Our Team

Lance is the director and owner of INSPYA – Integrated South Pacific Yoga Academy.

A highly respected Godfather of the worldwide yoga community, Lance Schuler has been teaching and practicing yoga for over 40 years. He was raised on a farming property in New Zealand. At a very young age he was introduced to Martial Arts by his father, a discipline which would later help to steer him towards the path of yoga. Believing that the body was a tool into the inner being he pursued activities which used the physical body. Lance was on the New Zealand Judo team. He was multiple times New Zealand's junior Judo champion, representing his country in international Judo contests. During Lance's peak years as an elite fighter, he discovered yoga.

After studying to teach yoga and meditation, Lance became, once again, a world traveller. He founded INSPYA yoga, a modern yoga system that integrates recent scientific advances such as Kinetic Anatomy, Functional Anatomy, Nutrition and Practical Indian Philosophy, with techniques from Hatha, Iyengar and Ashtanga traditions.

INSPYA offers a tried and tested yoga teaching system, designed to educate and awaken the distracted mind and body, which melds ancient yoga technique with modern life.

Lance has left a yogic footprint in many countries; China, Malaysia, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, New Zealand and Australia. Along with his team of specialised teachers, he has trained thousands of highly professional yoga teachers and his contributions in these countries has helped to build the wave of yoga currently influencing world thought. Lance Schuler is a true Father and tireless messenger of this ancient craft.

LANCE’S TEACHING AREAS

· Course Director
· Principal Teacher
· Asana
· Pranayama & Meditation
· Work Place Training and Assessment
· Teaching Methodology
· Ethical Guidelines
· Adjustment Skills

Susan has had a deep interest in the effects of fasting/detox, nutrition and lifestyle on health for over 35 years. She trained as a General Nurse and after finding that she would rather study preventative health as opposed to disease went on to study further at the University of Natural Health in the U.S. as a Health Doctor PhD and Psychology of Eating Coach.

Together with her partner Lance, they created and directed one of the first fasting, detox and living foods centre in Australia and facilitated living food workshops there. She now resides in Byron Bay on a 17 acres organic paradise and continues to conduct fasting/detox and healthy lifestyle programs and retreats for both individuals and groups around the globe.

Her knowledge, experience and passion compliments her practical teaching manner, helping motivate others to initiate the inspiration for change, growth and a reconnection with nature in all aspects of their life. 

Jean has been teaching Yoga since 1995 and training Yoga teachers since 2003. She specialises in teaching anatomy in a way that is practical, easy to comprehend and easy to apply to your yoga practice and teaching. As a Yoga teacher trainer, her teaching emphasizes awareness, progression and safety.

She has taught classes, workshops and trainings in various locations: Malaysia, China, Germany and Switzerland, as well as her home country Australia. Jean currently runs anatomy courses and workshops, as well as an anatomy blog for Yoga teachers.

TRAINING
Over the years Jean has trained in Iyengar yoga, Ashtanga yoga, Vinyasa yoga and Yoga Therapy. She holds a Certificate IV in Yoga Teacher Training (1200 hours) and is an ERYT 500 (Yoga Alliance). She completed a Yoga Therapy Training with Ganesh Mohan of Svastha Yoga and continues to study with A.G. and Indra Mohan in Yogic Mindfulness.

JEAN'S ANATOMY BACKGROUND
"My initial interest in anatomy arose due to injuries I had, despite being a dedicated practitioner of yoga. I couldn’t understand why so many people (including myself) who practiced so frequently and with such dedication seemed to get hurt on the mat. This led me to research into the fundamentals of anatomy, movement and traditional approaches to yoga practice - then many years of self-practice to test and implement these principles. Now I specialise in the principles of anatomy and yoga therapy to help bring balance and health."

HER APPROACH TO TEACHING
"I believe that anatomy does not have to be boring! All the information we learn can only be useful if we are able to apply it in our practice or our lives. This is the basis for my teaching. Practical useful information that can be directly applied to your yoga practice to create a stronger, healthier, more mobile body as well as creating calmer states of mind to help us live a full and meaningful life." 

WHAT SHE ENJOYS ABOUT TRAINING TEACHERS AND FUTURE TEACHERS
"People who decide to do a workshop, course or teacher training obviously have a great interest in yoga. I love to share my passion for yoga with others and explore all the possibilities that yoga offers. Seeing the dedication and enthusiasm of students is inspiring. These times give us the opportunity to be in a “yoga bubble”, allowing time and space for introspection, learning and change that we rarely experience in our day to day lives. To be a part of this process is a joy and a privilege."

EARLY LIFE
Philipp E Lemke was born in Germany in 1973. At the age of 16, Phil was introduced to the book ‘Siddhartha,’ Hermann Hesse’s classical story about India and the quest for enlightenment. Reading this book several times, Phil attended his first yoga and mediation classes, and started reading more and more books about yoga and philosophy.

Inspired by this practice, Phil went to India in 1993, straight after finishing High School (Abitur). He lived in India for most of the following nine years, studying various forms of yoga, meditation and Eastern Philosophy.

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT
His main influences are S.N. Goenka, various Insight Meditation teachers, the Sivananda, Bihar Yoga and Iyengar Schools of yoga, and the Zen Tradition. Clive Sheridan has been his mentor for the past 17 years.

