| Conny and Jay are two certified and experienced Bikram Yoga teachers who have regularly practiced Bikram Yoga since 2000/2001 and other styles of yoga, including Ashtanga, prior to that. They completed their Bikram Yoga teacher training at Bikram's Yoga College of India headquarters in Los Angeles in November of 2003 training directly under Bikram. Conny and Jay have managed and taught at various Bikram Yoga studios in California, Washington, D.C., and London.
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Contact Conny | Cornelia Chitnis | |
Originally from Germany, Conny spent many years in the U.S., completing her MBA and then working as an equity research analyst for various investment banks. It was San Francisco where she found Bikram Yoga when, on a second date with a colleague, he took her to a Bikram Yoga class. She instantly fell in love with the yoga (and the colleague) and the three formed a lasting union.
Conny is also a Judo black belt. Before she found Bikram Yoga, she had a 13-year long Judo career as a competitor, national team member coach and referee, which abruptly ended in 1993 after she tore off her knee cap and various ligaments during a competition. After a year of a 5 hours-a-day physical therapy regimen, she was told by specialists that she was very lucky to be walking and should never try any form of exercise again. As a very active person, this was crushing news to her. Conny subsequently spent years at the gym but was bored and dissatisfied until the lucky day Jay took her to Bikram Yoga. She found the yoga to be challenging and rewarding, providing a complete workout for body and mind without impacting her joints. Her knees have improved since. Having experienced the positive effects of Bikram Yoga herself, Conny felt the strong call to become a Bikram Yoga teacher and share the many health benefits of the yoga with others. She gave up her corporate career and has taught at various studios in California and London before opening her own studio in Canary Wharf. | | 
Contact Jay | Jaydeep Chitnis | |
While living a fast-paced life as a Mergers & Acquisitions banker in New York,
Jay was a frequent gym-goer accustomed to running and weights. Finding these activities to be restrictive in their movement, he was drawn to yoga given its reputation as a natural healing mechanism. After practising various forms, Jay was introduced to Bikram Yoga by a friend who explained that the heat and sequence of postures would help take his practise to an entirely new level.
His very first Bikram class, taken on Spring Street in Manhattan's Soho district, was a punishing 90 minutes and 26 postures in Bikram's "torture chamber" representing an experience unlike any other he had known. The day after the class, he was sore in what felt to be every muscle in his body, yet felt a powerful sense of exhilaration and achievement. Jay was instantly hooked. Subsequent sessions felt easier and the heat, initially an oppressive element, soon became a welcome part of his practice. Over time, Bikram Yoga has enabled Jay to reduce stress, improve flexibility and sharpen his focus when encountering any new challenge. | |
