An experienced yoga practitioner and well-traveled international businesswoman, Melissa Garland has a unique perspective on managing stress and helping people improve mobility, find pain relief, and improve mindfulness. “I was aware of stress and anxiety in my own life (while building a successful business career)” she recalls. “I was searching for an answer to, ‘How do I get and stay happy?’”
Her solution is YMI (Yoga Mastery Institute) Method, which she operates from her Pinebrook studio. “I developed it in 2022 for anyone to learn yoga, meditation and mindfulness in a structured, approachable way.”
She found a surprise along the way: “many people in our community suffer with regular pain,” she said. Managing that distress offers “an important entry point into the YMI method.”
Her 5-week/10-session program keeps things intimate with just 10 openings per class. “I’m honored to watch people’s back pain go away, their balance and mental health improve, their stress levels drop. It’s amazing!” She’s also excited about offering a men’s retreat, “my favorite audience for this program,” she smiles. “Men come to it without prejudgment. They just want to learn, and for their backs to get better.”
Melissa arrived in the mountains from NYC in 2007, “newly married, with an infant and another on the way,” seeking a healthier environment for the kids. “Park City was not on our radar, but we were delighted!’ she recalls.
She credits decades of yoga and mindfulness with keeping her pain free and active, enjoying mountain biking, skate-skiing, and foil boarding. Now single and with her two sons away at college, “I’m free to explore so many things right here in our backyard!”
Super-active Melissa says friends are surprised by her newest activity: knitting. “They thought I couldn’t sit still long enough,” she laughs. “But I am two blankets, one sweater and many hats and gloves into it this point. It’s remarkably centering.” Just like Melissa’s work life and client goals - something she teaches every day at YMI Method.