Winter 2026 Student yoga Study RYT200

A journey to wholeness

There's a split second in practice when you feel it – that shift from 'doing yoga' to something much more real. 

It's like the moment you finally get a joke, or when a hunch transforms into knowing. 

You can taste the possibility, but then class ends, and it slips away. 

The Student Yoga Study is what happens when you stop chasing that moment and learn to create it.

The Student Yoga Study isn't about perfecting your downward dog or memorizing Sanskrit names, rather, it focuses on what you're truly capable of – mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically.

This is about discovering an inner strength so real, so palpable, that it transforms how you show up in every area of your life.

Whether you're navigating intimate relationships, family dynamics, workplace challenges, or even the relationship with the voices in your head – everything you need is already within you.

The Student Yoga Study simply gives you the framework to access it.

Ancient Wisdom for Modern Life

You don't need to believe in anything mystical to experience transformation. 

You don't need to chant in Sanskrit or sit in lotus pose for hours.

The Student Yoga Study honors the spiritual dimension of yoga while keeping it completely practical and accessible. 

We preserve what has survived thousands of years because it works, while making it relevant for your actual life.

This is a spiritual practice grounded in reality, designed for people living real lives with real challenges.

A Framework That Grows With You

Whether you want to teach or simply deepen your practice, this systematic approach gives you tools for life. 

Gratitude's 6-Phase methodology and 4 Pillars create a foundation you can build on forever.

Want to explore gentler, restorative practices later?

This framework supports that. 

Ready for advanced, challenging sequences? 

This system scales up seamlessly. 

Interested in other yoga traditions? 

You'll have the solid foundation to understand and integrate them.

As Ken Wilber, the creator of Integral Theory, teaches: include and transcend. 

Everything is hierarchical, and this program gives you the base layer that supports any direction you want to grow.

The Dedicated Practitioner (@70% of our students)

You've been practicing at Gratitude or elsewhere and want to go deeper.

You're getting a taste of transformation and want the intellectual structure and experiential depth to fully understand what you're doing.

The Experienced Seeker (@20% of our students)

You've done teacher trainings before but felt something was missing. 

You want to synthesize what you've learned into something more potent and complete.

The Life Transitioner (@10% of our students) 

Maybe you're recently divorced, retired, or are in a major life change. 

You're looking for something meaningful to fill your time – and you discover this transforms everything.

No matter which category you fall into, you'll walk out completely transformed. 

This isn't hyperbole – yoga is scientifically proven to transform mindset, emotional regulation, and physical well-being.

Roman didn't stumble into yoga teaching by accident. 

His journey from emotional turmoil, physical pain and mental distraction to profound transformation gives him a unique understanding of what real change looks like.

With 20+ years owning, operating, and now franchising yoga studios, training hundreds of teachers, and a diverse background in exercise physiology, psychology, and spirituality, Roman has synthesized the most effective elements from multiple systems.

He's not just teaching yoga – he's sharing a proven path from brokenness to wholeness that he's walked himself and guided countless others through.

Every weekend is designed to create a real, felt transformation that you can immediately apply to your life.

The 6-Phase System That Changes Everything

• Phase 1: Integration - Learn to move from distraction to direction, bringing your scattered consciousness into focused presence
• Phase 2: Force of Life - Unlock the power of breath to release stuck emotions and ignite your inner fire
• Phase 3: Body of Work - Master the foundational movements that build strength, flexibility, and confidence from the ground up
• Phase 4: Core & Spinal Toning - Access your physical and energetic center, releasing deep-held tension and trauma
• Phase 5: Inversions & Hip Openers - Turn your world upside down while releasing years of stored emotional baggage
• Phase 6: Finishing & Integration - Complete the transformation cycle and prepare to carry this new version of yourself back into the world

The 4 Elements of Masterful Teaching 

Even if you never plan to teach, understanding these elements transforms how you practice and live:

• Nuts & Bolts - The structural foundation that creates safety and power 
• Cueing - Precise alignment that connects body awareness to life awareness
• Breath - The catalyst that activates transformation in every moment 
• Narrative - The authentic wisdom that speaks directly to the heart

This program doesn't help you escape from life – it prepares you to engage with life more skillfully.

You'll develop what we call "emotional fitness" – the ability to stay centered when relationships get challenging, work gets stressful, or unexpected crises arise.

