STAFF

Brian Granader ERYT 500

Owner Red Lotus Yoga

Director of the Red Lotus School of Yoga

Husband, Father, Yoga Teacher

 

My first yoga class came during a time in my life when I was working seven days a week as a residential Realtor. I was in the top 1% of all Realtors in the Century 21 System and in the top 1.5% of the Realtors locally.

 

I was helping a lot of people purchase and sell homes and felt like I was killing myself without knowing how to stop.

 

After practicing yoga for about a year, I took a teacher training program to deepen my practice and knowledge.

 

I enjoyed it so much I began teaching part time and selling real estate full time.

 

One day I asked myself, “If I had only six months left to live would I rather be a Realtor or a Yoga instructor?”

 

That day I decided to teach yoga full time and transition out of real estate....I never looked back!

 

I have owned Red Lotus Yoga since 2003 and have been leading teacher training programs since 2007.

 

My wife, Kate, and I run Red Lotus Yoga while caring for our daughter born in 2010.

 

We have a full life and if I asked myself today, the same question I asked in 2002, my answer is still, to be a Yoga Teacher...and I’d add husband and father too:)

Tim, a Michigan native, began practicing yoga in 2013, then became a teacher the following year. He soon moved to Los Angeles to teach and learn alongside Eric Paskel and Rina Jakubowicz at their yoga studio. Tim studies Vedanta philosophy through the writings and teachings of Swami A. Partthasarathy. He provides a refreshing and playful atmosphere for all levels to explore their practice

 

Gayle Vettese, E-RYT 500, student of Red Lotus Yoga’s first Teacher Training, has been teaching and sharing her love of Yoga since 2006. It is her passion to share her teachings that have come from honored lineage and teachers that range from Ashtanga, power vinyasa, gentle, Hatha, yin and restorative yoga. She has taught over 10,000 classes & workshops, taught hundreds of students to become inspired certified yoga teachers. She is a sound therapist, reiki master, akashic record reader, past life regressionist and a legacy lululemon ambassador. You will be encouraged to find your truthful edge through inquiry of breath and focus.

My journey with yoga began during my college years, where I discovered the impact of the practice on both my physical and mental health. This experience ignited a lifelong passion, leading me to complete my teacher training in 2020 with Brian at Red Lotus Yoga.
As a teacher, I am committed to making yoga accessible to all. My teaching philosophy centers on creating an inclusive and supportive environment for students of every level and background. In my classes, you can expect an emphasis on breathwork and somatic awareness, as I guide you to connect more fully with the present moment. Yoga is a powerful tool for uniting the mind, body, and spirit, bringing us a sense of inner peace that extends beyond the mat. I invite you to join me in class to explore the transformative power of yoga in a welcoming and empowering space!

 

Amanda Kirksey graduated from Oakland University and spent four years in the elementary classroom before staying home to raise three children. When her youngest was in school, the timing aligned for her to get her yoga teaching certification.

Amanda has spent the last 15 years practicing many different types of yoga, and believes wholeheartedly that combining breath and movement brings peace, health, and joy to life. About seven years ago, she started Little Bird Soul-handcrafting mala beads and simple jewelry. Through this adventure, she met all the wonderful people in the Red Lotus family.

Amanda has been a local Lululemon ambassador since 2018 and loves the opportunity Lululemon has given for personal growth, connection, and community. She can’t wait to spread love and peace to you through this beautiful practice.

Brandi Vander Eyk RYT-200.
Yoga was something I originally taught myself from books, and I knew right away the power and potential it held. Admittedly, I was very asana-centered in the first two years of my practice, but as I explored and finally found/chose my guru (Brian Granader of Red Lotus Yoga), I started opening up to the limitless potential, not just of my body, but of my mind as well. I found spirituality for the first time in my life and it taught me how to find self-approval and how to fully embrace the beauty of sangha (community). Once I learned to focus my intention and attention, the way I started to see myself began to change drastically, which in turn, changed the way I saw the world.
Good teachers are always students first. There is always something new to discover in the practice; there is no plateau, and I find that to be the grandest thing of all. Above all else, yoga is a wholeness endeavor, and as a teacher, I believe it is important to challenge students to rise to their fullest potential, and to help them see that the physical and mental limits they set for themselves are manmade. While I take my responsibility as a teacher of yoga very seriously, I teach with a fun, light-hearted approach. I make it a point to sincerely welcome all students to my classes with an honest desire to help them find what it is they seek (and in so doing, I often find what I am seeking). Stepping into the studio, both as a student and a teacher, brings me indescribable fulfilment. I am living out my purpose and I have no doubt you will feel that from me when you come to my class <3

B.Sc: Health Science | RYT: 200

I attended my first yoga class in 2017 at Red Lotus Yoga. After finishing my degree, I was in pursuit of the next steps in my life. I found both a love for the physical aspects of yoga, but more importantly an acceptance of self and a newfound peace in knowing that I am enough.

I completed my teacher training at Red Lotus Yoga with Brian Granader in 2019. I have been enthusiastic about teaching since I started teaching dance when I was 14 years old. I worked for 5 years at a physical therapy clinic helping to educate those recovering from surgery or dealing with chronic pain.

I am both humbled and excited to share and guide others in the practice of yoga. My teaching style includes restorative poses with an emphasis on the foundations of yoga and finding creativity within your own practice.

Classes taught: Basic, Slow Flow, Short Form Ashtanga

Yoga, means to “yoke” or the union of the body, mind, and soul, has become such a beautiful word to Christie. When she first started practicing yoga it was all about sweating, the poses, and getting a better body. Those benefits are wonderful, but she found herself
enjoying the time on her mat to get to know “herself” a little more. As a result, she feels more calm, happy, and very much alive. Taking this practice she started to incorporate this mind- body connection with her career as a personal trainer and then decided to become a full time yoga teacher because of the lasting benefits of peace in the mind.

She completed her 200 RYT with Michael Johnson in 2007. In December 2011, she had
taught over 1000 yoga classes and qualified for E-RYT under the Yoga Alliance and is now an RYT 500.

Her lineage includes teachings under Michael Johnson, Alan Haras, Brian Granader, Geshe Michael Roach, and countless other teachers and friends.

She wants her classes to provide a space where someone can come in and just "breathe" and enjoy the present moment. Whether it be for the physical benefits of the postures or for the positive messages for your mind and personal growth, she is honored to help others improve the quality of their lives. 

The most humbling aspect of practicing yoga, is that it is indeed a practice. The shape our bodies make and the space that our mind takes up is never settled, changing every time we practice, on and off our mats. My first introduction to yoga began in 2011, the beginning of a very long, challenging, humbling, rewarding, and soul opening journey. At the beginning, yoga was just a way for me to move my body and experience a sense of community. In 2017 I enrolled in Red Lotus Yoga’s Teacher Training program, guided by Brian Granader. This is the moment that my world was turned upside down. I was taught so much about myself, things hidden so deeply I don’t think I would’ve ever found them had it not been for truly awakening my practice through training. Yoga has enriched my relationships, empowered my confidence, steadied my anger & judgement, and invited limitless possibilities to my life. I love to hold space in my classes to welcome students into vulnerable and uncharted territories in their mind & spirit, while welcoming comfort and challenge to their physical bodies by offering modifications, props, and knowledge of safe alignment. Yoga is not something that we just move our bodies through, the practice of yoga is the way we love ourselves, nature, and our community. Always choosing to lead with love.