We were lucky to catch up with Heidi Nechtman recently and have shared our conversation below.

Heidi, appreciate you joining us today. What’s the best advice you ever gave to a client? How did they benefit / what was the result? (Please note this response is for education/entertainment purposes only and shouldn’t be construed as advice for the reader)

The best client advice is what I tell all of my students, in every class, private session or practice development session. Always work with awareness of your body’s sensations and awareness of what your healing feeling is. Yoga is not the poses that we do. Yoga is how we approach life. If we do not listen to our own needs when we are on the mat, it is likely we are not listening to them in our daily life. If instead we try to achieve something according to a picture or the student next to us, then it is likely that we are also, somewhere in our lives, not aligned with our values. Awareness, self-study and honesty are some of the greatest healing lessons we can learn from yoga.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My path to yoga came through a love of the physical practice to relieve my tight runner’s hips. However, my true love of yoga came when I returned to the practice when my youngest two children went to kindergarten.

I found the subtle benefits of the balance between movement and stillness. With just an hour of asana practice each Friday, my perspective changed and I began to re-connect to ideas beyond my family. It helped all of us.

As I moved through life, I began to see so many people that could benefit the way that I had. It was everyone from my own family, to students or teachers at my children’s school, to people on the street. I knew that I someday wanted to share this with others.

My goal during teacher training was to bring yoga to unrepresented populations and others who had difficulty accessing traditional yoga classes. Perfectly Imperfect Yoga was developed to meet people where they are.

My advanced training includes a Healing Emphasis Yoga Master program, Adaptive yoga training, Accessible yoga training, Yoga for Kids with Special Needs and a program to become a Certified Yoga Therapist.

In each class, I first ensure that everyone feels they are in a safe place, where they can work from wherever they are on their own path. Often there will be some people standing or on mats, while others are in a chair, or some who use both. I tell my students that it brings me joy if they all look a little different as I look out to the class.

My classes also are slow and interoceptive. We still strengthen and stretch, but we notice the subtle effects of each movement.

I teach group classes, including chair yoga; gentle, yin and restorative yoga; and mindfulness/meditation to people of all ages and abilities.

Special classes are available for Yoga for Grief. Private sessions are available for yoga instruction, developing a personal yoga practice, or the use of yoga or yoga philosophy to find your own path to healing.

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

The key to success in this business is to create a deep connection with students, whether they are in a group class or private. Listening fully to everything from their personal stories to their symptoms, aides in supporting them on their path to healing. The key to their healing is already inside them, so the only way to help them find it is to truly connect with them.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

The most impactful book for me changed my entire philosophy of teaching and inspired me to reach beyond what I originally thought I could teach. I highly recommend that even if you are not interested in yoga or yoga therapy, you read this book. Waking, by Matthew Sanford tells of his journey from a car crash that made him a paraplegic at age 13 to developing his own business teaching yoga to others with disabilities. The draw of the book is not only the inspiring story, but Sanford’s deep thoughts. Every time I hear him speak or read his writing, I learn to look at the world in a new way.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.youareperfectlyimperfectyoga.com
• Instagram: perfectly_imperfect_yoga
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/4youyoga
• Linkedin: Heidi Nechtman
• Other: linktr.ee/PerfectlyImperfectYoga