Telluride Yoga Festival: Cat McCarthy

06 Jul Telluride Yoga Festival: Cat McCarthy

The 7th annual Telluride Yoga Fest takes place this week, July 10 – July 13, with classes  for all levels of practitioners: 4-day Guru pass, $495; 3-day Namaste pass, $395; 3-class pass, $108; all-day intensive, $150. Buy here now.

Yoga is all about being awake, being mindful of your every action, on and off the mat. Any action done with a high level of awareness is essentially yoga.

Like making a movie.

Or leading conflict-resolution training in Non-Violent Communication.

Biking too.

And therapy on a pet.

Or harmonizing with fellow singers in studios or on stage.

And travel.

All those activities are part and parcel of Cat McCarthy’s remarkably rich life.

An innovative Yoga Instructor/Trainer, Cat is based out of New York City and New Orleans. She is the founder of registered yoga school NOLA YOGA and holds certifications in Anusara Yoga, Kripalu Yoga, and the Barnes Method Prenatal Yoga, while studying extensively within the philosophical tradition of Rajanaka Yoga. She is also a Fulbright scholar and Emmy-nominated filmmaker.

Cat McCarthy is scheduled to teach three classes at the upcoming 7th annual Telluride Yoga Festival, Thursday, July 10 – Sunday, July 13: – “This End-Up Inversions”; “Neutralize & Vitalize-Twists”; “Take it up with Heart-Backbends” – mixing storytelling with dynamic alignment, playful awareness, and soulful self-expression.

What do The Three Stooges, four-leaf clover hunting, and wine tasting have in common? Yoga, according to Cat. Whether telling a story on the silver screen or at the beginning of class, Cat sees yoga everywhere. She makes connections between everyday details and the big picture, weaving it all into a fun, poignant narrative on the mat.

Salmonella food poisoning was the impetus that committed Cat to a yogic path. While in graduate film school at NYU, Cat burned the candle at all ends, as a graduate assistant, in school full-time making films, and working professionally in production. To rebuild her empty reserve tanks, she turned to yoga. Her practice not only built back her stamina, but it helped keep her calm and grounded amidst chaotic film shoots. From the nurturing realm of the Kripalu Center in MA to the plethora of yoga studios available around NYC, Cat found her first yoga home at Om Yoga. There, she took classes with Amy Ippoliti and Elena Brower, her earliest teachers. As Amy and Elena segued from Vinyasa to Anusara Yoga, so did she.

Healing herself of chronic wrist pain is how Cat chose an alignment-based and therapeutic style of yoga.

After decade of dedication along the Anusara path, in February of 2012, Cat resigned her license with Anusara, Inc, on a quest to further expand her own trail. The nourishment of consistent practice continues to feed this yogini in every aspect of life. Inspired daily by her students, and over the years by teachers Amy Ippoliti, Elena Brower, Desiree Rumbaugh, Anusara Founder John Friend, and Dr. Douglas Brooks and Paul Muller-Ortega, she is happy to share her successes and failures in applying the yoga effectively, both on and off of the mat.

With handles like “Bobo the Monkey Girl” and “Sister Silver Hair Surprise,” Cat know how to keep it real and makes learning entertaining and empowering. Her motto is “enjoy the ride!”

To learn more, click the “play” button and listen to what Cat McCarthy has to add.