Meet your hosts...

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Karol De Souza journey in holistic therapies started very early in life, from about the age of eight her father taught her different breathing and meditation techniques, spoke about things like dealing with negative emotions, awareness and being in the present; all in a very fun and relatable way for a child.

At the age of sixteen (2004) Karol started her Yoga practice in her hometown. Later on Karol has moved to Australia to get her Bachelor University Degree in International Business and a few years later she decided to quit her work and follow her passion for Yoga. Karol has visited India twice for long seasons to study Hatha, Ashtanga Yoga, Yoga Therapy and Meditation. But she didn't stop threre, her curiosity for all things related to spirituality and the human subconscious mind took her to study Neurolinguistics Programming (NLP) and more recently she's been dedicating herself to studying other tools for self awareness and personal development.

Karol has been teaching yoga, running and directing her own Yoga & Personal Development retreats in Europe and around the world since 2017. Karol teaches the art of creative and intuitive Vinyasa Flow, Pranayama, Meditation and other tools to Personal Development to her retreat experiences; like journaling, breath work sessions, dynamic workshops in Nlp and more.

After years travelling and teaching around the world Karol has settled in a small coastal town in Portugal, Ericeira, where the retreat will take place. Besides being a dedicated Yoga teacher she's also an enthusiastic vegan food chef, a passionate surfer, world traveller and nature lover.

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Emilie Sabbe journey into the world of yoga started at the young age. Her mum, a former yoga teacher herself, taught her about the importance of a healthy relationship between physical and mental well-being. They would spent a lot of hours on the yoga mat together, which only increased Emilie's interest in the fascinating world of yoga. 

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The many challenging postures also whetted her interest in the human body, which led her to a Master’s degree in Rehabilitation Sciences and Physiotherapy. This degree has increased her knowledge of anatomical structures, movement patterns and understanding of the human body. Which is a great asset when teaching and building up yoga classes correctly. The two-years teacher training in Critical Alignement also opened up a whole new world of interesting insights to Emilie. 

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The Critical Alignment yoga style - which unites physical and emotional strength - also fits seamlessly with this and distinguishes itself from other yoga styles by focusing on the mobility of the spine, where the balance of the entire body resides. The smallest movement can already have a major impact on the position of the spine and therefore on the body as a whole. 

Nowadays you can find Emilie teaching and directing her own yoga studio Yoga Nirmla in the heart of Bruges, Belgium.

Emilie & Karol met at a yoga retreat in Portugal in 2021 and the similarities of their stories and complementary styles they teach brought them to create this unique experience together. They both agree and live by the motto that yoga is a journey of constant change. A yoga pose is more than just a few movements; you increase not only your own body awareness but awareness of how you live life and how you interact with the world around you.