Today we’d like to introduce you to Kate Woodford-Shell.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Kate Woodford-Shell (She/They)
Born: Niles, Ohio on September 25, 1992
Resident: Akron, Ohio (since 2011)
Graduated from University of Akron in May 2016 Business Communications and Public Relations
At the age of three, I started gymnastics and was a competitive gymnast until age 12. I also played soccer for a few years, tried diving, and played basketball from age 12-18.
My father owned a gym in the 80s-early 90s and sold it when I was born to focus on being a father and a full-time personal trainer. My parents met at his gym in 1980 (my mom was teaching aerobics there at the time), they married in 1984
My father died in 2007 when I was 15 years old. It was devastating to my family. We moved out of the house my parents built to a city over- into my grandparents’ house where I lived until I moved to Akron at 18.
I became incredibly depressed and disconnected from my body after my father’s death. I got pretty good grades in high school and college but when I wasn’t studying, I was partying. In college, I was bartending for cash. I took out my own loans and took care of my own expenses- so a lot of responsibility.
I knew I was gay by the time I was 14, but I hid it all through high school.
I decided to “come out” to my mom and family and friends when I moved out and for the first 6 years it was extremely uncomfortable and I harbored a lot of shame. In Ohio, same-sex marriage was still not recognized at that time. Plus, they raised me catholic through grade school- so I pretty much thought my whole life was a sin.
I began studying yoga in my early days of college as a way to reconnect to my body and get a grip on my mental health.
I remember the first time I practiced yoga; I fell in love with the practice immediately. I cried silently at the end of the class. I remembered the connection I forged with my mind and body as a young person- in the gymnastics gym all those years ago. I was happy to have found something that worked for me.
But old habits are hard to break. It took me a few years to stop binge drinking every week, stop smoking cigarettes, stop negative self-talk and self-hatred. Even going to yoga 4-5 times a week, it took years of commitment before big things started to shift.
Parallel to the physical improvements that yoga brought to my life, was the increase of self-acceptance and eventually, self-celebration (they are two different things). I began to love myself- in a world that (at that time) wouldn’t let me legally marry someone of the same sex, in a world that pushes us to produce! produce! produce! and go! go! go! and glorifies busy-ness- yoga helped me realize that loving oneself despite flaws, mistakes, and setbacks AND engaging in practices of intentional contemplation and rest is an act of resistance. It’s something they don’t teach in schools- well, except for yoga schools. Advertisements constantly tell us we need more, but what about finding gratitude for what we already have and who we already are?! Yoga helped me rediscover spirituality and become self-empowered.
My yoga practice flourished over time. I became a very dedicated student of yoga.
By my college graduation, I was ready to rebuild my life on my own terms. I took a job in an office and although I excelled, I hated it. I decided to serve breakfast and invest in Yoga Teacher Training. I became a yoga teacher.
Enter, Nikki.
My wife had lived in Highland Square for 7 years and had become a yoga teacher. At the time she was a full-time nurse.
She opened our yoga studio, Yoga Squared on December 5, 2016. I met her the next day (I have it tattooed on my arm). I started working there within a month as a teacher and the desk. We fell in love within 3 months. We dated for 1.5 years and got married on September 1, 2018, at the Akron Art Museum and had our reception at Nuevo Modern Mexican.
My family is very supportive of my relationship with Nikki! And the country recognizes my marriage!
We have been working together since the moment we met to create the life we have. We started in a one-bedroom basement apartment with VERY little resources.
We quickly realized that we work very well together and our yoga community began to grow rapidly. We needed more space.
We went on to open a second location a block away from Yoga Squared the summer before we married. We then expanded our main location in Jan-Feb 2020 making our space twice the size. It includes a massage room and infrared sauna and space for dumbbells for our newer fitness classes. We kept the smaller location as well for smaller, more intimate yoga classes, and private sessions.
During the pandemic we were happy to have more space and used our small location as a recording studio for online classes.
We now have an online presence, because of the pandemic. We offer most our classes livestream through zoom for those who want to practice from home or are traveling.
In our 5+ years of business we also became a yoga school, so we facilitate teacher training programs. We just graduated our 6th class this month! Trainings run 6-9 months long. We have graduated over 100 students.
We have led (and sold out) 2 international yoga retreats to Costa Rica and Belize and have 3 scheduled for the next year: Greece, Peru, and Mexico. Each retreat has about 30 participants.
I have studied yoga for 10 years and have been teaching for about 6 of those years. In 2020 I became a runner and started resistance training. I ran a few races last year, including the Goodyear Half Marathon.
My wife and I bought a home in Highland Square (a block away from our studio) last May. We have 2 dogs, Raja and Haze.
I am now studying personal training… like my dad! And I feel like I’m really carrying his legacy forward. He loved helping people through wellness and it is an honor to carry the flame forward in his memory.
I am very involved with the community. I am a board member for the Highland Square Neighborhood Assoc., I teach yoga at two special Akron Festivals (PorchRokr Music x Art Festival and Akron Pride), and I lead a free Yoga x Run club in the spring x summer at Will Christy Park.
I have made many partnerships in the community through my work at Yoga Squared.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Existing in a heteronormative world is hard when you have to fight for equality!
Becoming a business owner at 24 was definitely a challenge — big shoes to fill. So it’s certainly a role I had to grow into over time.
And…getting through the pandemic owning a yoga studio was really hard but I think that it ultimately pushed us to try new things like our livestream classes, which we will continue to offer in a post pandemic world.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I love creating mind-body-spirit experiences for people. Whether it’s one of my 5 weekly yoga classes, leading a Cacao Ceremony, teaching at a festival, or working with someone one on one- I love to bring people together.
My physical yoga practice reflects my athletic background and advanced proprioception. Learning how to handstand on a 4-inch beam or high bar in gymnastics as a child primed me for challenging physical experiences on my yoga mat. However, as a young person, I endured tremendous heartache, uncertainty, and grief- which has given me a lot of compassion for others. Because I’m part of the LGBTQ community, I also understand what it feels like to be in a marginalized group of society. So, I learned to teach in a way that is challenging, though in a gentle way that allows others to find connection to themself and heal on a deep level.
Yoga Squared partners with businesses in the community to create collaborative offerings. We offer classes at local farms, breweries, restaurant rooftops, and parks throughout the year.
Around the holidays, I organize our Holiday Market. This year we offered it early enough in December (before the Covid surge took full swing). We had 25 local vendors and 3 musical performances at a local brewery. I remember we had to start putting x’s on people’s hands at the door because we ran out of our wristbands. Lots of people showed up!
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
What matters most to me is that people feel safe, strong, and capable- not only in their physical body, but also in their mind, and spirit. What matters is that we celebrate each person’s uniqueness while also tuning out the separateness and leaning into oneness. I want the city of Akron to be a mindful one. I want our community to be a place where we not only accept people, but we celebrate people of all backgrounds.
Pricing:
- Intro Offer: $40/first-month unlimited classes
- Schedule: 60+ classes/ week
- 40+ Online Livestream Classes/ week
Contact Info:
- Email: hello@yogasquaredakron.com
- Website: yogasquaredakron.com
- Instagram: katewoodfordshell / yogasquaredakron
Image Credits
Elizabeth Tipton
PorchRokr
