Savonn holds a deep knowledge of intricate movements of the body and is brilliant at offering up the most creative of asana variations and flows. Her classes are full of detail, awareness, and mindfulness. Her ability to clearly articulate and break down the movements and seamlessly weave in the unexpected keeps classes challenging, inspiring, and fun.
Her ability to be herself, laugh, tell stories, and share her own experiences creates for an open and heartfelt connection. Her unattachment to the “rules” and encouragement in being attuned to working within the boundaries of your own unique body are liberating.
Savonn’s vinyasa classes are always a joy to experience. These classes are essential self-care for me. I remember dearly a series of classes during the spring of COVID where Savonn passionately focused on connecting with breath work and heart opening through both shapes, movement and verbal guidance. Joining in these classes through the live stream brought me amazing physical relief and emotional release during a difficult and stressful time. I appreciate that Savonn’s spiritual lens in vinyasa practice is often softer and more subtle, yet the message and outcome is even more powerful.
Savonn Wyland
Co-Founder & a Lead Instructor at Sellwood Yoga
As co-founder and a lead instructor at Sellwood Yoga, Savonn brings over 29 years of teaching experience to her classes. She offers skillful, detailed instruction with grounded inspiration and a non-dogmatic teaching style that encourages students to connect deeply with their own practice.
Savonn values an integrated approach to health and well-being, believing that yoga and other meditative or expressive arts complement athletic, professional, and creative pursuits. Her classes, workshops, and retreats create a transformative environment where community connection and personal inquiry coexist. She also offers one-on-one and small-group sessions to support individual needs, modifications, and goals.
Before opening Sellwood Yoga, Savonn founded Bernal Yoga in San Francisco, a well-respected, independently owned studio that operated from 2002–2019. She co-created and co-leads Sellwood Yoga’s 200-Hour Teacher Training, 300-Hour Advanced Studies Program, and the 150-Hour Deep Dive Program for committed students. She also co-leads two menopause-focused programs: Pause (for perimenopause) and Pause Plus (for postmenopause).
Beyond the studio, Savonn consults with health and wellness professionals and small business owners on developing and expanding their businesses, refining identity and systems, and creating sustainable, values-based growth strategies.
Her yoga certifications include Flow/Vinyasa Yoga from the White Lotus Foundation, Pre/Postnatal Yoga from the Seattle Holistic Center, and Yin/Yang Yoga with Sarah Powers and Paul Grilley. She also completed therapeutic yoga training at the Yoga Garden of San Anselmo and is a certified MELT Method Instructor, Menopause Coaching Specialist, and Health Coach.
Savonn lives in Sellwood with her husband and loves spending time outdoors—whitewater kayaking, hiking, biking, and traveling. Many of her yoga retreat ideas are inspired by her adventures across the country and around the world.
Check out Savonn’s website.
I’ll take anything Savonn teaches! There is a thoughtfulness to the way Savonn teaches and everything is done with a purpose. I love how each class is focused on a certain theme or concentration, even when I might not realize what that is at the start. Every class is filled with an “Aha!” moment for me where I’m not just moving my body but learning to use it more deeply and to get a deeper understanding of yoga and how it affects me – be it how I can better get into an asana, how to refine it, where it strikes a chord in me, how it changes my body or breathing… Vinyasa Flow is a great all around class that gets my body moving. Strong Vinyasa challenges me and builds my strength and confidence – Savonn provides a safe space to try (and sometimes trick me) into poses I don’t think I can do. Yoga Basics is my absolute favorite class. I think many people have the misconception that it is a beginner class. While it is great for beginners, I really think that everyone should be taking it. It is a wonderful foundational class. Even if you’ve been practicing a while, we all develop habits (good or bad), and this class brings you back to the fundamentals. It makes you explore why we do certain poses. It explores different approaches to moves you’ve done thousands of times the same way. It reminds you to slow down and live in the experience of yoga rather than just going through the motions.