Rising Stars: Meet Christy Lynn Hicks of Mount Juliet

Today we’d like to introduce you to Christy Lynn Hicks.

Hi Christy Lynn, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I was born and raised just outside of Nashville, in Mount Juliet, TN, and discovered Yoga in 1995. I had grown up with back pain most of my life, and when someone casually asked if I had ever tried Yoga, I immediately looked it up and went to a class two days later. After my first class, I felt relief from my back pain and relief from my constantly chattering mind. I was hooked.

I studied and apprenticed with Betty Larsen of the Yoga Room in Nashville and knew early on that I wanted to teach and open my own Yoga Studio one day.

I worked in the corporate world for many years while I studied, practiced, and deepened my relationship with Yoga by learning as much as I could and integrating several styles and techniques into my own way of teaching. During that time, I was also learning the multitude of skills necessary to run a business. It took me 10 years from my first practice to opening my own studio, Yoga Blend, in Burbank, CA, in March of 2005.

The studio became more than I ever dreamed possible and was listed as one of the top studios in Los Angeles by Huffington Post, United Way Magazine, and the LA Times. I was blown away that my passion and hard work had resulted in such honors and was so very grateful that I had the opportunity to teach thousands of people a practice that had changed my life in such profound ways.

During those years of growing as a teacher, my favorite teaching formats became workshops, retreats, and training because I loved getting to know people on a deeper level. I started to dream of running a boutique studio and mini-retreat center where I grew up in the house my dad built. Slowly and steadily, I started to add little pieces while still running my business in LA.

Fast forward to 2020. As a result of the Covid pandemic, my business was shut down indefinitely. A few months later, I decided that it was time to close that chapter of my life and move back to my hometown of Mount Juliet and begin to write the next one. That is when Elevation Central was born.

Elevation Central is a small, family-run, boutique retreat center that will begin holding classes, workshops, retreats, training, immersions, & events with sleeping arrangements for 16-18 people. The mission of Elevation Central is to create a supportive environment in which to offer tools and practices that allow for an elevated way of living, resulting in greater health, happiness, and overall well-being.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Absolutely not! So many challenges. One time, the studio caught fire in the middle of a class. Another time, a car drove through the building. The neighbors were often angry that students were parking up and down ‘their’ street, totally legally, by the way. Then there were the audits, law changes, and increasing rent.

There were also Yoga Studios every couple of miles in LA, so there was lots of competition. In addition, I had a family emergency back in 2012, so I moved back home for a bit which led to my business taking a nosedive over the next few years. In 2017, I went back to LA to get it back on track and was able to do so by 2019, at which point, I took a big exhale. Then 2020 hit, and we know what happened from there.

Even in all the challenges, I would do it all over again. Every part of the journey, the highs and the lows have made me who I am, and I am grateful for that.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I teach Yoga and Positive Psychology, and I am a Spiritual Life Coach as well. Because we are in a relationship to everything, I am passionate about supporting others in creating better relationships…to the body, breath, thoughts, food, work, other people, etc. I love helping other people by offering practical tools to help them live happier, healthier, more inspired lives. Some practices I offer are movement, sound, breathwork, visualization, chakra & energy work, intention setting, journaling, communication & self-care.

What sets me apart is my joyful approach to the discipline of Yoga. I admit my mistakes and share the teachings in a very down-to-earth and practical way that makes what I teach accessible to anyone. I am proud of how many people tell me they were intimated by Yoga until they worked with me and realized that Yoga is so much more than just stretching in a cute outfit.

Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those just starting?
Yoga is for anyone who can breathe. The practice is meant to be individualized to meet people where they are. It is so much more than just doing poses. It is a way of being.

One of my teachers used to say, “If everything in your life is exactly as you want…body, relationships, work, finances, breath, thoughts…then you don’t need Yoga. If any of those things are not exactly where you want them to be, then Yoga can probably help.”

Find a teacher and practice that resonate with you where you feel supported and encouraged to grow at your own pace. Then stick with it and see how your life transforms.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.christylynnhicks.com
• Instagram: @christylynnhicks
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yogawithchristylynnhicks

Image Credits
Trent Lanz April Wolf Bowers