Meet the team

  • When I was 22 I was hospitalised with anorexia. I spent a long time there battling with life and death.

    My awakening began quite suddenly during this time. I had spent many years suffering at the expense of my own mind feeling like I had no choice with detrimental effect. In a poignant life moment of ‘light’, I saw I had a choice. I could choose to live or die. Equally, I could choose joy or pain.

    Boom, my journey or recovery began.

    Soon this path of healing led to me yoga, then hot yoga.

    I remember my first hot yoga class very vividly. I was working as a model in Barcelona and my model apartment was close to a Bikram studio. I was intrigued because I loved sauna (and yoga!) so I signed up for my first class. I’ll never forget it… It was bonkers but I was hooked!! I went back almost every day whilst I lived there and continued to seek out hot yoga studios wherever I was in the world for work. I loved that the class was the same, I could show up to any ‘Bikram’ class and instantly feel at home, return to my body and tend to myself. The practice gave me stability, improved my posture, strength and flexibility, helped me feel calm and most importantly it helped me keep my mind healthy.

    I found more on my mat than I did in years of therapy. It wasn’t easy but class by class I began to practice more and more self- care and gradually began to love myself again. My personal yoga practice literally saved my life and continues to nourish me every day.

    My teaching journey actually began way back when I was about 14! I had a Saturday job assisting at my dance school teaching the younger ones ballet. I went on the teach adult classes once I joined the professional company at 18. Unfortunately because of my illness I had to stop dancing and teaching.

    When I found hot yoga it reignited my desire to teach again and led me to Hot Yoga Teacher Training with Evolation in Paris in 2016 in classic hot yoga, 26 + 2 method; following that I further trained in other disciplines of yoga. I taught full-time alongside modelling and have taught all over the world. I have been blessed to meet and work with some amazingly inspiring teachers, students and humans along the way; I even met my partner Simon through the practice! I always knew I wanted to open my own studio and in 2022 we stumbled upon South Chapel - a beautiful once in a lifetime property; I had no money and a young baby BUT I had passion and trust in my dharma and I took the leap of faith; it was the best thing I ever did. Two years later we are opening our second studio. I’m so honoured and grateful to be able to welcome you all to The Hot Yoga Chapel and offer the gift of yoga to more people.

    We ALL need a little healing, yoga is for every body and every mind.

    Join us and see how yoga can heal, improve your body AND mind, restore balance and take you on your own journey to your Self.

Studio Owner and Teacher

  • I am Faustine but everyone calls me Steen, originally from France, I first discovered hot yoga a couple of years after moving to Leeds in 2018 after spending half a decade in the hot sun of Mauritius (I truly missed the heat!).

    I quickly realised that yoga became the one thing keeping me sane throughout the pandemic (physically AND mentally!). As lockdowns eased and I graduated from a Bachelor's degree in Graphic Arts and Design I felt the need to learn something new and decided that the next best step in my life and practise would be a yoga teacher training.

    Never in a million years did I ever expect to even want to teach, the training was simply theory and biomechanics for my own practice. However, as the weeks past I soon realised how much more meaningful, powerful and life changing yoga truly is as you dig deeper and could not keep it for myself (how selfish would that be?!).

    I became a certified Ashtanga-Vinyasa modified primary series and Pranayama teacher in September 2022. Due to my creative nature, I choose to teach mainly flows (strong, slow, vinyasas..) exploring movement in various ways.

    Deep down my yoga practice helped healing many of my past traumas and it became a safe heaven, a bubble in which taking care of the self is prioritised. I have struggled with depressive episodes from my early teens which then developed into an eating disorder and body dysmorphia. Yoga positively impact my hormones and, over time, definitely helped improving my episodes. I learned to be more understanding, caring and patient towards myself. Practicing regularly encourages me to listen to my body and nourish it better. In times of stress, I have developed an ability come back to my practice (which also off the mat) to not fall back into unhealthy habits.

    The main reason I teach yoga today is to help you prioritise your wellbeing and connect with your inner self. Life can sometimes take over and it can become hard to choose ourselves over other priorities and responsibilities, through yoga we can essentially take a moment to: breathe, heal and take care of us.

Studio Manager and Vinyasa/Yin/Restorative Teacher

  • My journey into yoga began in 2009 whilst training as a contemporary dancer. The yoga mat became my sanctuary, a place where I could take the plug out of the ego. It was a chance for me to rewire my brain and prioritise my mental & physical well-being.

    I eventually realised that dance was my stepping stone into becoming a yoga teacher. Since 2018 this has mainly been my focus alongside Ayurvedic yoga massage, which is a rich blend between deep tissue, assisted stretches and remedial touch. I hold these massages in our treatment room at THYC (Ilkley site).

