Press
Magazine Articles:
On the Right Path:
Incense-burning, chanting, stretching, sweating: How do you find your inner yogi?
By Jane Marion
BALTIMORE MAGAZINE: (excerpt of a feature published in the March 2009 issue; read the full article HERE.)
Note: article was written while Jenny was owner and director of Golden Heart Yoga in Annapolis, Maryland.
 Though Golden Heart Yoga opened its doors just five years ago, it has quickly established itself as the premiere yoga studio in the Annapolis area, winning Best of Annapolis from What's Up? Magazine three years in a row for best yoga and meditation center. Owner Jenny Otto, who, after 27 years of study, is known to be one of the most skilled yoga teachers in the area (and was one of the first certified Anusara teachers in the country), is nationally recognized for her in-depth understanding of therapeutics and anatomy (even dissecting human cadavers to further her knowledge of body structure) and has trained with yoga masters, osteopaths, chiropractors, and Rolfers (who manipulate the body's connective tissues to release stress). Where other yoga studios are sometimes thinly veiled aerobics classes, Otto aims to introduce the art and science of yoga. "We are more old school in our approach," says Otto. "I consider the style of what we do as more authentic. We are the only ones in Annapolis who explore the poses and break them down.”
Happy Feet
By Jennifer Lang
FIT YOGA: (excerpt from feature story published in the August 2008 issue; read the full story HERE)
 —“Our feet are like steering wheels of the legs,” says Jenny Otto, senior certified Anusara yoga teacher and owner/director of Golden Heart Yoga in Annapolis, Maryland. (from 2004-2009) “What happens to the feet affects the knees, hips, and, ultimately, the whole spine. Everything starts from the ground up.” And Otto knows: She not only healed her painful heel spurs through yoga but also built up the arches of her flat feet.
— The purpose of the feet is the same in every pose, says Otto. “You can’t create extension without equal and opposite force of gravity,” she says. “It’s a basic law of physics: There must be grounding to create a lift in gravity.”
—“They guide our knees and hips, acting as an anchor to earth,” says Otto. As we press down through the four corners, the arches, which comprise sling muscles (tibialis anterior and fibularis longus), help draw energy up and into the body and communicate with the pelvis and lower-back muscles. When you use your feet correctly and distribute your weight
evenly, the rest of your body responds energetically. If your weight is unevenly distributed, you’ll compensate somewhere else, inevitably causing strain and tension in your body.
Related Links:
— Foot Yoga for a Fine Foundation — Foot Yoga Pampers Your Feet — by Charlotte Bell
(Charlotte is author of Mindful Yoga, Mindful Life: A Guide for Everyday Practice and the upcoming Yoga for Meditators)
Get Local: An Interview with Jenny Otto
DISTRICT KULA BLOG: (excerpt from a June 2011 interview; read the full interview HERE)
What Can a Student Expect in a Class With You?
"I am very creative and enjoy creating my own poses and variations thereof to benefit the health and well-being of every student. My teaching is practical, authentic and fun. I have been told many times I am a teachers’ teacher. I still hear from people that have taken trainings and workshops with me that say they still use techniques I have taught them in their classes."
What Advice Would You Give to a New Student?
"Listen to your body, and if you feel what is being offered is not a good idea, don’t do it. Ask for assistance or modification. The teacher does not live in your body and cannot possibly know what you are feeling or going through. Do not turn your power over to anybody."
Awards and Recognition:
 
—Finalist for the The Capital Readers Choice 2011 Award for Best Yoga in Annapolis.
Thank you to all of our students for voting
and supporting us! We appreciate you!
— Honored with the Best
Annapolis Yoga Award
(2006, 2007, 2008) while owner of Golden Heart Yoga.
Winning Best of Annapolis from What's Up? Magazine three years in a row for Best Yoga and Meditation Center.
Special Events:
— Click HERE for a slideshow of an
Anatomy Trains Dissection with Tom Meyers
in which Jenny participated.
— Jenny Otto’s Yoga For Motorcycling Classes to raise funds for the troops; Old Glory Harley Group Support for the Troops
— Jenny Otto also participates in fundraisers for the Annual Ryan P. McDonald Golf Tournaments
— Jenny Otto regulary donates yoga classes to raise funds for the Annapolis Animal Shelter
Press About Body Balance Yoga Teachers:
— March 2011: Melinda Frisch assisted in two yoga workshops for people with MS in A Day of Healing in Arlington, Virginia, sponsored by the National Capital Chapter of the MS Society.
—Sandy Moore participated in the 2010 and 2011 Susan G. Komen 3-Day Walk for the Cure, a 60 mile walk to fundraise for breast cancer research and help to support local community programs supporting education, screening and treatment. In May 2010, Sandy taught a Pink Warrior Yoga Class to raise awareness about breast cancer. Look for more Pink Warrior Yoga Classes and Events as Sandy has signed up for this amazing journey in the fight to end breast cancer for 2011. Please read Sandy's story HERE.
Press About Balanced Life Skills:Jenny is honored to be associated with Balanced Life Skills and is proud of all of their community service programs and the important charitable work they continually offer, including:
— Christmas for the Foster Children of Anne Arundel County: BLS students giving and wrapping gifts for foster children
— Donating funds from the The Christmas Jar Project to deserving families so they can enjoy the holidays
— Preparing meals for the clients of the Lighthouse Shelter
— Out of the Darkness Walk: an important walk to raise funds for suicide prevention
Please visit their website at www.BalancedLifeSkills.com
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