Maria Panchenko

Namaste.

I am Maria and the owner, founder, and sole-operator of yogamode., I am 25 years young, and I was born, raised, still live, and plan to stay in Michigan. My younger sister and I were raised by our two Roman Catholic parents. I place high value on education and I am walking down a (so far) life-long path of going to school. After my half public, half private grade school education, I went to Oakland University for undergraduate school. At Oakland, I received a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature within 2 1/2 years. After just under one year of working at a law firm I enrolled in Thomas M. Cooley Law School and began studying to achieve my Juris Doctorate degree in Law. It has been a long 3 1/2 years, but I finish my classes this December (2012) and am scheduled to graduate law school on January 20, 2013. I plan to practice law with my father, at his general litigation law firm, upon passing the bar exam in February 2013. I am planning to spend a career finding amicable and alternative resolutions for those that need freedom and peace in their lives, and representing people who need someone to speak for them at some of the hardest and most important times in their lives. I am recently married to my wonderful husband, and my hero, Ryan.

I am very blessed. I love my life, my husband, my family, my friends, my animals, my job, this world, and YOGA.

Yoga found me at a time when I needed it the most. My life was never what I would consider a bad life. I was blessed in life by good family, friends, and health. But, my dreams, my ambitions, and my 100% dedication to education and my work was beginning to drag me down. My energy, my happiness, and my health were in jeopardy. I truly had a misplaced understanding of how to LIVE my life. I put too high of a premium on working hard, making money, and having a first-rate education. I was beginning to burn out. Exhausting myself before I was even 19 years old seemed to me that all of my efforts were in vain. I started to sink into a state of complete sadness and defeat.

Thankfully, one of my closest friends had started her practice, and she invited me to come to a class with her. To this day, I can not thank her enough for introducing me to that which saved me, that which brought me to my true self. I never felt more energized, calm, and clear-headed than I did after my first yoga class. At that moment, I experienced the birth of my new life. I knew this lifestyle was the change I needed in my life. A change I needed for so long. I began taking a multitude of classes from many different yoga studios in the Tri-County (Detroit Metropolitan) area. I loved every style, every class, and every teacher I encountered as each had something wonderful to offer me. I started feeling stronger, more flexible, more energized, and happier than ever.

After a few years of practicing yoga, I had a terrible car accident. The accident left me, thankfully, with a broken kneecap. I suffered extreme atrophy, loss of my range of motion, and a misshaped kneecap leaving me with a grinding and clicking knee with every step I took. After a year of major surgeries and painful physical therapy, I was aching to get back on the mat and rebuild my strength, for I knew that yoga would bring my body back to me. But, when I returned to the mat I received so much more than improvement to my physical body. Once again, yoga breathed new life into my emotional, mental, and spiritual true self. I learned patients, self-love, and self-acceptance on a level I never knew I could reach.

Three months after returning to the mat, I knew I was meant to share this practice with the world. I decided to go to yoga teacher training. Being who I am, I wanted to make sure I got the best education I could. Weeks of research led me to the week that would change, yet again, my life forever. Lex Gillan and the Yoga Institute. Lex brought his teacher training to Melissa Boyd-Sloan's Satya Yoga and Pilates Studio in Mt. Sinai, New York on Long Island. I was there. I packed my bags, and drove twelve hours straight with one of my best friends at my side (for support) to learn everything I needed to know to be the change.

The week I spend in New York for my teacher training was one of the most rewarding, fulfilling experiences of my life. I met some of the most wonderful people I could ever imagine meeting, learned more than I could ever hope to learn, and left with an accomplishment that would benefit every person I would encounter thereafter. I could never thank Lex and Melissa, and all of my fellow trainees enough for the once in a lifetime transformation they gave to me this past year. I love each of you, I will remember and cherish our time together, I will hold you all near my heart forever, and I strive everyday to share the love in Detroit.

When I returned home from New York I could not wait to get started on my new path. I eagerly applied and inquired at every possibly studio, gym, community center, hospital, fitness center, etc. I could find in the yellow pages across the entire Tri-County (Detroit Metropolitan) area. With many failures, came much success. I was employed as a yoga instructor within one week's time. I came to my first class full of nerves, excitement, and students! The moment the class ended, I had instant affirmation that I made the right decision.

I kept looking to find more and more ways I could share the love of yoga with the Metro-Detroit Area. I began working in people's homes, at gyms, fitness centers, court houses, office buildings, hospitals, and yoga studios. Finally, I decided to open my own business. Out of that came: Namaste, Detroit., bowing to the divine potential that exists within Detroit's true self. Unfortunately, a similar name already existed and was beginning to cause confusion. So, Yogamode., was born.

yogamode. is ready to bring yoga to your home, business, studio, church, school, hospital, senior facility, family or corporate event, and much more!

The original name was inspired by the innovators that saw the divine potential in this community and built Detroit from the ground up with the vision of greatness. People came from all over the world to live and work in this great place. However, somewhere along the way part of the community and this area got lost. While the name of the company changed, the mission remains, with a bit Detroit into the MODE.

Where can you find yogamode. outside your home or office?

Many of the classes I teach are In-Corporate, or In-Home and closed to the public! Call now to schedule your next session with yogamode.

Outside of Yoga Planet Studio (listed under my venues), I also teach public classes at LA Fitness, both in Warren and in Royal Oak.

Please check out our events pages posted on Facebook to see my schedule and locations of the current classes I teach. And please keep coming back to stay posted with changes at yogamode. and hopefully some new upcoming events!

Physical address- Inquire within for business/billing purposes only.