Catherine Annis
Catherine’s retreat teaching style – Somatic, Scaravelli inspired Hatha
Catherine Annis is known for her exploratory, imaginative and down-to-earth approach to yoga. Rooted in somatic movement and the teachings of Vanda Scaravelli, her teaching encourages greater ease, sensitivity and intelligence in the body, inviting freedom in the spine, regulation of the nervous system and a deeper sense of trust in oneself. Informed by anatomy, contemporary movement science and her background in dance and strength training, her classes combine sensitivity with an underlying physical rigour, offering a practice that is both grounding and quietly demanding.
Her teaching is often described as warm, spacious and quietly playful, creating an atmosphere in which participants can explore with curiosity and without pressure. Alongside subtle breath work, intelligent movement and thoughtful adaptation, there is often an element of unexpected challenge – arising not from force or striving, but from attention, coordination and depth of awareness. Participants frequently discover new possibilities in familiar movements and postures.
Originally a professional dancer, Catherine has been practising yoga since her teens in the 1970s. Her path has included Sivananda, Iyengar, Ashtanga and a range of Hatha traditions, though her teaching today is most deeply shaped by somatic and Scaravelli-inspired approaches.
After many years teaching on the Triyoga Teacher Training, Catherine founded Intelligent Yoga Teacher Training in 2017, a training rooted in functional movement, anatomy and trauma-sensitive practice, featuring guest teachers including Gary Carter.
Now based in the wild landscape of Exmoor, Catherine teaches regular classes online and in person, and leads retreats and workshops throughout the UK and Europe. Find out more about Catherine from her website here.
