Our Instructors

Cathyn has been teaching fitness and yoga since 2007 and utilizes foam rolling for myofascial release. Cathyn’s “sensational” classes provide a space to explore areas of tension and creative ways to relax and restore healthy... tissue. As a yoga teacher, Pilates instructor, personal trainer, massage therapist, and ergonomist, she loves integrating disciplines to find an effective strategy for each climber and human being.

Hillary trained in 2008 with Rocket Yoga and Ashtanga Vinyasa instructor Larry Schultz at It’s Yoga in San Francisco. She encourages students to be curious about what’s possible while connecting breath and movement. Her classes... are rooted in the Ashtanga practice and often explore arm balances and inversions while offering modifications for all levels. Come to class, get ready to breathe, move, sweat, and tune in.

William discovered Yoga in 1995 on the simple path to becoming a better rock climber while looking for ways to address an injury he suffered in a near-death motorcycle accident. He soon learned Yoga was... a lot more than building core strength & flexibility… Yoga teaches us where we hold stress & anxiety, how to decompress, how to release and let go of tension, how to be better Human BEings & not always Human “Doings”. We live in a world where the #1 disability on the planet, according to the World Health Organization, is anxiety and depression! Yoga helps facilitate expansion, contraction, deeper self-awareness & better breathing techniques, which ultimately is our anchor & keeps us on a healthier path. Especially in these unpredictable times, it is so important that we stay grounded & healthy.

Kelly is currently a doctoral student in Mechanical Engineering at UC Berkeley. Her yoga journey began as a high school student in New York City where she attended donation-based classes and fell in love with... the Power Vinyasa Sequence. She started teaching Yoga in 2018 at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst where she completed her undergraduate studies. She began teaching yoga at climbing gyms in 2020 at Central Rock Gym Hadley. Starting at Berkeley Ironworks in 2021, Kelly is stoked to continue teaching yoga with Touchstone Climbing. Kelly primarily teaches power vinyasa, vinyasa, and gentle flow; however, she also has experience teaching acro yoga, HIIT classes, and TRX. In her classes, Kelly aims to build an inclusive and supportive environment where students can have a positive and safe experience. Kelly has been climbing since 2018 and loves to contribute to the climbing community and work with climbers as a yoga instructor. Outside of climbing and yoga, Kelly enjoys hiking, rafting, and hanging out with her (crag) dog, Farley.

Gordon has been a student of yoga since 2009 when he took a college PE yoga class and found the postures and transitions to be an amazing antidote to the premature aches and pains he... was enduring from years of skateboarding, basketball, martial arts, and physical labor. After refining his practice at various vinyasa studios around the bay area, he completed his 200hr training at Barefoot Movement in 2014 and has been teaching in and around Oakland ever since. Nominally a vinyasa teacher, his classes, sequences, and approach to instruction are all informed by his experience in the various physical modalities mentioned above. Gordon’s primary goal as a teacher is to help people feel better leaving class than when they arrived, and give them tools to continue to expand and refine their movement in and out of the studio/gym. When not teaching yoga, Gordon enjoys making and critiquing music, woodworking, picking up heavy things and putting them down, burritos, and short walks to the coffee shop.

Sunset lives in Oakland and enjoys being outdoors. They often practice outdoor yoga for the peace of mind and deep appreciation of nature it provides. They completed their teacher training at Hot Spot Yoga Oakland,... and aim to create classes that are equitable, intentional, and fun!

Oh yeah, you betcha. Jared was born and raised in the Twin Cities metro area (Minneapolis – St Paul) of Minnesota. He has been practicing acro yoga since 2017, when he first learned in Santa... Barbara after fleeing the frigid winters of the north. Outside of teaching acro yoga, Jared teaches 9th graders physics and tries his best at rock climbing, which he started doing around the same time he stopped cutting his hair!

Meet Sydney, an adventurous and spirited yoga teacher passionate about exploring new horizons on and off the mat. Sydney’s yoga journey began in 2019 with her 200-hour teacher training while living in the serene surroundings... of Dharamsala, India, where she deepened her knowledge of the transformative power of yoga. Eager to further deepen her practice, she ventured back to India in 2022 for her 300-hour yoga teacher training, immersing herself in the vibrant energy of the coastal region of Goa. Her love for creativity, playfulness, and openness to new experiences shine through in her teaching style as she encourages her students to step out of their comfort zones and embrace exploration. Beyond the yoga studio, Sydney finds solace and inspiration in the great outdoors. Whether biking, backpacking, or climbing, she thrives on the exhilarating connection with nature. Join Sydney on the mat for a unique and transformative yoga experience encompassing adventure, self-discovery, and a deep appreciation for the world around us.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, and raised on 3 different continents before the age of ten, Moses’ has a complex love for fitness and the body, which began during their time as a collegiate athlete.... After playing Division-1 basketball, professional basketball overseas, and some time with the Harlem Globetrotters, Moses suffered many injuries. These physical setbacks taught him important lessons about the body and its function. They deeply believe all bodies are not only different but our relationship to them is what determines our happiness and capacity for JOY. Yoga and Hot Pilates has transformed their approach to fitness and embodiment. Before the journey to becoming a Fitness Instructor, yoga and low impact exercises helped them strengthen, while gaining mobility, balance, and mental grit. With an eclectic ear and taste for music, as well as a cosmopolitan approach to all things, his class becomes an otherworldly and fun space for people to connect to their mind, body, and spirit.

