Name of business: Yoga Belly
Address: 700 N. 22nd St., Ozark
Phone: (417) 501-4885
Web site: yogabelly.me
Hours: Classes and private lessons offered at varying times
Owner: Jill Michaels
About the business: Jill Michaels has always been interested in diet and exercise. But a stark dose of bad news jolted her into pushing herself in a new direction.
Michaels majored in physiology and nutrition sciences at Kansas State University and was leading what she thought was a healthy lifestyle when she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
“I was very active at the time and running, going to the gym, everything that I thought I should be doing … this diagnosis really surprised and disappointed me,” she says. “I decided I needed to make some changes.”
Given her health, Michaels knew she needed to find something that would help her remain physically fit but wouldn’t overtax her body. She turned to yoga.
“I kind of hated it,” she says with a laugh. “… The class was huge. It wasn’t personal. I felt I wasn’t getting anything out of it.”
But she gave it another shot at home after her husband bought an exercise DVD.
“It gave me a whole new respect for the practice,” Michaels says.
Soon, Michaels was doing yoga five days a week in her home studio. Family members and a few friends started joining her. Finally, Michaels decided to build a business teaching yoga.
In January of this year, Michaels spent a month in Costa Rica learning and becoming a certified yoga instructor. She opened Yoga Belly after she returned.
Initially operated out of her home, Michaels quickly realized she needed a larger space to accommodate her growing student base.
Today, Yoga Belly shares space with EveryBody Pilates in Ozark. The studio features a large open space for group classes and two smaller studios for individual instruction.
Michaels offers a number of different courses designed for every skill and fitness level.
“I just started a plus-size yoga class in the last month,” she says.
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Michaels says making people feel at ease in class and with their bodies is of paramount importance to her. Michaels says she often hears new students say, “I didn’t want to come in and look silly,” she says, adding that they shouldn’t worry.
“It’s so welcoming for everyone,” she says.
Experience: Michaels is a registered and licensed dietician with almost 20 years of experience, has practiced yoga for about six years and completed her yoga teaching training at Anamaya Body, Mind and Spirit Resort, in Costa Rica.
She understood issues related to bodies, but nothing about running a business, she says.
“This is my first time (owning a business). It’s going actually very well,” Michaels says, adding her husband has given her a great deal of support in marketing the business.
“It makes it a lot easier for me so I can spend more time on my students and my practice,” she says.
Challenges: Michaels says what she needs most is more hours in the day.
“You want to commit so much time, wanting to make the experience personal and focus on your students,” she says.
The result: late-night paperwork, she says.
Goals: For the time being, Michaels is focused on teaching and watching her student base grow. She also wants to add a class that teaches how to do yoga on a paddleboard.
“I’ll look to start probably in January,” she says.
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