Testimonials
YOGA TESTIMONIALS
"My form and hang time has already dramatically improved with practicing with you via zoom and YouTube three times a week. I’ll be ripped when I finally go back to work. Thank you."
Liza Barill (Handstand Challenge and Virtual student)
"Thank you, Lily, for this and for the workshop. It has been, and is challenging, for me to embrace my new mama body and self. What you said at the workshop about taking the adequate time and letting go of societal expectations of “bouncing back” was what I needed to hear. After leaving the workshop I was finally able to mourn, if you will, my old self and begin to embrace more fully my mama self. I know my old self is in there, strong, but I can give her a break while I nurture my new self and find ways to bring the two together in time. Thanks for sharing your grace."
-Julie Ryder (Postpartum Yoga Student)
"I attended my first hot yoga class with Lily Dwyer Begg (I think!) yesterday and had to share that it was amazing! Lily was an incredible instructor. She explains how to move your body in such a beautiful, but understandable way. I felt my body adjust with every word she spoke. Many instructors fill their class with a lot of useless words, but every single one of Lily's were filled with intention and purpose. I also really appreciated her moving throughout the class and making adjustments - it is good to know, that if your positioning was not ideal, that she would correct you."
— Liza Barill (Handstand Challenge and Virtual student)
"Lily is the perfect combination of rigorous and restorative, modifying each session according to your body's needs. She is skilled at making adaptations to help you feel the pose, whatever your level. With her help, I've become more strong and flexible, healing several different injuries that stemmed from other athletic activities. What I love most is that each session helps me face the rest of my day feeling grounded and clear."
— Lisa Vonnegut CSCS, PP-S, USAW, CMT Bay Functional Fitness co-owner, Oakland, CA
"Lily was my first yoga teacher and has helped me tremendously with my flexibility, back pain, and overall wellness. I was introduced to Lily when she started working with my wife a couple years ago. As I saw the benefits to my wife's health and well being I became interested in pursuing yoga myself. Lily listened carefully to my concerns and goals and helped to custom shape a yoga practice best suited to my needs and my level of experience. I went from never practicing yoga to enjoying private sessions two times a week. Even though I am a beginner, I have always felt that Lily works carefully to keep the practice authentic for my benefit. Not only do we practice postures, but we also practice meditation, pranayama (breathing exercises), and begin and end every session with simple chanting. Sometimes I am amazed at how much we can accomplish in the span of one hour! On the days we practice yoga I feel energized and clearheaded throughout the day - the effects of practicing don't end when I roll up the mat, they continue to serve me throughout my day."
— Dennis Albers, real estate investor, San Francisco , CA
“Lily is an amazing teacher. Her sequences are challenging without being stressful, creative so that you can be immersed in the 'flow', and balanced between intensity and rejuveniation. My body always feels incredible after working with her--the changes are visible! Lily takes you to the edge of your comfort zone, expands your physical experience and creates a safe space for this to happen. I've been with her privately and in group classes for a number of years, and am so fortunate to have found her.”
-Lillian Dashiell , dental school student, Oakland, CA
I have been working with Lily for a couple of years now and I am a devoted fan. I love the yoga, but I also love, specifically, working with Lily. She is the most concerned, talented and truly lovely teacher I can imagine. As I have told a number of people who have just begun to work with her: "I guarantee, you will fall in love with Lily." And, in fact, they all have -- fallen in love I mean. I think anyone who has Lily as a teacher will feel very lucky to know her! I highly recommend her.
- Kathy Visas, lawyer, San Francisco , CA
Lily is one of the most compassionate yoga teachers I have ever worked with. Her knowledge is vast and she was generous, focused and very positive in her work with me as a private client. I can't say enough good things about her private yoga lessons, and anyone who is interested in deepening their practice in a very safe and nurturing environment should try it!
