Meet Leah…
Leah Gillman was born in Oregon, spent her childhood playing in snowy Montana and her teenage years dancing in sunny North Carolina. College and her 20’s was spent in New York where she shifted from her early love of modern dance to the world of cycling and yoga. She moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1999 where she began her studies, and then career, as a yoga teacher and bodyworker, and became a mom! Summer backpacking trips became an integral part of life and in 2020, her nest empty, she moved her primary residence up to beautiful Sierra City, CA for the mountainous hiking, biking, lake swimming and a quieter life (think: Northern Exposure with a hint of Deadwood). It wasn’t part of the plan but Sierra City turned out to be ideal for group retreats; yoga combined with: hiking, lake swimming, and… snowshoeing, anyone?
Oakland is still ‘home’ for a week, every other week, for Barefoot Bodywork sessions and to teach an in-person yoga class.
When in Oakland, or in Sierra City, Leah sees local clients and students for bodywork and private yoga. And, she teaches yoga virtually on Tuesdays at 6:00 p.m. no matter where she is.
Barefoot Shiatsu
Leah has over 20 years experience as a massage practitioner. She trained extensively with her primary teacher and mentor, Edward Spencer, at the Acupressure Institute in Berkeley, CA where Leah eventually taught as well.
She specializes in Barefoot Shiatsu (a.k.a Barefoot Bodywork or Ashiatsu) in which the client rests, fully clothed, on a mat on the floor while the practitioner uses primarily her feet to massage the client. Barefoot Shiatsu is appropriate and beneficial for all body types and can accommodate a wide range of preferences from deep to light pressure.
A comprehensive online course, Learn How to Massage Using Your Feet, is in the works. Leah’s looking forward to passing along this valuable skill!
Yoga
Leah has been practicing yoga for 30 years and leading yoga classes for more than 20. She created a yoga teacher training program that spawned many well-loved teachers. In 2010 she opened Barefoot Movement, a yoga and bodywork studio in downtown Oakland that was staffed by graduates of the teacher training program.
She is currently a student and fan of, Devorah Sacks in Grass Valley and Vance Selover in Berkeley. She also studied extensively with Mark Horner who greatly enriched her experiences in both yoga and backpacking.
Leah includes methods and techniques from her dance and martial arts training in her yoga classes. Her approach is based in a lifelong endeavor for a long life of being able to move well, with ease. She’s interested in engaging her students on an efficient path to more ability and ease in their lives as well.
Leah Gillman 