Tiffany Cruikshank: Making Her Mark (Part One)
SHOP THE NEW WARRIOR COLLECTION
Part One.
Showcasing the powerful, all new Warrior Collection is a woman made of fire and courage. Daring, tenacious, and fiercely compassionate, Tiffany Cruikshank defines what it means to be a warrior. With the incredible new launch of her visionary and notable mission Yoga Medicine, it's proof that she scales mountains only to seek greater heights. She is such a joy to be around, and we love having her as one of our Global Ambassadors. It is with great pleasure that we share with you our most recent interview with the one and only Tiffany Cruikshank:
KiraGrace: The last time we sat down with you for an interview was almost a year ago for the release of our first ever Flirt Collection. At that time you were on the brink of re-branding under Yoga Medicine! Where has it taken you? Has it worked out in the ways you've anticipated?
Tiffany: It's so exciting. I think Yoga Medicine has gone much farther in less than a year than I expected, it's been phenomenal. One thing is it's really kept me busy, which has been fun just juggling and trying to find ways to keep it growing and keep myself sane at the same time. I feel really blessed to have it take off so much in less than a year.
KiraGrace: We understand that the mission of Yoga Medicine is to foster a "community of teachers who excel in their training and their ability to understand the body from an eastern and western perspective to work more effectively with other healthcare practitioners." How would you explain the difference between the eastern and western perspective which Yoga Medicine is working to combine?
Tiffany: ...You know in the past yoga has been a cookie-cutter approach. If you have back pain, you do this, if you have hypertension you do this. In my experience working with patients over the past decade or so is that doesn't really work for everyone. Everyone is different. In Chinese medicine, we really look at different constitutions, and in a lot of different holistic medicines, we look at different constitutions and how to individualize the practice. What I hope to do is create more of a medical school for yoga teachers. It's more rigorous curriculum because they really have to understand the depths of anatomy and physiology as well as eastern medicine, and then be able to combine it and use their own intellectual knowledge to apply it to the individual which takes a much deeper understanding than just, "You have this, do this." We are really trying to take our teachers to the next level so they can be a part of the healthcare system, which is so important and in my experience, so effective!
KiraGrace: We feel like Yoga Medicine really has the power to change the western perception of yoga from a pastime/hobby into a more profoundly respected and deferential method to heal and address very real ailments! Was this effect a part of its intended purpose?
Tiffany: It's definitely a part of our mission. Our mission really is to educate people that yoga can be used as a form of medicine. In my experience, it's really effective in that sense. It doesn't necessarily mean it can't still be used as a hobby. I think the beauty of yoga is that it has many facets to it. My goal is to really help people understand what some of those (facets) are that are less known and to help people discover the potential of yoga to help them in their everyday lives as well as in illness and injury and to find a way to be able to help themselves.
Tiffany Cruikshank is an international yoga teacher, author and health & wellness expert Tiffany is known as a teacherâs teacher and has written for and graced the cover of many prominent publications. Tiffanyâs strength lies in her ability to fuse the two worlds of eastern & western medicine together and apply it to the practice of yoga. With over a decade of experience working with patients doing just that she has seen over 25,000 patients using yoga, acupuncture, nutrition & holistic health to treat the whole person working hand in hand with healthcare practitioners of many types to provide the best possible care to her patients.
A Los Angeles based yoga teacher, Tiffany was previously the Acupuncturist & Yoga Teacher at the Nike World Headquarters in Portland, Oregon and has been featured in various video & print ads including ads for Kiragrace, Nike and Lululemon.
Tiffany has a pre-med Bachelorâs degree in Medicinal Plant Biology & Nutrition and a Masters degree in Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine and a specialty in Sports Medicine & Orthopedics.
Learn more about Tiffany at YogaMedicine. You can also take class with her on YogaGlo.com or check out her book- Optimal Health For A Vibrant Life, a 30 day detox for yogis.
If you liked this blog, check out our other blogs like: "5 Smart is Sexy Looks: Tiffany Cruikshank's Collection Inspiration," " Peace of Mind: Q&A with Tiffany Cruikshank," "Bold & Beautiful: Kathryn Budig's Collection Inspiration," and "3 Reasons to Give: Tiffany Cruikshank on the Power of Giving"
