Who I Am

Antonella James

Hi!  I am a woman who whole-heartedly believes in empowering other women to be their best selves, and to encourage and support them along the way.  

It is often-times lost on us that we matter.  How we feel, who we are, and what we need outside of the many roles we have, are important.  Our needs need to be acknowledged, heard, and understood in order to be the best version of ourselves.

I have spent too much time feeling guilty for having needs and feeling selfish for wanting them met.  After all, it is not that important compared to how everyone else around us feels right? Wrong!! After many years of battling my inner world because I ‘should’ be happy with my life,  and I ‘should’ please everyone around me first, I have decided to completely disrupt my patterns in order to live a more meaningful and authentic life that is congruent with what I value, not what is expected of me, and I want to help you to do the same. 

I personally feel that nothing replaces real-life experience as I speak from my own and it is potent.  Once I started to reveal myself, what I noticed was that a community of women began to form around me.  Strong, fearless, limitless women who all have struggles; but what we all share is the conviction that we will never be someone else's expectation.  We will just BE, and that is where our power is.  It is in the raw, vulnerable, realness of what we feel afraid to share. 

In order to do this, the first step to owning all the beauty and strength that lives inside us, is to strengthen our container.  Remember the cliche ‘your body is your temple’?  Something like that.  Now, please do not misunderstand me when I say this.  I am not in the business of helping you to create a strong outer shell.  That implies that there is nothing inside and that having an attractive body is my goal, that is merely a side effect of what I am talking about here.  What I am passionate about is to help you to strengthen your container, so that the richness and beauty that lives within it feels stable and can thrive.  

I have been a wellness leader and movement professional in the boutique fitness industry in New York City for over a decade.  I have spent my career in leadership positions at Exhale, the industry pioneer of the barre fitness movement.  My training and specialization include barre, cardio, HIIT and yoga. During this time I felt like I had to hide my age in such a youth-driven culture, but you know what?   Aging is a privilege that many people do not have!  I felt like I had to pretend to be younger and I never corrected anyone who thought I was younger than I was.  I did have a lot of luck being born into the gene pool I was in for sure, but luck doesn’t last.  I worked hard and made smart lifestyle choices to stay healthy and I’m here to share them with you.  

I have a holistic approach to teaching and passionately believe that in order to effect lasting change, emotional and mental wellbeing must be considered. The body is just the starting point.  Everything we do, or avoid,  in our lives is tied to a belief that we have, and that belief elicits an emotional response which drives our behavior.  In order to create lasting change we need to abolish our limiting beliefs by changing our state of being.  The first step to this process is by changing the physical state through the breath and movement. I will help you to cultivate a positive internal dialogue, strengthen your mind, and push your body physically.  If you are interested in continuing to explore beyond this first step, nothing will bring me more joy than to continue to watch you reveal who you really are.

Certifications: Barre Certified by Exhale; 200-hour yoga teacher training with Kula Yoga Project; Kundalini Yoga Level I, Certified Wellness Coach IIN.