meet the teachers

Erin Leavitt

Erin’s first experience with yoga began in 2011 when her friend introduced her to a Bikram Yoga class.  Although she was shocked by the intensity of the heat, she was pleasantly surprised as to how good she felt afterwards.  Practicing on a regular basis, Erin quickly noticed the feel great benefits for body, mind, and soul that yoga gave her.  When a new yoga studio, Hot Asana in Hampstead NH, opened close to her home, she fell in love with all styles of yoga.  In 2017 she registered to become RYT 200.   She teaches at Hot Asana and at Ground Swell, Salisbury Beach in the summer months. 

    Erin holds a degree in Human Services and is Reiki Certified.  She has a passionate interest in  the Healing Arts and utilizes her intuitive nature to assist her clients to be the very best they can be…inside and out.  “Teaching yoga at Groundswell on the beach has been such a peaceful, magical, and enlightening experience for me.  I love the positive energy I feel the whole day thereafter.  My only hope is that the clients who participate feel the same”.  Namaste’

Molly Sullivan

Hi, I'm Molly Sullivan Teal, RYT 200.  I'm a fitness instructor and registered yoga teacher.  My fitness journey began as a kid, always being involved in youth sports and anything outdoors. With this, I also faced severe chronic injuries through my young adulthood and had to find a way to fall in love with exercise again. I began taking barre classes, utilizing every modification I could to make it through until I slowly built back strength I lost. I was hooked and completed my certifications in barre, Metafit (HIIT/strength), Buti yoga, cardio kickboxing and my 200 hour yoga certification. Teaching is my passion and I love meeting new people. With each class I teach, I offer many options so every body is welcome regardless of where you are on your fitness journey. I also focus a lot of my classes on breath work and the importance of connecting your mind to your body. See you at the beach!

Candace Lord

Candace Lord is an adventure-seeking mom of two athletic kids, and she and her husband Jim Materkowski own Integrated Fitness of Dover. She enjoys staying active and healthy and lives by the four Fs—Family, Fun, Fitness, and Food! As a Pro Bodybuilder, Fitbody competitor and Powerlifter, Candace understands the importance of staying flexible and limber- which is why she has been practicing yoga for over 20 years!  Continuing her education is important to Candace. She is a certified personal trainer with the American Council on Exercise and a certified YogaFit instructor. She also received her PN Level 1 Nutrition Coach certification. Candace has been in the health and fitness field for almost 15 years. She is a breast cancer survivor of just 18 months and that experience has renewed her zest for health and fitness.  Helping people of all levels of fitness reach their full potential is important to her. That is why her schedule as a personal trainer and coach is usually packed solid! Her motto? “If you are going to rise, you may as well shine!”

Sarah Oleson

Sarah Oleson is an International yoga and wellness retreat leader based out of New England. Sarah was introduced to meditation as a child when her mother brought her to the local yoga studio, where she learned to sit and focus on the joy of being present. Keeping a daily practice over with the years with mindful meditation, vinyasa yoga, and many other facets and yogic paths, Sarah decided to take her practice a step further. She completed her 200 hour Vinyasa Flow Teacher certification with Frog Lotus Yoga International in Bali, Indonesia in 2014, training and teaching alongside some of the best instructors in the world. She returned to Bali in April 2018 to complete her 500 hour ytt, and has been traveling the world since. Sarah also completed her Childlight teacher training, and is certified to teach ages 2-18. Sarah is also OM births certified to teach pre-natal yoga.

Leading retreats and teacher trainings all over the world has allowed Sarah to be constantly inspired by nature, different cultures, spirituality, and the elements, linking movement, breath and the true beauty of life through the graceful practice. Her Classes combine mantras, mudras, deep pranyama, and asana... expanding the full yoga experience. Her playful and energizing classes challenge the body while still relaxing the mind. Sarah encourages growth and interconnectedness of the physical and spiritual self within students, and incorporates accessible levels and modifications for each individual.

Sarah seeks to help others thrive by nurturing body and soul through yoga, and her hope is that her students will step off their mat and into everyday life with that same nourishment and balanced attitude.

Brooke Bayko

Brooke is the owner of The Hot Yoga Studio in Seabrook, NH and mom to 2 amazing little boys who are growing fast, 5 dogs, and about 34 farm animals she loves more than she loves anything!

She took her first yoga class in a dingy little basement studio when she was 16 and has never looked back. She has been teaching on and off for more than 17 years now but really made a full time gig of it in 2010. After a few dozen trainings and thousands of hours of practice she finally bit the bullet and opened her own space. 

She loves the ocean, bought a home near Salisbury Beach almost 7 years ago and enjoys the beach year round with her family and dogs. 

Tayla David

Hi, I’m Tayla! I am a yoga instructor from the North Shore area in Massachusetts. I became a practitioner of yoga in high school, initially for a physical practice as I played many sports throughout my youth. Over the years, I then discovered the benefits of yoga extended to my total wellness. What keeps me coming back to this practice day after day is the connection of the mind, body, breath and spirit that makes this practice not only a method to move the body on a physical level but ultimately a practice of mindfulness, self-awareness and a way to acknowledge and celebrate our own unique selves. I always welcome any body and experience level to all of my classes.

I received my 200-hour yoga teacher certification in May of 2019 through Boston Yoga School and my Reiki certification in September of 2018. Since receiving these certifications, I have been teaching in studio, outdoors and now virtually. I teach many different styles of yoga from vinyasa, basics, yin and restorative. I am an instructor for a few local studios, I teach classes on my personal platform and I am always offering private yoga sessions. 

When I’m not on my yoga mat, you can find me and my adventurous spirit enjoying time cooking or baking, creating macrame, anywhere outdoors and enjoying moments with family and friends! 

Ally Vallieres

Ally grew up an athlete and while she loved any activity that fostered movement in the body, it wasn’t until she was introduced to yoga and meditation as a teenager that she felt at home. She immediately fell in love with the holistic approach of the practice, incorporating mind, body and spirit to find overall health and well-being. After floating in-and-out of the yoga practice as a student over the years while working in various corporate environments and as a spin instructor, she found her calling on a mat in The Yoga Tree’s first 200-hour teacher training program in 2017 under the guidance of Ame Wren and Caroline Pineau. In 2019, her path came full-circle when she was presented an opportunity from her mentor and became the new owner of The Yoga Tree, the very spot where she began her teaching career.

Ally’s classes are both athletic and playful, encouraging her students to push beyond their limits while maintaining a sense of compassion for their body’s current ability. Rooted in sound alignment, intelligent sequencing and rhythmic unity between the breath and body, she aims to foster a safe space for her students to leave their cares at the door and be totally present on the mat. Her goal is that every student leaves her class with a clear mind and peace of heart.