-Tanya Tomkins, cellist, Oakland, CA
”Lily has a lovely touch, leaves great energy with me and always strengthens my poses immensely! Thank you!”
-Ashley Schaeffer, graduate student, Berkeley, CA
”Yoga with Lily has become something that I really enjoy and has given me the tools to take care of my once injured lower back. She started me on that path and I’m very grateful. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to find a class as personal as our Wednesday sessions”
-Josh Kelly,, San Francisco Opera, San Francisco, CA
“My yoga practice is helping me to discover that person I am meant to be. I look forward to our practice each week. I am grateful for this time. Thank you for being such a wonderful part of my life!”
-Gerry Nagatani, artist, Berkeley, CA
“I love yoga with Lily! With great precision and her big heart she has taken my practice to a higher level. Her sequences are always challenging, playful and filled with the joy of movement. A lesson with Lily leaves your body energized from the crown of your head to your little toe. What I especially love about working with Lily is the fact that she made me discover abilities that lie within my body I never would have expected to be there. I was always a little insecure about inverting postures such as handstand, headstand, etc. Lily showed me that I have the strength to do it, which gave me a lot of confidence not only in my yoga practice but also in my life. I experience every lesson with Lily as a gift and I am very grateful for her being my teacher.”
-Rebekka Reichold, University Student, Berlin, Germany
“going to prenatal yoga is my favorite thing about being pregnant. It is a very magical moment when you 'hug in to baby' or 'breathe down to baby'”
– Yvonne Tam
Prenatal Yoga Teacher Program Teacher Program
"Lily is amazing, one of the best yoga teachers in Baltimore."
"I loved the course - I learned a lot and I have so many awesome resources and tools now."
"I not only feel more confident in my prenatal knowledge, but also in my demeanor as a teacher."
"Lily is great! : Very knowledgable, compassionate, and thorough. I love that she reviewed provided feedback for each or our assignments."
"The training exceeded my expectations. Lily is an instrument of her craft. I am thankful to have the opportunity to study under her guidance."
"Lily is a gem - what a nurturing, knowledgeable instructor."
"Lily created intelligent lesson plans and is a welcoming person and teacher. She is so inclusive and willing to listen. I will happily continue to be her student."
"Lily is so passionate and vibrant in her method of teaching and cares about everyone individually. She also prepares a lot, which I really respect."
"Words don’t really do justice for the empowering and holistic learning experience that Lily provides as a Prenatal teacher trainer. She teaches from her curious, brilliant mind, her strong, graceful body, and her open, compassionate heart. As a mother, she draws from her personal experiences to broaden the scope of the training for teachers and to better relate to her diverse students and their pre and post natal needs. As a teacher trainer, she brings her dance, yoga, anatomy, nutrition, and philosophical knowledge to the table to encourage rich discussions around alignment, safety, holding space, and creating a warm, inviting community for all expecting mothers. Lily cultivates a safe, supportive learning environment for teachers to hone their style and voice to meet the unique needs of pregnant women and women who are post partum. This training has completely changed my personal practice and positively influenced the way I teach all of my yoga classes. I highly recommend Lily’s training for any yoga teacher looking to broaden their teaching knowledge and hoping to better meet the needs of their students."
- Sarah Mayhew, Yoga Teacher and School Teacher
Massage Testimonials
Lily is excellent! Her thorough knowledge of physiology and body mechanics enables her to treat you beyond just the short-term benefits of a massage. I have always enjoyed massage and have made a goal to make it part of my regular self-care routine. I have worked with Lily as a yoga instructor for a while now, and am glad I made the leap to seeing her for bodywork as well. Lily understands my goals for my physiology and psychology and I look forward to continuing to work with her. And lest I forget to mention it, she has great hands! The instant she started the massage, I could tell she knew what she was doing. She manages to work out knots and checks in often to make sure you are experiencing positive sensations. She seems to have a great sense of how to work a muscle just hard enough. It's hard to describe the difference between her touch and that of other massage therapists I've tried... it's just something you'll have to feel for yourself.
