Who you are taking class with
Salma Allam was born and raised in Vancouver. Her passion and love of dance whisked her away to New York, were she resided for the last 16 years, before moving back to Vancouver. In New York she had the great pleasure of expanding her performing art into acting working with the renowned Deena Levy at the Deena Levy Theater Studio. While fine tuning her craft of dance, with wonderful teachers such as the sensational Graciela Kozak, as with many dancers and people in general, injuries arose. Though injuries are not fun for anyone, she is in gratitude for her moments of pain for it forced her to delve deeper into the body and its workings. Pilates helped heal her physically and with the guidance of her enormously talented, ever generous and nurturing mentor Julie Peterson, she continues to find great strength and inspiration with the methodology. This pushed her to pursue a career in Pilates after receiving her 600hr certification from Core Pilates NYC. In NYC she worked at Equinox, Plank Pilates Studio, Lifetime Fitness and Core Pilates NYC, while working with her private clientele.
Through her Pilates training she found the MELT Method by Sue Hitzmann, which she finds to be a gem in recovery and maintenance of the body, which she also thoroughly enjoys teaching. With early guidance into the subtle realms by her mother, who she is eternally in gratitude for, she was in tune with the understanding that the body doesn’t stop on the physical, and her quests over many years led her to her Yoga and Meditation home *ISHTA , where she received her 500hr Yoga certification. Training in the techniques of the remarkable lineage of ISHTA (Integrated Science of Hatha, Tantra and Ayurveda) has been truly an honor. At ISHTA she was fortunate to be mentored by the healing Aino Siren and the profound Peter Ferko, while studying with a plethora of incredible teachers, the ever wise Sarah Platt-Finger the insightful Mona Anand, the illuminating Kelly Eudaily, the skillful Dave Jackson, and the mindful Cathy Lily to name a few. Through their beautiful program embedded in timeless knowledge and invaluable wisdom, she was able to deepen her knowledge of Patanjali’s yoga sutras, which deepened further through the Tantra of the Yoga Sutras by ISHTA founder and sage Alan Finger and the intuitive Wendy Newton. In her studies at ISHTA she learned how to relay the culminations of her innate knowledge and the deeper understandings of Yoga and Meditation.The combination of her artistic, physical and subtle body pursuits has led to Ankh Body A place where Salma truly believes everyone can find themselves through movement, Meditation, and the ability that this leads to create space. Space in life, in mind, in body, and soul. Her true dream in life would be to provide a place for individuals to unlock the keys to their happiness and strength, no caveats, just be and live. Welcome home.
*The ISHTA lineage: Paramhansa Yogananda, Swami Vekatesananda, Swami Nishraisananda, Shuddhanand Bharati, Mani Finger, and Alan Finger.
Certifications: Comprehensive Pilates. MELT Method (level 3), TRX. RYT 500hr Yoga. Meditation. Restorative Yoga. Yin Yoga. Yoga Nidra. Ayurvedic Lifestyle (Chopra Global).
Additional: ISHTA Master Program, FAMI (Functional Anatomy for Movement & Injuries Workshop). Pilates: Pilates & Back Care. Super Advanced Reformer. The Wonderful Wunda Chair. Barrels of Fun. Yoga Nidra & The Chakras.
What the Ankh means to me:
Take a journey with me, and discover the magic of a time long ago. A powerful time when the earth was younger and the times more in tune. A time when the veils between the now and here after seemed to be thinner, and strength was cultivated during life and powered in to our crossing to the other side, fueling our next cycles. To represent this transition and all transitions a symbol stood to represent life. Take a stretch with me, and perhaps in this symbol the world was symbolized, the eternity of our souls fluidly moving within its borders. And within its design we are capable to fully explore ourselves and our part of the vital life force that is a part of all beings. Perhaps, keep stretching with me, this symbol was a representation of the part of us that thinned the veil even farther, not to cross over, but rather to gain insight and knowledge from beyond and live it here and now. So this symbol the Ankh, Key of life, holding the universe within its body, is one so sturdy that with it we become our strongest. It’s so fluid, a representation of holding the Nile, that it brings to us the constant changing of the waters, the nourishment and the motion to move forward, ability to dive deeper and emerge more lustrous than ever. It brings with it all the resilience we need. It’s a symbols of totality, but beyond our comprehension. It encompasses all we know, have yet to learn and hope to discover. It takes us beyond our existence here and now and connects us to the eternal. Symbolizing all we can be, all we can become, and have the power in shaping into.The key is to surrender to yourself and ultimately surrendering to the natural flow of life.
The Ankh is the golden lotus, remember we are still stretching, coming from muddy waters to rise, and giving us our power to rise with it. Welcome to all of your power and wisdom. Welcome home.
The life in me honors the life in you,
Salma Allam
