Meet your teachers

Danielle is the Founding Owner of True Nature Yoga Collective and Director of True Nature School of Yoga. Since 2001, she has taught in various settings including yoga studios, corporations, non-profit organizations, and schools. Previously, she has been the co-owner of two studios, Yoga Vista (2005-2009) and Yoga Oceanside (2010 to 2019) . 

Leading transformational retreats and facilitating group circles for over 2 decades, Danielle's approach is rooted in the belief that with steady practice and sincere study, we all have the capacity to heal our pain, navigate change and awaken our compassion. Bringing seekers together and creating supportive community is at the heart of her work.

Danielle's classes, workshops, trainings, and retreats are accessible for all abilities and emphasize an embodied experience of the rich philosophy and psychology rooted in ancient traditions. Her pilgrimages to India have embedded her in a spiritual lineage of the tradition, which shines through in her sincere approach to sharing Yoga with others.

Danielle graduated with a Master of Arts Degree in Yoga Studies from Loyola Marymount University in May 2015. She is also attuned as a Reiki Master and enjoys tapping into energy as a source for personal healing and spiritual growth.

When she's not teaching, you will find her in the kitchen preparing plant-based meals, volunteering  for Voices for Children as a CASA, studying, and tending to her personal practice. 

Danielle's Schedule

Sundays @ 9:00am & 10:30am

Wednesdays @ 9:30am

Fridays @ 9:30am

Based in Oceanside, California, Rebecca Cervantes is a yoga teacher dedicated to helping

individuals restore balance and peace through gentle, mindful movement. Specializing in Yin and Restorative Yoga, Rebecca offers practices that invite stillness, deepen awareness, and nurture the body’s natural capacity to heal.

With a background in both wellness and clinical treatment settings, Rebecca brings a grounded,

compassionate presence to her teaching. Her approach weaves together yoga philosophy, somatic awareness, and breath-based mindfulness to support emotional and physical well-being. Whether guiding a group class or working in a therapeutic environment, she creates space for students to soften, reconnect, and rediscover inner resilience.

Rebecca believes that yoga is less about perfect poses and more about coming home to yourself

— one breath, one moment at a time.

Becky's Schedule 

Sundays @ 5:30pm

Inspired and guided by several spiritual teachers, I’ve been fortunate to study and practice meditation for more than 50 years. My search for self-knowledge and truth has carried me from graduate studies in counseling psychology to ashrams in India. I love teaching and sharing ways to bring spiritual principles into everyday life—into our work, our relationships, and the challenges we all face. With humor, stories, and the wisdom of timeless teachings, I simply offer what I’ve learned and experienced along the way.

Jim's Schedule:

Wednesdays @ 10:45am (begins January 7th)

In Sara’s class, you can expect a strong focus on using the breath to guide each movement and allowing it to support the space within each posture so that each student can take the time to explore their own unique capabilities. Her classes are intentional and uplifting, with a deep reverence for the teachings of yoga and a lighthearted sense of humor. Sara creates a warm, welcoming & safe environment where every student can connect more deeply to themselves both on & off the mat. Come as you are! 

Follow Sara here https://linktr.ee/sara.comp

Sara's Schedule:

Tuesdays @ 5:30pm & 7:00pm

Candice discovered yoga in 2007 and realized this was something she had been looking for all her life and immediately signed up for yoga teacher training and soon began teaching in August of 2008. In 2012 she opened her first yoga studio, Yoga Collective in Houston TX. In November of 2014 she decided to follow her heart and moved to California and ended up purchasing her second yoga studio, Black Sheep Yoga in South Oceanside, in January of 2016. In early 2023 Candice was once again feeling the call to make some big changes and ended up selling her studio in May. Since then, she has been continuing to listen to her intuition and is currently living the life she loves most, by teaching yoga at the Seabird Resort in downtown Oceanside as well as taking out groups of yogis and non-yogis alike for some paddle board fun, hosting sunset SUP adventures in Oceanside Harbor. 

Candice has a passion for teaching yoga in a down-to-earth way that is designed to give her students the tools and techniques they need to access their own body’s messages and to hold space for reconnection and introspection that will allow each practitioner to tap back into their own intuitive nature to find a little more inspiration to believe in their own potential and to live their own best lives too!

Candice is 500hr certified yoga teacher and also has many specialized yoga certifications in Yin and Restorative + certifications to teach Yoga Teacher Trainings to others in these particular yoga modalities, SUPYoga + certified for teacher trainings, Kids Yoga, Partner Yoga, Thai Massage, Sound Healing, Yoga Nidra and Meditation.

