What I Do & Why It's Different
Daily Vinyasa classes in Lisbon's Príncipe Real, a winter intensive in the Algarve, a longer March retreat in Ubud, and a 200hr teacher training cohort waitlisted twelve months out. Mysore-foundation Vinyasa for serious practitioners.
Five-Day Studio Practice
200hr Teacher Training
Winter Retreat in the Algarve
March Retreat in Ubud
Online Practice Library
Direct Form Correction
Mysore Foundation in Vinyasa Format
Teacher Training Capped at Twelve
Six-Month Format, Not Three-Week Intensive
Studio + Retreats + Training Ecosystem
What Actually Happens
First class of the day, Príncipe Real studio
Foundations class, end of asana
Mid-sequence in a Level 3 class
Personal coaching, post-class
Algarve retreat, morning practice
"I have practiced for nine years. Joan is the first teacher who has actually corrected things instead of complimenting them. Three months in and my body has changed."
"I came because the waitlist was twelve months long. Now I understand why. The standard is uncompromising and the format is humane. Both are rare."
"Six days of demanding practice and Atlantic walks. By day four I had not thought about email once. The personal coaching session changed how I sit on my mat."
"Joan is teaching at a level I have not seen since my Mysore years. Five days a week, Príncipe Real. Worth flying to Lisbon for."
"Ten days of slower practice, deeper theory, and absolutely no fluff. The Bali team Joan partners with runs the property at the same standard she runs the studio."
"I have done two other teacher trainings before this one. Joan's was the only one where the graduates could actually teach by the end. The standards are uncomfortable in the best way."
"I joined Joan's studio after eleven years of practice elsewhere. In three months she corrected things no one had ever told me. My practice has changed entirely."
"Ten days in Ubud with a teacher who refuses to flatter you. I came home with a different relationship to my own discipline. The Bali partnership team is excellent."
"The personal coaching session alone justified the trip. Joan spent forty-five minutes with me one afternoon working on hip mechanics that I had been avoiding for years. Worth every euro."
"Joan is teaching at the level Iyengar taught at, in a Vinyasa format. The correction is real, the standards are adult, and the studio has become my anchor. Two years and counting."
What It's Like to Be Here
Studio classes are seventy-five minutes. The opening is precise — not gentle, not aggressive, just exact. The middle is a sequence built on Mysore principles, scaled to the room's level. The end is real savasana, not a quick thirty seconds before everyone rolls up. Retreats add daily theory, philosophy reading, and personal coaching outside the asana. The teacher training is six months — three on the ground in Lisbon, three online, a final immersion week in Bali.
Who Comes to My Retreats
Yoga teachers refining their craft. Long-time practitioners who want correction. Dancers and climbers crossing over. About a third are non-Portuguese — people who travel for the studio.
Not for people who want chill, low-pressure flow classes — there are excellent studios in Lisbon for that. Joan's classes are intense and the corrections are direct. Anyone uncomfortable with form correction in front of a group should choose differently.
Upcoming Retreats
I run a few retreats a year. Leave your email and I'll let you know when the next one opens.
Algarve Winter Intensive — January
Ubud March Retreat — Bali
If you have a question, want to discuss a private group, or just want to say hi — I read every message.