete a 500 Hour Training in Ecuador @ Durgas Tiger School of Yoga, Tantra & Shamanism 2017 and another 200-hour training @World Peace Yoga School in Rishikesh, India 2018. He’s continued on after doing modules through Empowered Yoga, including yin level 1, applied biomechanics, the art of sequencing, anatomy of flow, trauma-informed yoga, and somatic experiencing level 1. In 2019 he began a two-year program with the contemplative psychotherapist Dr. Miles Neales that features a deep dive into Tibetan Buddhism and modern trauma theory and finishes in 2021. Through his journey, he’s overcome chronic hip pain that ended his martial arts career and major depressive disorder. Currently, he teaches part-time at Pure while working full-time as a power engineer and is completing his undergrad in psychology through Athabasca University. His classes are known to be heavy in alignment and work in concert with modern yoga theory & biomechanics. He tries to keep his classes upbeat, challenging and fun! If you don’t see him on the schedule, you’ll probably run into him in a hot flow sometime soon. His driving mantra is “Discipline is freedom & Community is freedom. Both discipline and community support and inform one another. We train hard, do our work to become contributing members of society, and simultaneously reap the benefits of the support and connection we all need and crave. Yoga is this: the union of personal responsibility and honouring the principles of interconnectivity and interbeing"

Melanie Giggs

Power yoga is my jam!! I started a power practice after hurting my knee and could not be happier. I practiced ashtanga for 8 years before my shift to hot yoga and within months, I signed up for teacher training. Off I went to Sedona Az for an intense empowering week of Baptiste Power Yoga teacher training. Levels 1 and 2, Art of Assisting and Advanced Art of Assisting, were completed through Baptiste. Baron is my teacher, but Paige Elenson is my mentor, she and Baron co-created the Africa Yoga Project, and I was so amazed by the work this community did that I knew I had to be a part of it. In April 2017, I jetted off to Nairobi, Kenya, to be on the Assisting team for their 200 hour teacher training, and I was changed forever. AYP empowers marginalized youth in and around Africa changing lives one breath at a time. My son, husband and two chihuahuas are my life, yoga is my passion. I love to be of service and share this wonderful practice of yoga.

Alexa Smith

Alexa has been practicing yoga for over ten years and has completed 200 hrs of YTT and 30 hrs of Yin Yoga training. Like many others, she first practiced yoga only for the physical exercise, but soon came to appreciate the benefits fostered by a holistic yoga practice. Part of her goal as an instructor is to reframe the belief that you need to be flexible in order to be “good” at yoga. Improving your flexibility may come as a natural side effect of a consistent yoga practice, but Alexa also wants to inspire the desire to regularly move our bodies so we can feel our best day after day. In her classes, you can expect fun, powerful flows and calming, feel-good stretches that are accessible for all levels.

Meghan Gillis

My yoga journey began in 2016 when I attended a hot yin class at a local studio. I had been dealing with postpartum depression and immediately felt a shift in my soul after that first yin class. I knew that yoga was something I needed in my life to support my mental health. As time went on, I continued to attend more and more classes and workshops. Starting with yin and then adding beginner, warm, hot, and inversion workshops. In 2021 I decided I wanted to dig even deeper. I signed up for my 200-hour yoga teacher's training in Edmonton. I completed that session in July

2022. I am no stranger to pushing my physical body. As a national-level swimmer in my younger years- I enjoy pushing myself physically with yoga, but more importantly, I feel it is so beneficial for mental health, and I love sharing that experience with my students. When I'm not doing hot flow, I'm spending time with my husband, John, my three kids, Ella, Hanna and Johnny, and my orange cat, Fritz.

Brittney Brophy - Studio Owner

Meet the passionate owner of our hot yoga studio! With a deep love for wellness and a strong commitment to promoting a balanced lifestyle, she embarked on a journey to create a space where individuals could experience the transformative power of hot yoga. Her vision is to inspire and empower practitioners of all levels to embrace the benefits of this rejuvenating practice.

Lacey Vanderleek

I have been practicing yoga for over 10 years, but in 2021 I began to really dedicate to my practice while working in the oil and gas industry. Yoga was my anchor to my feminine and to keeping a connection with my mind and my body. During my time working in the oil field I sustained an injury that inspired a career switch. Fast forward to November 2023 I completed my 200 hour Ashtanga YTT in Bali! Following my training I spent 4 months traveling, teaching every chance I got and absorbing all the knowledge I could before coming back home and joining the Pure Yoga Community as an Instructor! I like to keep my classes creative and fun, providing a safe and supportive space for you to connect and move your body.