About me
I left my hometown of Buenos Aires at a young age to pursue my ballet career. After graduating from The Royal Ballet School in London I pirouetted to Amsterdam to join Het Nationale Ballet. A decade of high discipline in pointe shoes was followed by a decade on my feet managing some of Amsterdam's most demanding restaurants and clubs. Amidst this crazy lifestyle I was lucky to discover yoga at my local gym, and ever since then my relationship to yoga has been evolving. I always had an entrepreneurial spirit - I set up restaurants, large events, and yoga studios (all still thriving!). The last thirteen years I devoted primarily to my yoga sharing. I currently live in London with my husband Martin and our three cats.
I like to think of practice as a container for self exploration - each breath, each pose is an opportunity to observe myself, to recognise the patterns that keep showing up while opening up to new possibilities. In other words it helps me own my s*it, learn to accept myself and the world around me just as we are. In my early days I studied Iyengar & Vinyasa yoga, until I came across the Ashtanga method, which soon after became my anchor. Throughout the years I've been inspired by different teachers, especially the much missed Nancy Gilgoff, Dena Kingsberg, and Andrea Lutz who I am still learning from today. I am also lucky to be surrounded by gifted friends such as Luke Jordan & Scott Johnson who inspire me through their friendship and our sharing.
I am fascinated by the internal workings of the practice - that which we cannot see. My classes are therefore very much focused around the breath and quality of attention. Sometimes I like to explain in detail, others I prefer the silence and hands-on assists to do the explaining - but always tuning into the energy of the room and the individual’s needs all while keeping a healthy sense of humour! I am also an advocate of accessible pranayama techniques and loving kindness meditation.
I am not a fan of calling myself a 'yoga teacher' so please think of me as a support, an older sister if you like. At the end of the day like Ram Dass so beautifully said: "We are all just walking each other home".
Yoga has the potential to be a deep, meaningful, personal journey and I would be delighted to support you anyway I can.
“Mercedes teaches wonderful, real yoga classes. I now remember why I started practicing yoga.”