You'll learn to make decisions from alignment rather than fear, to respond rather than react, and to find your center even when everything around you feels chaotic.

The tools you learn aren't just for your yoga practice. 

They're for parenting, partnerships, career challenges, and every moment when life asks you to show up as your strongest, most authentic self.

The Science Behind the Transformation

Modern neuroscience validates what ancient yogis knew: conscious breathing directly activates your parasympathetic nervous system, reducing cortisol by up to 23% and increasing emotional regulation.

Studies show that yoga practitioners develop significantly better emotional intelligence, improved stress resilience, and enhanced ability to process difficult experiences without being overwhelmed.

This isn't just feel-good philosophy – it's measurable, lasting change in how your brain and nervous system function.

One of the most beautiful aspects of The Student Yoga Study is the bonds you'll form with your fellow students. 

Every training draws a diverse, fascinating group of people committed to growth.

You'll connect with:

• Parents - seeking to show up better for their families
• Professionals  - wanting tools for workplace stress
• Life transitioners - embracing new chapters
• Experienced practitioners - ready to go deeper
• People from all walks of life united by the desire for authentic transformation

These connections often last for years, creating a support network of people who truly understand your journey.

This program will educate, empower, and inspire you with a solid understanding of how to apply creative, well-rounded practices that enhance every aspect of your life.

Whether your goal is to teach others or simply uncover new depths in your own practice, The Student Yoga Study RYT-200 is both a first-rate professional training program and a powerful personal development course.

You'll receive full RYT-200 certification from Yoga Alliance, qualifying you to teach anywhere in the world – but more importantly, you'll gain tools that serve you for a lifetime.

You're not here by mistake. 

You found this program at exactly the right time.

If you're tired of yoga that stays on the surface, if you're ready for transformation that extends into every area of your life, if you want authentic wisdom rooted in tradition but applicable to modern challenges – this is your invitation.

The question isn't whether you're capable of this transformation. 

You absolutely are.

The question is: 

Are you ready to step into the fullest expression of who you're meant to be?

What Past Students Say

"Yoga, and specifically Gratitude and its instructors, have been instrumental in helping me regain balance in my life. I am in better physical shape than I have ever been. My family relationships are stronger, and we interact with each other better and more lovingly. I feel more comfortable in my own body, mind, and skin than I knew possible. I acknowledge that I am the one who has done the work to get where I am. At the same time, the environment and atmosphere that Gratitude provides have been the perfect space for me to work through some 'schtuff', as you say. The openness of the instructors, the community of practitioners, the guidance and support, both in physical practice and in emotional alignment as well, these are all aspects of the space you have created in your studios. I thank Gratitude for welcoming me into that space. I thank Gratitude for the guidance provided to those who listen. I thank Gratitude for being open, direct, and honest, and for always pushing us to be our best." - Craig R.

From Clinical Depression to Medication-Free Living

"This training impacted my life in ways I never imagined. My expectations were mostly to gain flexibility and better mobility. Never did I expect that it would affect me in such a profound way.

Since I was eight years old, I suffered from severe clinical depression. My family had a long history of depression and three suicides. I was medicated with antidepressants and anxiolytics for decades, attempting to quit four times with devastating rebound effects.

During the training, I started understanding concepts that made me become more of an observer of my thought processes. I realized my tendency to defend the mental position I had identified with my whole life - being 'a person with clinical depression.'

The intensity of the program, especially the pranayama exercises, stirred up strong emotions I'd always avoided feeling. For the first time, I decided to sit with these emotions instead of immediately calling my psychiatrist to increase my medication.

Close to the fifth weekend, I started experiencing physical symptoms from excess medication. My doctor suggested reducing my anxiolytic because my body no longer needed it. Four weeks later, I completely stopped taking it - something I firmly believe was thanks to those intense weekends of yoga, meditation, and pranayama.

I found myself able to do things I couldn't before: sit still with myself without looking for an escape route, focus better on activities, get things done more efficiently. The extra noise in my mind quieted down, leaving room to listen to what was really worth hearing.

When I compare how I felt before the training and how I feel now, the biggest difference is that I no longer need anxiety medication. I still take antidepressants, but I feel positive about a future where I can gradually reduce the dose until I don't need them anymore.

