Conversations with those who inspire our vision of yoga, today, a moment with Astrid.
Having grown up in Ardèche, in the south of France, Astrid now calls Toronto home, where she has been living for the past 12 years. A content creator, community builder, and more recently a yoga teacher, she moves between different worlds with the same sense of warmth and intention. Alongside her creative work, she organizes events in Toronto to help French-speaking communities connect, and has been sharing yoga classes of her own for the past few months.
Yoga as a way to connect
When Astrid first arrived in Toronto, yoga was everywhere. Outdoor classes in the park, studios across the city, a growing wellness culture: the practice seemed to be woven into everyday life. New to the city and still finding her footing, she was naturally drawn to it.
If she is being completely honest, yoga first entered her life less through a personal search for the practice itself and more through a desire for connection. Joining classes gave her a way to meet people, discover the city differently, and create new relationships in a place that was still unfamiliar. Through those early sessions, yoga became a social bridge as much as a physical practice.
What began as a way to connect with others gradually turned into something more personal. Little by little, the classes, the movement, and the ritual of returning to the mat started to take on a new meaning.
A practice shaped by freedom
If Astrid had to describe her practice through a single feeling, it would be freedom.
For her, yoga is a space to move without limits, to let herself be carried by the moment, and to step outside the usual sense of time and space. On the mat, the rhythm of the day softens. Movement becomes a way to reconnect with herself, but also a way to let go, of pressure, of expectations, of the need to control everything.
That feeling of freedom continues to guide the way she practices today, and also the way she teaches. Recently certified as a yoga teacher, Astrid approaches yoga with the same openness that marked her own journey into it: not as something rigid or intimidating, but as a space that can evolve with us and meet us where we are.
The mat that started it all
Among the accessories that have accompanied her practice, one in particular holds a special place: her blue b,mat. It was her very first investment in her yoga journey, and she still has it today.
At the time, it had been recommended to her by a yoga teacher who told her it was the kind of mat you simply would not slip on. That promise of grip and stability stayed with her, and so did the mat itself. Since then, she has used other mats too, but she remains attached to that first one. It represents the beginning of something: the moment yoga became more than an occasional class, and started to become part of her life.
Another accessory she recommends wholeheartedly is the bolster, especially for yin yoga. For slower, more restorative practices, it becomes a real support, something that brings comfort, softness, and ease into the body.
Practising, connecting, staying open
Today, Astrid’s relationship to yoga is inseparable from the path she has built around it: one made of movement, encounters, and constant evolution. What started as a way to connect with others has become a space of freedom, grounding, and expression.
Through her classes, her events, and the community she continues to build in Toronto, she carries that same energy forward: making space for connection, helping others feel at home, and reminding us that practice does not have to be perfect to be meaningful.
Because sometimes, all it takes is a mat, a little trust, and the willingness to let the movement carry you.
