Karen Wightman is the Founder and Senior Trainer of Creative Yogis – a vibrant and passionate yoga & mindfulness provider in the Byron Shire, NSW Australia. She is both a local and international children’s yoga instructor, advisor, teacher trainer and children’s art teacher with more than 18 years of experience.
Karen first began practicing yoga in Thailand in 1995 and initially assisted in children’s yoga classes under the guidance of her teacher Justin Herold in the Iyengar Yoga School in Bangkok in 2003. She then went on to coordinate a 3-year programme at Satit Kaset International Program in Bangkok.
In 2006, Karen moved to Australia to immerse herself fully in the study of yoga with Master Teacher Nicky Knoff where she completed her first RYT 200 hours teacher training in the Knoff system. She met world-famous Rachel Zinman in 2007 and finally completed her second teacher training in the Ishta System becoming a RYT 500 hours in 2014 after a period of extensive study.
Karen has continued to develop her skills in children’s yoga ongoingly since 2007 training with a number of leading teachers and pioneers in the field. Kylie Peters of ‘Simply Kids’, Christy Brock Miele of ‘Yoga 4 Teens’, Lorainne Rushton of ‘Zenergy Yoga 4 Kids’ and Charlotta Martinus of ‘Teen Yoga Foundation’.
She currently facilitates local and international teacher trainings and workshops in Australia, Japan, Europe as well as Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai in collaboration with Pure Yoga. When Karen is not a ‘travelling yogi’ she spends her time teaching the children and teens that continue to inspire her work. Her mission is to empower children and teens with yogic and mindfulness tools that enable them to support their holistic health, wellbeing and manage stress.