Teachers

Marzena Kierepka

I fell in love with yoga immediately and that love continues, even today!
I began practicing yoga in 1999. The classes were on a Sunday in a local gym. I confess back then I didn’t even know what yoga was. It was not long after that I began to look forward to Sundays with anticipation, excited to go to the gym and practice.
One day, I took the plunge. I approached my teacher and asked, “Where can I learn more about this?”
Her answer was: “Go to India to this ashram in the south…”
Two months later I was on a plane to that ashram in India to cultivate my practice and hone my skills. On that journey I explored different styles, teachers and places. The rest is history.
The vastness of this subject; its depth; and its beauty can be overwhelming. I tried and practiced many different styles before I found the style that speaks to me best: Iyengar Yoga. A type of Hatha Yoga that focuses on alignment, strength and unity of body & mind; Iyengar Yoga was developed by Guruji B.K.S. Iyengar whom I met in Pune, India on several occasions.

I feel gratitude from the depth of my heart to all my teachers: The Iyengar family, Hart Lazer, and Radjiv& Swati Chanchanis. Their graciousness in sharing their knowledge with me has allowed me to experience the joy of yoga.

Currently Marzena lives in Hanoi, Vietnam. Since 2007 she has owned and operated Zenith Yoga Studio. She is married to Pankaj and has two beautiful boys, Aditya &Aayan.

Vu Kim Thu

Vu Kim Thu started practicing yoga in 2000 during her enrollment at The School of The Art Institute of Chicago. She fell in love with yoga after her first class and immediately noticed the huge difference in body and mind after just one week. She studied Hatha yoga with SuddhaWeixler at the Chicago Yoga Center for a few years because he taught at her art school.
In 2003, Thu’s practice developed through intensive classes at Chicago Moksha Yoga Center. From here, she explored the styles of yogis like Ana Forrest, Shiva Rea and many other great teachers. In 2006, she travelled to Thailand to study Ashtanga Yoga with Paul Dallahan at Yoga Thailand on KohSamui.
In 2007, a severe back injury changed her practice forever. Thu became more interested in yoga therapy, gentle practice and how yoga can play a role as a healing process physically and mentally. This led her to begin Raja Yoga teacher training with Ron Katwijk at Magic Pond Yoga Center in Seoul, Korea. Raja Yoga which emphasizes discipline and self-control allowed her to advance her practice to a meditative and restorative style.
Thu’s favorite quote is; “Practice, practice and all is coming” by Sri K PatthabiJois.

Willie Cohen Vroege

They promised me coffee…

When I moved to India with my family, everyone split away: kids went to school and my husband to work. Luckily, I met a few ladies who were practicing yoga – they asked me to come and practice with them. At the time, I thought yoga was something trendy, for the chic, but they said “come we are drinking coffee after practice!” so along I went.

In that first class I discovered that yoga was not something vague, nor trendy, but something that can really change the body and mind in the most positive way.

I was very lucky to have a great first teacher, ChethanSateesh, who created my foundation whilst I established my love for yoga.

A few years later in Hanoi, fate revealed itself when I discovered Zenith Yoga. There were so many great teachers including MarzenaKierepka, from Zenith Yoga. When I realized my intention to teach, I enrolled in my first teacher course under Hart Lazer who is still my teacher. My devotion for his teachings persuaded me to participate in an advanced teacher course in Manila, allowing me to develop my passion under many great guest teachers.
I strongly believe in teaching a solid foundation in the yoga practice – establishing a strong and physically correct posture is key to proficient practice. I want to send the message that yoga is for young and old – to bring all people standing proudly in Tandasana.

Thuong Nguyen

Practicing yoga regularly for at least 5 years before taking the big step to become yoga instructor has helped Thuong so much in her teaching. For her, the most important part of being an instructor is being a student first. Getting regular practice means being on the mat and doing the real thing. By sharing the journey with students Thuong can better understand them; acknowledge their hard work; encourage them, and guide them through their practice.

Thuong always tries to improve herself in practice as well as trying to better herself as a person.

She began her training to become a Vinyasa Yoga instructor through Bliss Yoga Philippines in 2012 and soon after she started her teaching journey at Bliss Yoga Manila.Vinyasa Yoga offers intense workouts that emphasize aligning movement and breath, whilst working up a sweat on the mat.

She returned to Hanoi in 2013 to be with her family. Almost as soon as she got back, she was welcomed into the Zenith family and has been teaching at both studios ever since. To hone her teaching skills, Thuongattended a Vinyasa course with Yogi Dominique Renucce in India for 7 weeks in 2014. She is now a certified 500 hour Vinyasa instructor. Her classes are not always easy but they are fun.
In her own words “It’s more than just a job for me to come to class. It is a place where I can be just myself; give what I know best; help students to do their best and be just who they exactly are. Zenith community is not only a place to practice yoga but also a place to make friends and to take a breather. It’s like my second home here.”

Thuy Nguyen

Since starting in 2008, yoga has been a remarkable journey for me. Practicing Asanas – the art of creating a pose mindfully – is the most interesting part, especially the mind to body connection.

Yoga has led me to a wise philosophy of life. It has guidedme to meet inspiring people. In times of stress, it influences my decisions and reactions.
Thanks to yoga, I am who I am now, and I really appreciate it!

In my opinion, Zenith yoga studio is the “real” yoga studio in Hanoi. With carefully selected teachers;intense workshopsand training from yoga gurus from all over the world, Zenith is an inspiring yoga community. I’m proud to be a student and teacher here!

Namaste.

