Instructors

Jill Gutowski, Co-Director

Jill approaches yoga as a healing tool of transformation that has enormous potential to bring individuals greater physical, mental, emotional and spiritual vitality and collective well-being. Searching for her own healing from depression and an eating disorder, Jill began practicing meditation in 1994 and started yoga soon thereafter. Jill has been a certified yoga instructor since 2000. She teaches from the direct experience of healing that her yoga practice brings and inspires others to embrace their own yogic journey. She states, "My first practice of yoga filled me with a feeling of coming home that I had not felt with other forms of physical activity. I was further intrigued that yoga cared for my body as well as my spirit. It led me to feel more accepting of myself and I sensed a deep connection on that very first day."

Jill’s background includes a degree in psychology and a Masters Degree in Counseling. She became a psychotherapist working with individuals and groups in the areas of addiction and eating disorders. After a life threatening health crisis in 2001, she decided to pursue teaching yoga full-time and opened The Yoga Studio at Pennington (now Four Winds Yoga) with her husband Michael Brantl, in May 2002. In addition to co-directing FWY, Jill has also taught at Princeton University, as an adjunct professor at The College of NJ, at The Medical Center at Princeton and at numerous non-profit agencies.

Jill has numerous certifications in yoga. Most notably, she sites her early influences of a non-dogmatic, open approach to yoga were a result of her studies with Ganga White and Tracy Rich of White Lotus Foundation, Santa Barbara, CA. She developed her skills in working with various physical and emotional issues with Ana Forrest, obtaining certifications at both the advanced and foundational levels as well as assisting Ana Forrest in national workshops and at FWY. In 2001, Jill became certified to teach pregnancy yoga with Janice Clarefield and has since enjoyed empowering women experiencing this life-changing transformation to motherhood through yoga.

Jill and Mike together enjoy sharing their passion and expertise in yoga teacher training programs and courses. Jill’s classes are both challenging and therapeutic, specializing in helping students work with and prevent injuries. She seeks to inspire her students to breathe new energy into their lives and to be open to new experiences. She teaches her students to connect to their spirit and live more vibrantly from their core with compassion and humor, while encouraging them to move beyond perceived limitations.

Read the article written about the studio that appeared in U.S.1  Read the article

Michael Brantl, Co-Director

Mike’s academic and athletic backgrounds lead him to the practice of yoga. An athlete from an early age, an avid exerciser since childhood, a sister who was an accomplished gymnast; movement was always a natural part of his life. After participating in competitive sports such as basketball, football, baseball, ultimate Frisbee and swimming; Mike transitioned to endurance sports like triathlons and marathons, and completed a cross-country bicycle trip in 1984. He also took up golf in his mid to late 20’s and has been passionate about golf since. “I always used stretching and weight training to boost my strength and flexibility”. Returning to college at the tender age of 30 lead Mike to the study of exercise science and corporate fitness. He received his second bachelor’s degree from the College of New Jersey in corporate fitness in 1995 graduating with honors and being listed in the Who’s Who among American College Students as well as other awards of academic excellence. This accompanies his first BS in psychology from Shippensburg University received in 1983. During Mike’s study at TCNJ he entered a yoga class as part of the curriculum. “I was very intrigued by the relaxation benefits I received from the yoga, being I was training for a marathon at the time”. Mike received elite certifications as a personal trainer, health fitness instructor, and strength and conditioning specialist during his studies at TCNJ. Mike has 15 years of experience working in the health and fitness industry, and nearly a decade of yoga teaching experience. In the summer of 1996 Mike participated in his first formal study of yoga at a weekend teachers program and was hooked from that point on. A daily practice of asana lead him to the White Lotus Foundation in 1998 where he was certified as a hatha yoga instructor. He also completed several advanced trainings there as well as the study of Thai Massage Yoga Therapy. He received training and certification in the primary series of astanga yoga with David Swenson in 1999, and completed an advanced teacher training with Erich Schiffmann in 2000. He has studied with many high quality yoga teachers of various traditions for extended workshops and weeklong programs. In 2003 Mike’s study of yoga lead him to a completion and certification of a 400-hour training in Anusara yoga with Todd Norian. He also completed John Friend’s Level 1 training in May 2004. Mike draws on his many yoga influences and personal practice to teach classes that emphasize breath awareness, a deep connection to physical alignment, and moving in a healing way. He blends humor and intensity to make his classes user friendly, inspiring, challenging, and fun. His greatest inspiration comes from his 14 years plus in recovery from addiction and a loving relationship with his wife, Jill Gutowski. Mike is an avid golfer and is writing a book on yoga and golf, as well as working with golfers to improve their games with the practice of yoga. “Golf and yoga are perfect together because both require you to stay present in the process and not obsessed with the outcome".

Read what the press is saying about Michael. Read the articles

Sita Menon

Sita first came to yoga about 10 years ago while trying to balance the rigors of a career in software and parenthood. When she made a commitment to a daily practice, she began to see the value of yoga practice in her everyday life. In addition to gaining physical strength and health, yoga helped her deal with the stresses of a hectic life and helped her gain a new perspective on the importance of being present and aware for whatever life brings.