I have struggled trying to find a place where I could feel that warm belonging feeling that has eluded me for over 10 years. I can now begin to feel it in Gratitude." - Diana G.

From Armor to Authenticity

"Who even is 'I'? If I strip away the thoughts, the emotions, the body, and the armor, what remains? This question became one of deep contemplation throughout the Yoga Student Study.

Growing up, I learned that to receive attention, I had to be perfect. I played the role - good grades, teachers liked me, said and did what people wanted. I became 'a head on a stick,' a shell of a person, changing like a chameleon based on what was expected of me.

When my brother Patrick died of fentanyl poisoning in 2022, Spring became a season of heavy grief. During our first weekend, when Roman spoke joyfully about spring's return, I felt a dagger digging into my heart. 'That's not my experience!' I blurted out.

Roman's direct approach seemed deliberate - he wanted to stir things in me, and he did. But through this process, I learned that grief doesn't ask to be fixed, only to be felt.

During Yoga Nidra meditation, I saw myself holding rose quartz - the same stone I carried after Patrick died. As I symbolically threw it into the fire, I heard a voice say, 'All you need is within you.' I felt a breakthrough.

Physically, I couldn't engage my shoulder blades in downward dog - I was closed off, paralyzed by unprocessed grief and lack of self-love. As Roman guided me physically, an emotional release followed. My heart began to soften.

Later, struggling with Wheel pose, my back had always resisted opening. With the support of my soul family, I pushed through. I broke down, raw, vulnerable, and held in love. For the first time, I truly began to open.

This work is slow, and the trauma is deep - but for the first time, I'm waking up. I'm conscious. I'm ready to keep doing the work. Once you awaken, you can't go back to sleep.

I initially joined to learn anatomy and alignment. I thought I was spiritually sound, self-aware. But I discovered how much I had buried beneath the surface. The message kept emerging: 'All you need is within you.' I want the world to know that too." - Mary.

If you've taken a teacher training before, you'll discover how to synthesize what you've learned into something much more potent and complete.

If this is your first training, you'll build on a foundation that supports any direction you want to grow – whether that's gentle restorative work, advanced power classes, or specialized populations.

The Student Yoga Study achieves this by uniquely blending Eastern and Western teachings with today's most current and practical applications.

Our approach is anchored in deep understanding of the body and biomechanics while honoring the philosophical underpinnings that make yoga truly transformative.

The Framework for Life

You'll learn the skillful art and science of sequencing built from thoughtful instruction, deep study of postures, essential anatomy, and philosophical wisdom that ties everything together.

But more than that, you'll discover how to apply this framework to inspire others from a place of authenticity and personal power – whether you're teaching yoga classes or simply living your life with greater intention and presence.

This is your first step in discovering a deep sense of purpose and facilitating positive life changes that ripple out into every relationship and situation you encounter.

A Living Practice, Not Just Information

The Student Yoga Study will be a fully interactive and dynamic personal development experience.

You won't just learn concepts – you'll embody them.

The program is rooted in a logical framework that honors the natural form and function of the human body while encouraging fluidity and freedom of expression.

Because after all, everybody is different, and your practice should reflect your unique path.

Through inspiring readings, meditations, breathing exercises, journaling, and dynamic group discussions, you'll discover parts of yourself that have been hiding in what spiritual circles call "the shadow" – integrating these aspects to feel more whole and authentic than ever before.

Your Moment of Choice

Every single day, you make decisions that either move you toward the person you're meant to become or keep you stuck in patterns that no longer serve you.

This moment – right now, reading these words – is one of those decision points.

You can continue with yoga as you know it, or you can step into a proven system that transforms not just how you practice, but how you live.

The tools are here. 

The community is waiting. 

The transformation is possible. 

The only question is: 

What will you choose?

Investment for 8 weekends $3450 

The first step is to apply.

Your journey begins with Module #1 on Friday, January 23rd, 24th and 25th, 2026

• Module #2 -  1/30, 1/31 and 2/1
• Module #3 -  2/6, 2/7 and 2/8
• Module #4 -  2/20, 2/21 and 2/22
• Module #5 -  2/27, 2/28 and 3/1
• Module #6 -  3/13, 3/14 and 3/15
• Module #7 -  3/27, 3/28 and 3/29
• Module #8 -  4/10/, 4/11 and 4/12

A 'make-up' weekend will be announced for any participant who missed a module.