Barry Ennis

BARRY ENNIS was first exposed to yoga in 1999 at a training camp for amateur baseball players. Like many, he first found yoga rather monotonous and uncomfortable, but soon began to notice the physical and mental benefits of the practice and never looked back. Yoga soon became the biggest aspect of his life.

Barry attended Occidental College in Los Angeles and graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology. This education has had a big impact on his practice. Barry feels that in yoga and in sport, so much of the time the focus is on the physical practice or training. The mental side of yoga and the mental side of sport training is some of the most overlooked, and can strongly impact the physical aspect. Barry’s sessions have since included an aspect of tuning into how the mind relates to the body in movement.

During his time at Occidental College Barry also worked as an athletic trainer in the sports medicine facility. Through this practice he gained extensive knowledge in regards to rehabilitation and injury prevention. Through consultation with the head athletic trainer, he began to implement yoga and flexibility training as part of the therapy that he would provide to athletes.

Halfway through his career at Occidental College in 2007, Barry received his first RYT yoga certification from the Yoga Alliance in Vinyasa Yoga. He taught at several studios throughout Los Angeles including Silverlake Yoga, Yoga House, and others. He also began teaching yoga for athletes. He started teaching flexibility training for athletes at Occidental College, and through contacts in the baseball industry, Barry became an on-call yoga instructor with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He also became a consultant at Athlete’s Performance, and a teacher for the professional baseball pitchers at the Jaeger Sports Pro Baseball Camps. It was then that he decided to launch Elite Sport Yoga after the increasing demand for flexibility training for athletes.

In 2010 Barry received a second certification from the Yoga Shelter in Sanga Yoga. During this second teacher training, he was exposed to Vedanta Philosophy. He felt this connected so strongly with his background in Psychology, and decided to learn more by going to the source at the Vedanta Academy in Malavli, Maharashtra, India. At the Vedanta Academy Barry learned life principles that are easily applicable to life as well as sports that he has since tied into his practice.

After India, Barry moved to Dubai in 2011 and has since grown his practice there. He started studying the depths of yoga anatomy with Leslie Kaminoff, the co-author of Yoga Anatomy, and flexibility training such as Fascial Stretch Therapy. He continues to study Vedanta Philosophy. Barry has also hosted Anatomy Lessons as part of teacher trainings with Zen Yoga. With this continual search for more knowledge and understanding, Barry’s unique style of teaching has emerged. You can read more about Barry’s practice and credentials here.

Barry currently runs private yoga lessons in Dubai as well as a new branch of Elite Sport Yoga. He can be contacted as a consultant or teacher here.