Marta Hodgdon
Founder of the first Bikram Yoga school in Poland
Marta is the founder of the first Bikram Yoga school in Poland. She started to practice yoga soon after spine injury at the age of 16. That injury forced her to give up her judo training which was her passion. For a long time afterward, she looked for a physical activity as intense as judo but safe for her spine. At the age of 16 she started hatha and other forms of yoga, but none proved to be as engaging as Bikram. Marta first heard of Bikram Yoga in 2004 when she was living in Dubai. She happened upon a documentary about Bikram Choudhury and his method. A week later she found out she lived above a Bikram Yoga studio. Living in Tokyo prior to that she had to start a spine physiotherapy and stop practicing Ashtanga Yoga, her spine got so much worse. She went to her first Bikram Yoga class primarily for weight management. She didn’t believe that anything could improve her spine despite the claims made by Bikram. Bikram Yoga swept her off of her feet- it turned out to be exactly that intense form of physical workout which she had been missing since having to give up judo. Half a year later, she had not only lost about 10 kilograms but her spine problems were a thing of the past. Her regular Bikram Yoga practice began in 2004 in Club Stretch Bikram Yoga and Pilates school in Dubai. Her main teacher was Brian Ward. In 2011 for almost a year Marta prepared for her Teacher Training taking private classes with Brian. His comprehensive knowledge of Classic Pilates and Bikram Yoga and thorough approach to correct body alignment in each asana helped Marta in developing her own practice and later in her work as a Bikram Yoga teacher. Marta has also practiced with other great Bikram Yoga teachers in certified studios in Amsterdam, London, Los Angeles, Burlington Vermont and Portland Maine. In 2012 she completed her training in LA under Bikram Choudhury’s guidance. After receiving her Bikram Yoga College of India Ceritificate she taught for a year in Club Stretch in Dubai. In June 2013 she returned to Poland to open a Bikram Yoga school in Warsaw.
Michaela Martinek
Bikram Yoga Teacher
Misha‛s yoga life began in 2006 when the first Bikram Yoga studio opened in the Czech Republic. She took her first lesson partly out of curiosity and partly from long-term health problems (problems with the lumbar and cervical spine, injured shoulder). Positive results were almost immediate and she became completely captivated. Bikram Yoga increased her flexibility and released her stiff joints and improved her attitude and posture. Misha also credits Bikram Yoga with giving her better hair, nails and skin. After her first class, she felt a powerful change in herself and on the spot became determined to become a teacher under the guidance of Bikram Choudhury. She achieved this after nearly two years of intensive training. In 2008 she completed her Teacher Training uder the guidance of Bikram Choudhury in Acapulco in Mexico. Since that time, Misha has actively engaged in further education, gaining experience and physical and mental development. She participated in seminars with most renonwed Bikram Yoga teachers: Jim Kallett, Craig Villiani, Ky Ha, and Rajashree Choudhury. She has special interest and experience working with sports injuries and movement disabilities. Misha travels frequently and enjoys teaching Bikram wherever she can. She loves immersing herself in the local culture. She is a visiting teacher in Antwerp, Milano, Ceskie Budeojovice, Prague and now Warsaw. Misha considers yoga as a method to help relieve the stress of the daily grind and keep the body fit. For her, Yoga is a vital part of the journey toward inner peace and openness to self and others.
Joanna Barcikowska
Pilates Teacher
A graduate of Academy of Physical Education, personal trainer, medical trainer and Pilates teacher. She has over 20 years of experience as a trainer, educator and presenter at many international fitness events. Creator of training programs and participant of television programs. She has been teaching the Pilates method for over 15 years. She completed, among others, the Lineage Pilates Comprehensive Teacher Program, run by Jaqueline Martin, a second-generation Pilates teacher, including exercises on the mat and using equipment such as Reformer, Cadillac, Chair and Ladder Barrel. Her work is a constant journey for her. As a coach, Joanna is constantly developing and with unwavering passion she is looking for new paths that lead to strengthening the body and spirit. As a teacher, she willingly shares energy and knowledge with her pupils, helping them build body awareness, discover its unlimited possibilities and derive joy from movement. She loves contact with nature and Argentine tango, which she has been dancing for 4 years.
Klaudia Szott
Vinyasa Yoga Teacher
Klaudia Szott is a graduate of psychology at SWPS University and a person in the process of finalizing studies at the Faculty of Artes Liberales of the University of Warsaw. She studies the relationship of man with a plant substance called dimethyltryptamine (DMT) when facing end-of-life anxieties. Her path of development was dictated by the experience of yoga. She took her first vinyasa class (loosely translated: flow union practices) in 2013. From that moment on, she regularly cultivates the 'dead body pose' (savasana), and this brings a radical sense of relief. In addition to the 200-hour teaching course, she practised yoga in Dheli, Phnom Penh, Cape Town, New York, Miami, Prague, Copenhagen, Edinburgh, Mestia and many other urban works of art. She gets excited about performing arts and dance, especially contact improvisation and voguing.
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