    My classes have a desire to move, to feel free and empowered. I want to create an environment where people can take little bites of bravery. I’m still very much influenced by my background in contemporary dance, making my classes dynamic, creative and playful. I strive to hold a space for everybody to cultivate the patience to persist, to believe in themselves and to be tenderly fierce.

    As well as teaching yoga, I now also teach our Chapel Hot HIIT class. Adding more cardio to our fitness life, and to further our endurance levels.

Vinyasa and HIIT Teacher & Ayurvedic Massage Therapist

  • I first found Hot Yoga in 2001 while living in Australia; I instantly loved it!

    I remember it being fun, challenging and I loved the fact that I felt stronger and more flexible with every class…I was hooked!

    Returning home to the UK, with no hot studio nearby as the years passed by I could feel my strength and flexibility slipping away.

    After years of sitting hunched over a desk I knew I needed to do something to fix my chronic lower back pain and I finally made my way to a newly opened hot yoga studio nearby…that first class was SO tough, but my body and my mind thanked me for it and I never looked back.

    Class after class, year after year I could feel myself healing not just physically but emotionally too. ​

    It wasn’t just in class that I saw the benefits; my back pain all but disappeared, my posture improved, I had more energy and felt calmer and more focused.

    Over time I felt more settled, learning patience and acceptance of myself, lessening my attachment to perfection, both in postures and in life!

    I wanted to share my love of Yoga with everyone I met and so decided it was time to take the next step…

    In 2020 I completed my 26&2 Hot Yoga teacher training with Kristin Bergman Ward. To say it was a life changing experience is an understatement; gaining so much knowledge, not only about the Yoga but also about myself, and the kind of teacher I wanted to be.

    I qualified in October and taught my first class a week later! I’ve been teaching in Hot Yoga studios ever since.

    I subsequently trained in both Slow therapeutic Flow and Yoga Nidra and in 2023 I trained with Bernie Clark in Yin Yoga, the perfect complement to the more dynamic Hot Yoga practice.

    I truly believe Yoga is for everybody and every body! No matter where you’re starting from I will support you every step of the way. I want you to come away from my classes feeling challenged yet nurtured, energized yet deeply rested,

    Feeling stronger, healthier and happier with every single class.

    I’m so happy and excited to share this beautiful practice with each and every one of you, to share your yoga journey and see the incredible transformations it can bring. Yoga has changed my life for the better. I want it to change yours too.

Hot Yoga and Yin Teacher

  • I’m deeply fascinated with the human body as a way of self expression. When I first started deepening into yogic practice and lifestyle I was astounded by how much I was able to feel that I couldn’t access before. Not only did it provide more comfort and ease in my body but also allowed me to process the world around me better and get a truer understanding of “who I was”.

    I followed the teachings and practices of non dual tantric philosophy for many years and still turn to their wisdom today. Nowadays however, my work is more entwined with the natural world and the landscapes that I teach from. I take my inspiration from the changing seasons, the cycles of the moon and folklore.

    As a facilitator my work leans more into embodiment and organic movement, guiding students into a space of freedom and autonomy of expression. Over the years I’ve trained in Vinyasa, Yin, Nidra and Somatic practices as well as being a Trauma Informed facilitator. I am also a certified Animal Flow instructor.

    As a deaf and neurodiverse person, inclusion is of vital importance to me and I always strive to provide a space where others feel brave enough to step into and be themselves without any judgement or fear.

Embodied Movement Facilitator and Vinyasa/Yin Teacher

  • As a teenager I discovered I had scoliosis, not severe but bad enough to be suffering back pain throughout my teens and adult life. I found yoga a few months after I slipped a rib out of place and had trouble breathing. After a few expensive chiropractic treatments it was suggested that doing yoga might help maintain a healthy spine. So I booked my first class.

    There is something in your first hot yoga class that makes you feel like you’re totally doing everything wrong but at the same time there’s this sense of achievement that comes with surviving the extreme heat. It’s like I was alive again! I practiced pretty much daily from then on, and not only my back strength improved (and yes, the pain was gone!), also my mental health and my breathing got better. All of a sudden I am walking taller, I am happier and healthier than I have ever been.

    I wanted to share this practice with everyone as I believe it can truly transform someone’s life! So I graduated as an Original Hot Yoga Teacher (with Kristin Bergaman, 350h) and a year later I completed my Ashtanga Vinyasa Training (with Jamie Blowers, 200h). After attending multiple intensive retreats with Jasmine Nash from E84 I decided to train in Intermediate training with her and Esak Garcia in 2023. Since then, I have been teaching and sharing my knowledge and experience in dealing with back issues through repetitive back bending. You will likely find me upside down in a wheel or doing wall-walks!

Hot Yoga and Vinyasa Teacher

  • Bio pending…

Hot Yoga Teacher

  • Bio pending…

Hot Yoga and Inferno Hot Pilates Teacher