Mike considers himself an experimental acrobat. It has been noted that “the Greek term for ‘acrobatics’ literally means ‘to walk on the extremities’.” Carry this definition towards artist Lee Lozano’s statement, “Seek the extremes, that’s... where all the action is” and you have a working explanation of why. After what felt like a life-time refusing any coherent connection between his headspace and his corporeality, Mike took up an intensely dedicated yoga practice before realizing that dynamic movement and inversions offered him a more accessible route into an embodied capacity for the flow state. His goal as a teacher is to help you look at movements from a variety of different angles in order to find out what works best for your individual body, skill-level, or style. While he recognizes & pays attention to the fact that there are inherently “objective” bio-mechanical properties that need to be understood as the building blocks of any given movement pattern, he is strongly opposed to the insistence that these building blocks must be arrived at via a singular route or end up looking a specific way. He wants to help you figure out how to enjoy acrobatic movement in a way that fits you and your body. While learning tricks is cool, putting the work into teaching your body how to comfortably move in new ways is a larger part of his teaching pedagogy.

Let’s learn a little bit about Katrina, shall we? Originally from sunny Los Angeles, she traveled north to the Bay Area to attend UC Berkeley. She fell in love with climbing circa 2019 at her... local bouldering gym in Hawthorne, California. When she moved to Berkeley, she learned about lead climbing and immediately went on to get her top rope and then lead certification. It was at this time she also developed a passion for strength training, particularly of the HIIT style. She started trying the group fitness classes offered by Touchstone and hasn’t stopped since. Katrina’s main ingredients for her classes: fun, unique, and most importantly- sweaty. You can find her bouldering, lead climbing, working out, or participating in a class at one of the East Bay Touchstone Gyms most days of the week. When not chalky, you might spot her riding her bicycle to campus, cooking up some bomb vegan food, or on some other sort of outdoor adventure.

Potouli (PK) started a dedicated yoga practice over 15 years ago following a series of snowboarding, longboarding, and climbing injuries. His initial relationship with yoga was focused on healing and expanding range of motion. Yoga... allowed him to keep riding and climbing more freely but also challenged him to be more present. PK’s personal practice includes Rocket Yoga, calisthenics, climbing, and meditation. His hope is for the practice to teach us to live with broader awareness and physical ease while exploring the untapped potential within. Rocket yoga adds accessibility to its ashtanga roots by putting the student in charge and providing them with a modifiable and accessible structure. Each practice can ultimately be adjusted by the student to make it more or less vigorous through the use or omission of transitions and inversions. In this way, it is a tool to empower the student to own their practice by combining focus and breath to create growth and change.

Zoe has been practicing yoga since 2003 years and teaching since 2017. Zoe was drawn to yoga as a high school athlete as a way to balance strength and flexibility. After a car accident in... her early 20s that left her in a wheelchair and then crutches for months, Zoe again found yoga as an incredible way to heal her body. Zoe has practiced all kinds of yoga (ask her about her mysore and bikram background) and has been trained to teach both power vinyasa and rocket yoga. Be prepared to sweat in her classes! When not teaching or practicing, Zoe works at an environmental non profit working on climate and housing policies. Zoe loves her two cats Mochi and Salem, traveling, hot springs, hiking and reading.

Coach Payton is a lifelong fitness enthusiast who began his personal fitness journey as a way to connect with a body that didn’t always feel like his. As a trans man, he aims to support... people in building positive relationships to their bodies through fitness. He has coached CrossFit, various types of group fitness, HIIT, and strength training. He holds an Elite Personal Trainer and Nutritionist certification from ISSA and a Group Fitness Instructor certification from ACE. You can expect form and training tips and cues, form corrections, plenty of options for movements, and lots of variety. Overall, Payton’s goal is to have you leave class feeling confident and strong.

AN East Bay native and fitness aficionad, Nery’s (pronounced “Nettie”) passion for movement is matched by her dedication to forming meaningful connections. Nery loves to keep moving, whether through salsa dancing, cardio boxing, rock climbing,... or biking. She is on a mission to instill that passion for purposeful movement in each of her clients, emphasizing proper form, intensity, and connections.