michael dotolo

His instruction focuses on breath and alignment found in the lineage of a more traditional Hatha practice. In 2001, he began practicing an alignment-based vinyasa yoga (MalaYoga, Brooklyn) allowing him to become familiarized with the notion that achieving a pose means maintaining control of the breath. Both alignment and breath became critical for the time he spent studying at the BKS Iyengar Institute in Amsterdam. A more dedicating approach to yoga emerged while living in India for several years. There, Michael had the opportunity to understand yoga as an expression of culture, and how this in turn, shapes practice and comprehension. His formal teacher-training took place at The Yoga Institute in Mumbai, where yoga is taught as a holistic system reflected by a lifestyle of mindfulness. The simplified hatha techniques at the heart of the YI's learning experience, were developed by the ashram founder, Shri Yogendra. After completing his formal training, Michael studied hatha with a multi-generational teacher for a couple of years while living in Delhi. The course of these studies included developing techniques of pranayama and trataka. He also traveled and participated in various workshops for yoga and meditation in India and Nepal.