Shana Stitzel

With over 20 years of practice and teaching experience, her work centers on cultivating presence, resilience, and deep listening, guiding students toward a more integrated relationship with body, breath, and mind.Her journey into yoga began through meditation and contemplative inquiry, what she describes as the path into truth and presence. This foundation continues to inform her approach, shaping classes that are intentional, grounded, and deeply supportive. Shana’s teaching invites students to move beyond surface level form into subtle awareness, somatic intelligence, and nervous system regulation, offering practices that support restoration, self inquiry, and sustainable wellbeing.A lifelong student of yoga, Shana completed her 200 hour training in 2010 with Global Yoga, followed by her 300 hour advanced training under the guidance of Suddha Weixler at the Chicago Yoga Center. Her continued studies span classical and contemporary traditions including Hatha Yoga, Vinyasa Krama, Yin Yoga, Shamatha Meditation, Anusara, and Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga. With deep gratitude, she honors her primary teachers and the lineage of Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, as well as her ongoing studies with Sri Manju Pattabhi Jois of the Ashtanga tradition.Shana’s classes are known for their calm depth, precise yet compassionate instruction, and nurturing atmosphere. Her teaching blends classical alignment principles with subtle somatic awareness, breath centered movement, and mindful pacing, creating experiences that support physical intelligence, emotional regulation, and nervous system balance. Her work emphasizes therapeutic education, mindful movement, meditation, and restorative practices, all designed to meet students where they are and honor the body’s natural rhythms.As the founder and owner of Central Street Yoga in Evanston, Illinois, Shana has cultivated a heart centered community devoted to conscious movement, contemplative practice, and embodied living. Through her online platform, ShanaMarieYoga.com, she offers weekly classes, workshops, corporate wellness programming, teacher mentorship, and Yoga Alliance approved continuing education. She also leads her own SMYL Skillful Meditative Yoga Life 200 hour Teacher Training, a comprehensive program integrating mindfulness, meditation, embodiment, and classical yoga principles.Shana’s work is guided by a deep reverence for the wisdom of the body, the intelligence of stillness, and the quiet power of presence. Her intention is to create spaces where students feel seen, supported, and gently invited home to themselves, cultivating steadiness, compassion, and inner resilience both on and off the mat.