She has practiced various flavors of yoga - Ashtanga, Vinyasa, Power, Bikram and in search for a place to deepen her practice, came to Four Winds Yoga. Sita states, “I was drawn to the depth of the classes at Four Winds and also to the Forrest Style taught by Jill. I continue to benefit tremendously from the strength and insight that this yoga brings to me.”

Sita attends various conferences and workshops and has benefited from the generosity of teachers such as - Ana Forrest, Baron Baptiste, David Swenson, Shiva Rea, Seane Corn to name a few. Sita completed the 200-hour Teacher Training at Four Winds in 2009 and states, “I am thankful to Jill and Mike for helping me find more meaning in my practice.”

Sita has been teaching yoga since Fall 2008 and deeply enjoys imparting her love for yoga. Students in Sita’s classes can expect a well-rounded asana practice which focuses on strength, flexibility and balance while building a deep connection to the breath. Her classes are both challenging and compassionate, making room for students to work at their own level. More than anything, Sita assists her students in connecting to a sense of inner well-being and the stillness of mind that can be cultivated through the regular practice of yoga.

Pascale Maloof Poussart

Pascale came to Ashtanga Yoga while in graduate school at Harvard University. Both on and off the mat, she began feeling stronger, healthier and happier. Wishing to share with others the benefits of yoga, Pascale studied to become a teacher in 2004. In 2006, she visited Mysore, India to practice with the late Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, the founding father of Ashtanga Yoga.

Pascale returned home understanding that a daily practice is the first step towards sustained health and wellbeing. She is grateful to have studied yoga with inspiring teachers such as Beryl Bender Birch, Michael Brantl, Ana Forrest, Jill Gutowski, Mimi Loureiro, Tracey Rich, David Swenson, Ganga White and David Williams. As a teacher, she aspires to share with her students a love of yoga and an enthusiastic spirit for self-discovery. Off the mat, she works as a Climate & Energy Scientist at Princeton University.

Teresa Kelly

Teresa’s first exposure to yoga was through a therapist that combined the therapeutic tools of yoga poses and talk therapy. During her ongoing healing process, for depression, an eating disorder and infertility, Teresa began to discover how her “issues were in her tissues.” She began practicing yoga and felt how it changed the way she felt, and how a yoga practice awakens each one of us to our inner resources of strength, truth and healing. Her journey led her to Four Winds Yoga in 2005, where she continues to study yoga with both Jill Gutowski and Michael Brantl.

At Four Winds Yoga, she has discovered a community of friends and a life-transforming yoga practice. Teresa graduated from the Four Winds Yoga 200 Hour Hatha Yoga Teacher Training in May 2009. She also received certification to teach Journey Dance, by Toni Bergens, in the summer of 2008.

Teresa believes that combining breath, yoga, meditation and free movement is the path to unlocking the blockages in the body, thereby freeing the mind. Her goal as a teacher is to help others befriend their bodies, face the challenges of their minds, and call their spirits home. Teresa teaches high school English and enjoys reading, music, journaling and walking down by the Delaware River.

Lindsey Prassas

Lindsey felt so balanced, energized and deeply calm after her very first yoga class that she knew it was a practice that she had to explore. The more yoga she did, the more intrigued she became and she embarked on a journey of self exploration. Yoga helped her to repair her self-esteem and feel more empowered in her body.

Lindsey has learned that her daily yoga practice, along with meditation, assists her in dealing more effectively with stress by being more mindfully aware and tuned in to the presence of her spirit. Her dedicated practice has also helped Lindsey in her other work as a hairstylist, helping to draw out the beauty within her clients.

In May 2009 she completed 200 hours of teacher training at Four Winds Yoga and continues to study with Jill and Mike at Four Winds Yoga. Lindsey creates a warm and inviting atmosphere in which students feel safe to explore their genuine feelings, challenge their bodies and deepen their sense of gratitude in a sincere and playful way. Lindsey’s compassion, gratitude for her practice and love of helping others shines through in her teaching. She is inspired to teach in a way that awakens the beauty within every being.

Kelly Connelly

Kelly took her first yoga class after looking for a way to supplement traditional gym workouts. Instead she found a practice that challenged her physically yet left her with more energy than ever. After several years of practicing with only the physical side in mind she had an ‘ah ha’ moment where she realized that yoga was about letting go of the goal and looking inward to see what is possible.

Her daily practice has grown to include several styles of yoga such as Vinyasa, Yin, Forrest, and most recently Restorative. Kelly completed the Four Winds Yoga 200 hour teacher training program in May 2009 and is working towards her teacher training certification. Her classes focus on letting go of the tension and stress that comes with our hectic lives and discovering the peace that come with true relaxation. Off the mat she works as an engineer for a pharmaceutical company and enjoys hiking, running, reading, and spending time with friends and family.