Kristina Schurr double sunrise yoga

Talk of the Town

Our businesses are truly The Talk of the Town!

Meet more business owners in each issue as we learn about their passion for the services they provide for their customers and neighbors along the Avenue.

The Talk of the Town

By Karen L. Chandler

Kristina Schurr, double sunrise yoga

398 Penn Avenue, West Reading 484-352-3890 info@doublesunriseyoga.com www.doublesunriseyoga.com

WRA: When did you open the double sunrise yoga studio in West Reading? KS: Approximately three weeks prior to the world shutting down in 2020. We were, and continue to be, immensely grateful for our location in this community during this time. It is also what led to the creation of open-air yoga next to our studio location. Necessity that turned into something full of life and smack dab in the middle of our community and our timing created that.

WRA: What led to your interest in yoga? KS: A hybrid of personal and professional occurring simultaneously. Short answer. I was an ultra-runner and solely began yoga as a vehicle to recover from an injury. Yoga was the stillness I required at that time. I fought it but was forced to do it, so to speak, and continued to integrate the practice in even after I went back to running, as there was something about it for more than my body. During that time, I practiced at studios locally and in my travels for work which led to my first yoga immersion in Sri Lanka at the end of a rather life shifting year personally. A few years later I spent a month in Mexico. The education and experience with yoga, meditation, soulful work, and physical nourishment took it to the next level. The interest ever evolving, as it was a healing process for me and everyone I was there with, differently. Truly accessible in some way to everyone. The professional parallel was that I was a wellness consultant for a local insurance company at that time and worked with companies studying claims, chronic pain, and disease. This was my actual community as I grew up here and I continued to see the same thing over and over which was something I could not shake. It bothered me.

The universe had lined it up rather brilliantly. I was invested in the practice of yoga and complementary healing modalities personally, and at the same time the interest and necessity from a perspective of corporate wellness. I was immersed and that is when it all shifted to the mindset of education and awareness as well as solutions and service…which led to sunrise.

WRA: How do you feel incorporating the practice of yoga helps to create a healthy lifestyle? KS: First thought that comes to mind is connection to yourSelf. Once you begin to do that, the rest is allowing what feels right for you. A definition of healthy lifestyle for each human varies, in my experience, so the connection and tuning in to Self allows that path to be a personal and thoughtful one…yoga.

WRA: What makes your instructors special? KS: They show up as they authentically are and share what speaks to them, meaning every human that shares their gifts at

sunrise arrived on their mat differently. The common thread is that they were compelled to take that journey further in the form of study so that they could share that gift, formally, with others. To me, that is an incredible act in itself and special.

Beyond that, they show up no matter what stage we are in at the studio. Even when the thought of taking it outside to an empty lot up the street occurred when the world shut down. They showed up and rolled out their mat and we did some yoga. Now we formally call it open air yoga and there are flowers and a carpet of grass, but it didn’t appear as it does when we began like most things in life. They kept on showing up and practicing and continue to do so. Without them, there isn’t a sunrise. More Talk of Town Stories on Page 10.

WRA: If you could choose to spend a day working at another Avenue business, which would it be and why? KS: The Barcart. The passion, aesthetic, and craft that they bring to what they are creating is delightful and I dig the community collaborations that they have going on. Learning from knowledgeable humans in their field and being surrounded with that type of energy and magic… I believe I would love to spend a day there.

WRA: What is your favorite summer beverage (with or without alcohol) and if there’s a recipe, can your share it? KS: Hopefully after my day working at the above, I could share more in regard to one with alcohol. Until then, summer favorite beverage, perhaps boring, but true, water. It can have bubbles or flat with fruit or cucumber, lemon and lime, name it. Water is the vehicle all summer long in any variation, so perhaps not so boring after all! ta daa!