--Lily Servais, Genetic Counselor, Oakland, CA
Lily's strong hands, warm heart, keen intuition and profound understanding of the human physique make her massages an experience that not only feels great in the moment, but creates lasting changes in your body that linger for days. I have had many massage therapists in my life and Lily is one of the best.
- Kirsten Lara Getchell, Photographer
Lily is such an amazing and intuitive massage therapist. I have gone to her with some pretty intense aches and pains and I always float out of the room after my massage feeling relaxed and healed. This refreshed and untangled feeling lasts for many days after she has worked on me. I love how she asks such detailed questions about what is going on with your body, and areas you'd like to focus on before she starts. She takes such great care digging into those areas with just the right amount of pressure (my husband says the same about her and he likes a very different level of pressure than I do)."
-- Megan C., policy analyst and yoga student
Lily's years of training as a dancer and yoga instructor inform her massage, which is therapeutic, relaxing, and rejuvenating. She has a deep understanding of how movement can both impair and sustain the body, and provides useful advice about how to shift practices off the table--from alignment in a yoga pose, to posture at the kitchen sink--to address systemic problems. I would recommend her highly.
-- Deirdre Mulligan
“Lily has the magic touch. During my massage sessions with her, Lily has always been attentive and responsive to the state of my body and mind when I walk in the room. She cultivates a very relaxing atmosphere before starting bodywork. Her approach to massage is clearly rooted in her deep knowledge of the muscular, fascial and nervous systems that get stiff, sensitive and worn out from habitual tendencies like sitting hunched at a computer, standing on your feet all day, or straining your back. What makes her unique is that rather than moving methodically Lily brings a spirit of creativity and intuition to the massage table that also shines through in her yoga teaching and practice. I personally like a lot of pressure and it is clear to me that Lily use of pressure is intentional as she uses a range according to what is appropriate and what you like. Above all, Lily makes me feel at ease communicating openly before, during and after the massage about what my expectations and needs are for the session.”
--Mona (Oakland)
“Lily has a veteran yoga teacher's command of breath and a dancers intuitive rhythm. the combination makes for a mesmerizing and relaxing massage."
-Kate "Sassy" Sassoon
“It's about trust. I trust Lily to know my body better than I do: how it works, where it doesn't. But she's no mechanic; she's way too spiritual for that. And fun. I trust her to make me feel better, inside and out.”
-- Bill Turner, UC Berkeley lecturer
“I'm so grateful that I encountered Lilly, in my quest for being a more integrated human being. She brings wisdom, compassion and openheartedness to her work, both as a yoga teacher and body worker. While practicing with Lily or laying on her massage table I feel safe and taken care of. As a result, I feel more connected to my body and integrated personally.”
-- Sara G., Berkeley, LCSW
“Lily is an amazing body worker! Because of her extensive knowledge of the body through all her amazing talents - Yoga instructor, dancer extraordinaire - she knows the body and muscles extremely well. She also has an incredibly intuitive touch and nurturing soul. Especially if you have injuries and like deep tissue work Lily is the one for you! She has been helping my body heal from a few different issues. I'm so glad I found her:)”
-- Rocky Suzanne Patten Personal Fitness Trainer
“I take Lily's revitalizing yoga class whenever I can and I went on a yoga retreat with her last year which was an amazing experience I intend to repeat. Her massages are also divine experiences- as good as the one I had at Esalen which is saying alot! Harmony and elegance flow out of her fingers into your body and the experience is deeply restorative and calming. I always leave her presence with a sense of optimism and an enhanced sense of my own potential. I gave a session with her as a gift to a friend in a time of severe stress and that friend is now a regular client too. I'm a physician and suggest yoga and massage with extraordinary teachers to most of my patients- Lily is at the top of the list in the East Bay.”
-- Alison McInnes MD, MS
