Rodney Yee

Rodney Yee

Rodney Yee is a celebrated yoga teacher who began his practice in 1980 and has become a key figure in the American yoga landscape. Known for his ability to merge the physical and philosophical aspects of yoga, Rodney aims to reveal the natural beauty of the spirit through movement. Alongside his wife, Colleen Saidman Yee, he developed the Gaia Yoga Studio, which focuses on making yoga accessible for home practice.

Rodney’s teaching style is heavily influenced by his personal practice and intuition, as well as his deep exploration of Iyengar Yoga. He built a strong foundation in Iyengar Yoga under the guidance of renowned teachers, including Donald Moyer. This tradition’s emphasis on alignment, sequencing, and timing continues to shape his approach, making his classes accessible and profound for practitioners of all levels.

Throughout his career, Rodney has been dedicated to expanding the reach of yoga beyond the studio. He has created numerous video titles, narrated mediation audio recordings, and written two books, allowing people to experience his teachings. globally. As a co-chair of the Urban Zen Health and Wellness Initiative, Rodney also works to bring the healing benefits of yoga and holistic practices into hospitals and other care settings.

Education Rodney Yee studied Philosophy and Physical Therapy at U.C. Davis and U.C. Berkeley. He learned from influential teachers, including Donald Moyer, Manouso Manos, and Ramanand Patel.

Career

Rodney was a ballet dancer with the Oakland Ballet Company and Matsuyama Dance Company of Tokyo. He co-founded Piedmont Yoga Studio in Oakland, CA, in 1987. He developed Gaia Yoga Studio with his wife, Colleen, and partnered with Donna Karan to establish UZIT LLC (Urban Zen Integrative Therapy), blending Yoga, Reiki, Essential Oils, and Meditation. He is a co-chair of the Urban Zen Health and Wellness Initiative, a foundation promoting yoga and holistic therapies in hospitals nationwide.

Publications

Rodney has authored books like "Yoga, The Poetry of the Body" (2002) and "Moving Toward Balance" (2004). He appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Live with Kelly and Mark, CNN, and PBS. Rodney has starred in instructional videos, such as "Gaiam: Rodney Yee Yoga for Energy and Stress Relief" and "Living Yoga: Abs Yoga for Beginners." He was featured on the cover of Yoga Journal and appeared in the 2007 documentary "Yoga, Inc."

155 classes found

Yoga for Back Pain - Back Care Solutions
Strengthen your back and abdominal muscles with an active series of poses to relax your spine and build your core.
Energy Lift Yoga
Locate your center and find yourself ready to take on the day. Rodney Yee guides you through standing poses with the intention of centering your being, focusing your mind, and bringing you fully present in your body and the moment.
Yoga for Back Pain - Back Care Solutions
Increase flexibility in your hips and lower body to help prevent back pain. Explore a series of stretches and hip opening poses, all essential for back health.
Mariel Hemingway
Poses such as chest openers, arm swings and bends help you to improve your alignment and tone your arms and chest. This practice can help you to feel energetic and alive while sculpting your arms and upper torso.
Yoga Now Abs
A comprehensive core routine that really works your abs. Simple poses such as crunches, arm swings and bends help you get a stronger core for your yoga practice.
Yoga Now
Explore a breakthrough workout from a new angle with this unique yoga-cardio fusion mat practice. Boost your heart rate, burn fat, sculpt lean muscles and create a heightened sense of well being.
Yoga Now
Combine the best part of yoga with the best of cardio. Tune into your your body work hard and boost your heart rate through core work and quick standing flows before a brief cool down.
Mariel Hemingway
Get the abs you were meant to have with Yoga Now Abs Express.
Yoga Now
This invigorating practice will help you start the day with greater clarity, energy, and well being. Great for the morning or any time of day when you need a pick-me-up, this practice will give you the energy you need to revive and refocus.
Yoga Now
This core-focused workout combines the best part of yoga with the best of cardio.
Yoga Now
Physically and mentally decompress after a long day. Stretch the stresses of the day away, bringing the total surrender that’s crucial for a healthy night’s sleep.
Yoga Core Cross Train
Strengthen your abdominal and lower back muscles to improve flexibility and increase overall stability and balance. Move slowly and mindfully through classic postures to harness even greater benefits.
Core Restoration
Yoga Core Cross Train
Explore sitting and supine positions that restore and relax the muscles of the core of your body. Strengthening your abdominal and lower back muscles has many benefits from improved flexibility to having a stable and balanced body.
Yoga Conditioning for Athletes
Yoga Conditioning for Athletes
Boost your performance in running, tennis, golf, cycling, and swimming and get in the zone more easily and effortlessly. Internationally acclaimed yoga instructor Rodney Yee guides you through yoga sequences to balance the body, increase strength, challenge underused muscles, and boost flexibility and cardiovascular endurance.
Hip Openers
AM Yoga for Your Week
Go deep into your hips to increase flexibility, strength, and mental clarity. Warm up with a flowing sequence of repetitive hip openers, deepen your focus using a block with long-held poses, and explore the deep release benefits of pigeon pose.
FREE
AM Yoga for Your Week
Forward bends are about patience. Feel your lower back unwind with a series of forward bends, including standing forward bend, wide-angle forward bend, seated one-legged forward bend, and seated wide-legged forward bend.
Backbends
AM Yoga for Your Week
Find serenity and flexibility as you open your heart and release your spine in backbends. Experience a variety of poses to open your back side of your body, such as cobra, upward facing dog, upward facing bow, and camel.
Standing Poses
AM Yoga for Your Week
Explore the alignment of poses that make up a sun salutation at a pace just right for early morning. Close with a brief relaxation designed to help you transition into your busy day.