Learning to Breathe: East Eagle Yoga Studio

Each day, the body inhales oxygen and exhales carbon dioxide, circulating air through the body to function. But a local yoga studio owner said that people need to learn how to breathe.

East Eagle Yoga, co-owned by Joe Finnerty and Nicole Chemi, opened in January 2005 as the first yoga studio in Havertown. After years of work experience in the corporate world, the owners began to study yoga, transforming their own lives and now passing on that experience to others. As the teachers and co-owners of the studio, the couple practices classical-style yoga at three different levels – beginner, intermediate and vinyasa, a faster-paced intensity – Monday through Sunday.

Yogis come to the studio for a variety of reasons including fitness, injuries and illness or a need for relaxation, calmness or learning to breathe, Finnerty told Haverford Patch.

“That’s the hallmark of yoga,” Chemi said. “It will help you on many levels besides exercise.”

Finnerty grew up in Havertown, and used to bring his bicycle to the same location as his studio, which was formerly Oakmont Bikes. In 2002, he inhabited an ashram for seven months in Mumbai, India after practicing yoga on his own for several years and then returned to the States to teach yoga. He met Chemi at the YogaLife Institute in Devon while they both trained for their instructor certifications, and the duo decided to bring yoga to Havertown.

Originally from Madison, NJ, Chemi referred to Havertown, her home for the past eight years, as a “traditional area.”

“We travel a bit and we always run into people who know what Havertown is,” she said.

The pair recently instituted a ten-month teacher-training program of their own at the studio, which they both named as one of the most valuable aspects of their work.

“During that time, we get to know those individuals really well,” she said. “It’s a program of self-transformation and self-study. We’re able to see their growth and be able to really, truly teach not only the physical aspects of yoga, but also how to live a yogic life.”

Finnerty added that there is a difference between a “yoga teacher” and “a person who teaches yoga postures”, for those who engage in the program acquire a certain spiritual connectedness that extends beyond exercise.

Yogis of all ages, ranging from teenagers to senior citizens, practice the discipline at East Eagle. While the studio consists of a single room sandwiched among a strip of other stores, Chemi said that the small size fosters intimacy. While they would enjoy a larger space, Chemi and Finnerty realize that the options for expansion in Havertown are limited, and instead “make do” and “will never not teach yoga.”

“Some studio owners let other newer students take over. But it’s what we’re meant to do,” Chemi said. “It’s our path. We’re sending the same message, and we’re very aligned in what we do.”