photos courtesy of Sandy Kavalier

Innovator and visionary Max Strom is known for inspiring and impacting the lives of his students and has become one of the most revered and respected teachers of personal transformation and yoga on three continents. Former creator and director of the renowned Sacred Movement, center for yoga and healing in Los Angeles, Max taught to over 400 students each week before relocating to Ashland, Oregon in 2005.  Due to an ever-increasing demand for his teachings, Max now travels extensively teaching and lecturing on personal transformation, spirituality, and yoga.  In 2008 he taught in nine countries and over 35 cities worldwide.

As a teacher, Max is known for his transformational workshops, trainings, and seminars.  He has a unique connection with his students that stems from his own personal journey, his gregarious nature, and distinct integrity.  He teaches his unique system of transformation as a Way of Life, which includes philosophy, breathing exercises, yoga postures and meditation, guiding his students to grow into happier, healthier, and empowered human beings.  You can see more of his work on his DVDs, Learn to Breathe, to heal yourself and your relationships, and, Max Strom Yoga – Strength, Grace, Healing.  http://maxstrom.inticketing.com/catalog.php?sid=&email

Born a twelve-pound baby with clubfeet, Max Strom spent the first 3 years of his life with his legs confined in plaster casts and braces. After several painful corrective surgeries, he was able to walk fairly well but would always have abnormally shaped feet. This would create physical and emotional challenges for him in many ways. Because he had to learn to endure partial confinement and for a time complete immobility at a very young age, he developed patience, determination and a high tolerance to pain in order to cope with his condition. At fourteen years of age, a personal mystical experience ignited a sudden and ardent desire in him to understand the human condition. Finding little support and guidance in his atheistic household, Max's own drive and intellect guided him and he took it upon himself to read with spiritual voracity any sacred text he could find.  By the time he was nineteen, Max had studied Taoism, modern and esoteric Christianity, Sufism and was practicing meditation and Chi Gong diligently. 

After discovering Hatha Yoga he experienced a profound life-change through his practice, and yoga ultimately became for him a system of embodiment that integrated all of his previous physio-theological studies.  Max has now been teaching since 1995 and is recognized by the Yoga Alliance, at their Advanced Teacher Level (ERYT).  He has taught tens of thousands of students.

Way of Life Yoga is the culmination of Strom’s many years of life experience and study and reaches beyond the boundaries of simply a practice of yoga postures, and instead addresses the internal and emotional aspects of our life, subjects which often lie painfully neglected in the yoga community.

You can see more of his work on his two DVDs, Max Strom Yoga – Strength, Grace, and Healing, and Learn to Breathe, to heal yourself and your relationships. www.maxstrom.com

In Hatha Yoga and breath-centered movement, Max Strom has experienced in-depth studies with Dena Kingsberg (Ashtanga yoga), Gabrielle Giubilaro (Iyengar yoga), Master Hong Lu (Chi Gong), Sherry Brourman, PT (movement therapy), and John Hogan (moral precepts). He also acknowledges the influential asana teachings of Steven Freedman, Eddie Modestini, and his first teacher of breath-centered movement, Jim Keenan.

Max has been deeply influenced by the Sufi teachings of Hazrat Inayat Khan, the 20th century saint who brought Sufism to the West.