About | Ashtanga Yoga Boise

History of Ashtanga Yoga Boise

Sarah Hatcher, the founder of Ashtanga Yoga Boise, currently lives in Dublin, Ireland and teaches workshops throughout Scotland and Ireland and offer retreats in Spain and Italy. Her Ashtanga journey began when she saw an Ashtanga yoga demonstration while studying at the University of Oregon in 2000, and from that point on, began to practice Ashtanga Yoga as much as she could and hasn’t stopped since. She moved to Boise in 2005 after ending a short career as a wildland firefighter hotshot. She started teaching Ashtanga Yoga at the Boise YMCA and E7 Yoga. In 2008 Sarah opened Ashtanga Yoga Boise located on Williams Street and had it operating through 2011. During her time in Boise, she also taught yoga in the Boise School District where she worked as a Substitute Teacher and later, a Behavioral Interventionist. During her time in Boise from 2005-2011, she hosted Certified and Authorized teachers David Garrigues (who first came to the YMCA in 2005 to guest teach), Christine Hoar, and Randa Chehab. In 2011, Sarah moved to Philadelphia to study with David Garrigues then in 2012 she moved to Scotland. Find out more about Sarah .

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When Sarah moved to the UK, Gretchen Arguedas began teaching a Sunday Led Primary at Sage Yoga in downtown Boise until 2017 when Tim and Olga Laporte moved to Boise from Oceanside, CA. Unfortunately, the studio closed and in 2021, and Tim and Olga returned to California handing the Ashtanga Yoga Boise reigns to Rebecca Houston.

Rebecca found meditation and yoga in 2006 and from 2008-2014 she practiced throughout cities in the US and Europe while working as a rotational counselor for the Military. In 2011, while on assignment in Okinawa, she discovered Ashtanga Yoga , via a DVD of Richard Freeman. From then on, she practiced at every Ashtanga Shala she could find as well as with the famous YouTube video of Pattabhi Jois teaching the “old timers.” Since she was living in hotel rooms across the country, that video was usually her weekly Led Primary class for several years.

Rebecca attended trainings in Mt. Shasta, Las Vegas, and Paris with Tim Miller, the first Ashtanga Teacher certified by Pattabhi Jois. During 2012/2013, she traveled every weekend for 6 months from Fort Irwin, in the Mohave Desert, to the California coast to practice with Tim and was given the first half of the Intermediate Series.

In 2014 she jumped off the military ship and landed on Maui to practice for three years with Nancy Gilgoff, the first western woman taught the Ashtanga Yoga system by Pattabhi Jois in 1973. In 2015, she was given the second half of the Intermediate series by Nancy and in November that year, Rebecca took the Primary Series Teacher Training from Manju Jois, son of Pattabhi Jois. Rebecca’s had the opportunity to practice in Ashtanga Shalas throughout the world including Okinawa, Israel, England, France, Spain, Carlsbad, Mt. Shasta, Dana Point, Reno, Las Vegas, Hawaii, and Seattle. She’s also practiced with other master teachers including David Swenson, David Williams, and Ty Landrum.

If you have the opportunity to practice with her, you’ll most likely hear explanations for the precision of Ashtanga Yoga as well as benefits of practicing this ancient system, stories of her teachers and travel adventures, how to modify and adapt for injuries and limitations in the body, and laughter; definitely laughter!

Rebecca has worked as a trauma therapist for 25 years and works exclusively with First Responders and Military in her private practice in Boise, Idaho. If not working, practicing Ashtanga or meditating, she enjoys sauntering on the Boise River or foothills, dancing Flamenco, traveling, and spending time with her mother, daughter, and grandchildren.