Since 1993, Phil has attended over 100 Buddhist and yoga retreats.
In 1998, Phil completed the Bihar Schools 4-month Yoga Teacher Training Program in Munger. In 2002, Phil graduated from the British School of Shiatsu. Phil did several yoga philosophy programs with Georg Feuerstein from 2002 to 2012. In 2003, Phil moved to Australia where he completed Yoga Arts’ 9-months Yoga Teacher Training Course. In 2011, Phil completed the 200-hour Prāṇāyāma teacher training course at Kaivalyadhama. Currently, Phil is studying at the Mindfulness Institute, completing a two-year mindfulness teacher training program.

TEACHING
Phil started teaching yoga in 1998. From 2004 to 2006, he taught on Yoga Arts’ and other organisations’ Yoga Teacher Training Courses.

Phil has been on the INSPYA Yoga Team since its very beginnings in 2006 and feels he has found his main teaching family there. He also runs workshops and retreats around Europe and Australasia with his own project, Insight Yoga.

When he is not traveling the world on teaching tours, he is either traveling in India, or stays at home in Byron Bay, working on Yoga Teacher Training Manuals and in a centre for drug rehabilitation.

PHIL’S TEACHING AREAS

· Yoga Philosophy & Psychology
· Prāṇāyāma
· Meditation
· Āsana, Mudrā, Bandha
· Basic Sanskrit for Yoga Teachers
· Bhajans

SPECIAL INTERESTS THAT PHIL BRINGS TO HIS TEACHING

· Self Inquiry and Eastern Philosophy
· Insight and Zen Meditation
· Bhajan-Singing and Guitar Playing
· India and extensive travels in South-East Asia
· Psychology and Psychotherapy
· Shiatsu and Traditional Chinese Medicine
· Ch’i Kung and Martial Arts
· Dancing and Contact Improvisation
· Working in Drug Rehabilitation

PHIL’S FAVOURITE POEM
About Meditation
At the still point of the turning world
Neither flesh nor fleshless,
Neither from nor towards;
At the still point, there the dance is,
But neither arrest nor movement.
And do not call it fixity,
Where the past and future are gathered,
Neither movement from nor towards
Neither ascend nor decline.
Except for the point, the still point,
There would be no dance, and there is
Only the dance.
I can only say, there we have been,
But I cannot say where.
And I cannot say how long, for that is
To place it in time.
The inner freedom from the practical desire,
The release from action and suffering,
Release from inner and outer compulsion,
Yet surrounded by a grace of sense,
A white light still and moving…
T.S. Elliott

PHIL’S CREDO
My main current passion in teaching Yoga is to attempt to preserve the depth of this great Tradition of Liberation Teachings while finding ways to integrate it into modern life.
For me Yoga is a holistic approach to deepening my connection with life. Ultimately, it is a way to overcome suffering by relinquishing the erroneous belief in a separate and independent self (avidyā).
Yoga is 100% transformative practice: moment-to-moment inquiry and compassionate mindfulness, whether you focus primarily on the body, prāna, the mind, or our daily interactions in the world.

WHAT PHIL ENJOYS ABOUT TRAINING FUTURE TEACHERS
Teachers are the prime carriers of the Yoga Tradition. As I said above, since its preservation and integration is my passion, to be in a position to train teachers is a deep responsibility and commitment.

I love working with people who want to become teachers because they obviously share my enthusiasm and passion for Yoga.
It is a privilege to be able to explore, share and learn with such dedicated yogīs and yoginīs. I could not think of anything more inspiring and meaningful to do with my life.

Born and raised in Melbourne, Australia, Lisa Nicholas is an internationally certified and experienced yoga teacher. She started practicing yoga from a book in the mid eighties to improve performance when she was travelling as a member of the Australian freestyle ski team! After a long ski career combining teaching, competing and modelling, Lisa turned to natural therapies, which she had used to support her athletic endeavours over the years of professional skiing . She studied Herbal Medicine, Reflexology, Deep Tissue Massage, Shiatsu, and a variety of energetic techniques. Each course had a segment of anatomy, so gradually her interest in, and understanding of, the human body increased. After studying to teach yoga with various teachers, Lisa was particularly drawn to anatomy and is now combing yoga teaching with specialised anatomy courses on Yoga Teacher Trainings. Lisa continues to broaden her knowledge through further anatomy studies, and is particularly drawn to new research on myofascia tissue. 

The many years of physical and mental work needed to achieve international recognition in skiing and over 25 years of experience teaching private clients give Lisa a deep insight into the processes involved in both teaching and learning. Over 15 years of experience as a therapist lends confidence to dealing with imbalances in both body and mind. Lisa combines these experiences, blending her knowledge of performance, teaching and bodywork seamlessly when sharing different aspects of yoga, anatomy and physiology. 

Lisa opened ‘Ambrosia’ a combined Health Food, Massage and Yoga centre, in Vervier, Switzerland and managed and co ordinated the centre for 11 years. Deciding to move away from resort life, she opened ‘Zaza Yoga’, a yoga studio and recently ‘Aramia’, a therapy centre and vegetarian cooking school, also in Switzerland.

Lisa bases her teaching on the principles of Iyengar yoga, and shares her joy and knowledge of yoga and anatomy with humour and insight. 

Her main teachers are Clive Sheridan, Glenn Ceresoli, Lance Schuler, the many students she has had the chance to meet, and life.