Meet Mary DeTurris Poust

Mary has been practicing yoga since the 1980s, when she discovered the practice while living in Austin, Texas. 

As a woman in her 60s, Mary hopes her age can serve as a reminder to other older students that it is
never too late to pursue a dream or practice yoga. She loves to help her students take ownership of their practice, offering modifications and giving permission to students to let go of the Instagram ideal of yoga and meet themselves on the mat exactly as they are.

Mary is also a writer. If you are interested in reading more, visit her website Not Strictly Spiritual. 

 

What kind of trainings/certificates do you have and when did you get them?

I completed my 200 YTT in October 2020 through Terra Firm/Jai Yoga School in Slingerlands. I have been teaching studio classes as well as retreat and online classes since November 2020. I am a Registered Yoga Teacher

with Yoga Alliance, and you can find my profile here. 

Additional certifications:

• Yoga for Hip, Lower Back, and Pelvic Pain, Yogaville (2021)
• Restorative YTT & Immersion, Yoga & Ayurveda Center (2021)
• Elemental Meditation Teacher Training, Yoga Vidya Academy (2021)
• Radical Relaxation Restorative YTT, Yoga Vidya Academy (2021)
• Mindfulness Coaching Certification (100 hours), Michelle Young, My Vinyasa Practice (2022)
• Reiki I & II Certification, Usui Shiki Ryoho lineage. Tricia Hartnett, Master Teacher (April & August 2022)
• Yin Yoga Certification, Bhakti Marg, (2022)
• Certified Spiritual Director, Holy Ground, Albany, NY (May 2023)
• Currently training in Somatic Healing Certification (100 hours) Michelle Young, My Vinyasa Practice

How long have you been teaching at HeartSpace?

I have been teaching Gentle Hatha Blend and Restorative Yoga at HeartSpace since February 2024. However, I have practiced at HeartSpace for large chunks of time since the early 2000s and have always considered it one of my “home” studios. 🙂

What’s your favorite style of yoga to practice for your personal practice? Do you have a favorite pose/meditation/pranayam?

It’s hard to pick a favorite since I will often practice what I feel my body most needs on a particular day. Hatha was my first training, so it will always hold a special place in my heart. My YTT was in a stronger Vinyasa-style yoga, so I do love to flow, but I usually in a gentler version of that now. 

I have also learned to see the deep benefits of Yin and Restorative styles. I think in our fast-paced world, these longer-hold practices — each providing a very different kind of benefit — can really help people release the built up tension we carry around with us.

As far as pranayama: I love Nadi Shodhand for calm and balance, and Breath of Joy for energy and, well, joy!

My meditation practice tends toward breath meditation or, more recently and regularly, something known as Centering Prayer, which is a method of contemplation (out of the Catholic-Christian tradition) using a sacred word.

Why did you decide to teach yoga?

I actually first started yoga teacher training in the late 1980s in Austin, Texas, via the Himalayan Institute’s program there. I always say I was doing yoga before there were yoga pants. 🙂 However, a move back to New York required me to drop out of that program. It was always in the back of my mind that I would do the training at some point. I applied again to yoga teacher training at HeartSpace back around 2012, and this time an injury and health condition caused me to pull my application. As I passed 50 years old, I thought my time to be a yoga teacher had come and gone. But then, in 2019 when I was simply looking to get my own practice back on track, I realized it was finally time. It was a challenging training since ours was the COVID year, requiring us to pause training and finally complete our weekends outside at Thacher Park in order to social distance, but we did it. I graduated in October 2020 at the age of 58, something I hope inspires other older women to pursue a dream even when they think it has passed them by.

But WHY did I become a teacher? Mainly to deepen my own practice and because I feel yoga makes me a calmer, happier, healthier person. It also ties in deeply to my own spiritual life, which is no small thing. I wasn’t sure I would ever teach classes, but shortly after my graduation I was asked to start subbing and it quickly led to my teaching a variety of classes several times a week. This journey has been such a blessing, and I am so happy to be teaching at HeartSpace now.

What is your favorite thing to do (aside from yoga)?

At the top of my list is spending time with my family. My husband, Dennis, and I have three adult children living in the Capital Region and New York City. I also love cooking, gardening, writing, photography, and travel. Mainly I love to try new things and push myself to learn new things. I would say the word that defines this third-third of my life is “expansion.”

Is there anything else you want to share about yourself?

As a woman in her 60s — and someone who has had my share of health and physical issues of late — I love to make yoga welcoming and accessible to every single person who wants to practice. I always tell students to honor their bodies and where they are (physically, mentally, and emotionally) at that moment, and every day will be different. 

My “goal” is to help people put aside the Instagram images of yoga poses that look impossible and focus on the heart of yoga, which is about learning to be exactly where we are, as we are. I love when I see students finding their own way on the mat and making their Asana practice truly their own. As one of my early yoga teachers used to say: Accept what is, not what you think should be. THAT is yoga.