Chris CROFT
Trainer Pro
Chris is the co-founder and director of Exeter Yoga Workshop.
As a pioneer in the field of emotional and physiological well-being (through his ground-breaking work with The Enneagram, a Universal map that unravels the mysteries of human behaviour) Chris’s unique approach to Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga blends over 10 years of daily yoga practice and self-study, with a deep understanding of the complexity of human personality patterns. This powerful synthesis awakens a truly inclusive approach, which embraces the differing individual needs of each student who comes to practice. By adapting the entry point to the practice, highlighting key subtle internal alignment principles and encouraging a profound intimacy with the inner breath, Chris brings the Ashtanga method to life with humour and insight.
As an award-winning international designer, Chris worked in the commercial world of product design before illness forced him to explore deeper meaning to both life and work. Since leaving the commercial world of design in 2004, Chris has dedicated his life to the practice of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga through numerous trips to Europe, Asia and North America to both practice and teach.
During that time he has been fortunate enough to study with inspirational teachers Neil Barker, Kathy Cooper, John Scott, Matthew Sweeney, Paul Dallaghan, Richard Freeman, Mary Taylor and others; as well as extended trips to study under the late Sri K. Pattabhi Jois and his grandson Sharath Rangaswamy in Mysore, India.
In 2011 he was invited to attend Richard Freeman's one month Teaching Intensive in Boulder, Colorado. Richard remains Chris’s primary teacher and source of inspiration.
Having settled in Exeter, UK, he and his partner Yulia are the founders and directors of Exeter Yoga Workshop - Exeter’s first purpose built studio, and home to Exeter’s only daily morning Mysore Ashtanga Yoga programme.
Outside of yoga Chris is a published author and international public speaker, leading courses and workshops on The Enneagram, an ancient wisdom that unlocks the mysteries of your deepest self.