Naomi Misawa

I started yoga in 2012 and quickly became attracted to it. In 2013 I quit my job and began teaching in Hanoi. It was a huge change in my life – I wanted to focus on my yoga life.

I have taught at Zenith Yoga since 2014. Its friendly atmosphere and ethos of peace and love make Zenith my favorite place to be!

I believe that yoga has a lot of types of practices and approaches but in all, the essence is the same. My favorite form is Ashtanga Yoga. Developed by K. PattabhiJois, this type of yoga is composed of eight elements acting in unity including the pose and the breath.

My favorite motto is: “Practice becomes firmly grounded when well attended to for a long time, without break and in all earnestness”. Yoga Sutra 1:14

Piseth Lun

Piseth Lun is from Cambodia. Pieth started yoga in 2008 when he met his first yoga teacher Isabelle Skaburskis. After engaged his life to yoga with Isabelle, Piseth committed to Isabelle’s yoga project in Cambodia which has known as “Bring Yoga To Life In Cambodia”. He worked full time in this project as a yoga teacher and a member of management team.

Through this project, Piseth has learned so deep about yoga asana, pranayama, philosophy, anatomy and yoga therapy. He also have met and studied intensively with many great teachers such as Hart Lazer, Paddy McGrath, John Ang, and Paul Dallaghan.

This day, Piseth is traveling around South Asia. He still has a strong connection to the project in Cambodia. As now he is in hanoi with Zenith Yoga Family.

Piseth teaches yoga to students of all levels and helps them deepen their yoga practice with safety and joy. His classes are challenging, fun and based on a deep understanding of human anatomy.

Zuzzalla Krishna Hare

Zuzzalla has been living in Hanoi for 4 years, and lives with her dog and cat. She completed her 200 and 300 hour teaching certification in the holy city of Rishikesh in 2012 and 2014. She enjoys blending the yoga styling of Hatha, Vinyassa and Restorative Yoga in her practice. Suzanna loves being part of the Zenith community, which has been an instrumental tool in her personal growth and journey in yoga. She believes wholeheartedly that yoga will change your life if you practice: “By mastery comes wisdom,” Yoga Sutra 3.5. She wishes a big Namaste to all of you.

Gavan Dolin

For me Yoga has been a lifelong experience. I started yoga practice 25 years ago. Memories of me as a child playing at practicing asana are still fresh in my mind. I didn’t know what yoga was then. It just felt right. I feel I am always learning more about yoga and meditation. Understanding and patience develop with experience and allows me see more clearly than I did when I was younger.I now know that as I get older, age is not the limitation I expected it to be.
I believe that everyone can benefit from yoga practice. Everyone’s body is different, and each of us comes to a place in yoga where we realize that our bodies possess limits unique to ourselves. This is part of the essence of yoga and as a yoga teacher I hope to help students understand that yoga is more than being able to do a difficult pose well. I see asana (the physical practice of yoga) as only the preparation of the body to allow the mind to become quieter. When the mind becomes quieter, meditation is possible and we can overcome our physical limitations.
Namaste.

Huong Trieu

“Life has no limits”

Trieu ThienHuong is a dynamic young woman from Ho Chi Minh city. She loves the bustle of Hanoi. She always wants to explore something new and be ready to give herself a chance to be challenged without worrying about the result. For 4.5 years Huong worked for one of the biggest shipping companies in the world. Here she faced many experiences: exhilaration, joy, sadness, stress and disappointment. Everytime she does yoga and Pilates she is able to overcome fluctuations in energy and return to a centered, balanced self.

After she resigned from her job, she travelled on a journey of self-exploration and discovery. She wanted to discover her true self and find a sense of purpose. Hanoi is a place that she fell in love with!

She loves the weather; the local people; Hanoi food; the old quarter;the small alleys; tiny stairs and vintage style of Hanoi.

A Google search led her to Zenith where she began a Pilates Mat Instructor Training course. With a background in dance, she has used her confidence and energy to inspire her students. According to her: “sometimes there is no next time, no second chance, and no time out; just now or never”.

As a Pilates instructor Huong loves practicing and understanding more about her body and mind. As her practice develops, her knowledge and desire to look after herself grows too. She loves to help everyone to be healthy and happy like her: “I love myself, I love who I am and I love what I love to do”. She hopes to inspire others to adopt her mindset.

Carole Scarwell

I discovered Pilates 10 years ago after my first baby was born. You know how it is after pregnancy. I needed to work on my abs, tone my body and correct my posture – and it worked. It was and ideal way to resume physical activity in a gentle way. Since then, I have never stopped practicing Pilates. I do it together with extra cardio activities like running, boxing, zumba dancing… I find it is excellent when combined with other sports as it helps you be aware of your body’s alignment. You learn how to articulate your spine in order to keep your back neutral; avoid back pain; relax your tense shoulders and to keep your abdominals engaged. All of which leads to a more elegant figure. In fact, it allows you to be aware of your posture and to correct it constantly.I used to do artistic gymnastics and I found some similarities with Pilates such as flexibility and strength.
2 years ago at Zenith Yoga, I trained for Mat I, then Mat II instructor qualifications. Initially, it was more for myself than to be a teacher. I wanted to know more about anatomy and to understand better how the body could be worked. I enjoyed it enormously and little by little became interested in teaching others. And here I am…
For beginners, I know it feels like too many things to do at the same time: you need to concentrate on your breathing, on your center, on your alignment as well as on the exercise itself, but eventually through practice, you will feel steady improvements.
Join the journey to a healthy mind in a healthy body!