Follow Candice on Instagram @can.dice_incali

Candice's Schedule

Wednesdays @ 5:30pm

Katie has taught yoga across the planet in diverse environments, from corporate wellness days to roof top decks in the South Indian Ocean, to sweet little studios right here in Oceanside and feels that every yoga offering is an opportunity to pour a bit of her heart into the world :)

Katie is a lover of life and her classes are infused with this infectious energy.  Her teaching style is playful yet gentle. In her class you can expect breath centric somatic movements layered with heaps of yoga philosophy. Intentional based practice is always a foundation for her. With a deep love and reverence for the yoga teachings in their entirety, the asana, (the poses) simply become a portal for deeper levels of self inquiry. It’s the wisdoms she had learned from the yoga teachings through TNY that have transformed her own life to one of playful presence, healing & peace.

Through her classes, Katie hopes to invite you through the door of self discovery.  She teaches with kindness, compassion and from the joy in her heart. She hopes to help share this joy with you. Her passion for creating community as well as safe spaces for people to learn and heal and shine is what she is thrilled to share with the TNYC.

In addition to yoga classes Katie hosts monthly wellness experiences and annual retreats. She’d love to connect in studio or over coffee! You can find her at IG @saltearth.co or at https://saltearthcollective.com

Katie's Schedule

Thursdays @ 9:30am

In 2006 Anna quit her journalism job in Los Angeles and moved to India to study yoga with esteemed teacher TKV Desikachar. She had no intention of teaching yoga – just an insatiable curiosity about the practice she loved and its deep roots. But after seven months of eating, sleeping, and breathing yoga, it seemed selfish not to share the teachings. Anna returned to the US, completed a 500-hour teacher training, and began leading classes that combine the fluid, playful style of her LA days with the measured, therapeutic approach she embraced in India. The one-time political journalist also became a frequent contributor to Yoga International, Yoga Journal, and other health and wellness publications.

Anna was living the dream – getting paid to jet to yoga conferences and pick the brains of America's top teachers – until she had two babies in less than two years (insert screeching tire sound effect). These days, you're more likely to find her at a soccer match or dance recital than a yoga conference, but she still makes time for the mat. In 2021 she founded Delve Wellness Collective, a mobile studio specializing in outdoor yoga classes, private yoga instruction, and one-of-a-kind wellness experiences. She also offers consulting services to hotels and resorts interested in developing wellness programs. https://www.delvetogether.com/

Anna is honored to be part of the True Nature Yoga community. She shares her lighthearted, breath-focused, BS-free approach on Monday mornings and select Fridays. 

Anna's Schedule

Mondays @ 9:30am (begins January 5th)

Originally from Hawaii, Melanie moved to California in the late 90’s and began to explore different styles of Yoga. She was infinitely inspired, and loved how each of her teachers had something unique to offer the beautiful tapestry of Yoga. Wanting to take her practice and understanding further, she became a registered yoga teacher through True Nature School of Yoga in 2008. Since then, Melanie has taught yoga in hospitals, schools, Yoga studios, and on the road for touring musicians. She strongly believes in, and has directly observed in herself and her students, the great potential of yoga to relieve stress, help heal our bodies by igniting the immune system and create a more loving and compassionate outlook on life. Her passion for Yoga and its healing properties led to an in depth study of functional anatomy, holistic nutrition and clinical herbalism.  

Melanie is on faculty at True Nature School of Yoga, where she trains yoga teachers in Anatomy, Ayurveda, Yin Yoga, vinyasa, and alignment in asana. She was the co-founder and owner of Yoga Oceanside Studio for over 10 years.  Her love of travel has Melanie leading wellness programming around the world through her company Rebel and Muse.  www.rebelandmuse.com

Leslie Denny is a yoga and fitness instructor who has been practicing in the Oceanside, California area for over fifteen years. Her qualifications include the E-RYT 500, registered through the Yoga Alliance, 200-hour training through YogaFit and advanced studies through the True Nature School of Yoga, of which she is a faculty member. Leslie is a member of the Advisory Committee for Standards with Yoga Alliance and has successfully mentored and trained many yoga instructors. In her previous role as a Master Instructor with 24 Hour Fitness, she developed yoga workshops that were implemented successfully nationwide. Leslie has brought yoga to many diverse groups: cancer patients at Scripps in La Jolla, California, struggling teens at the YMCA and the Wounded Warriors Battalion West Marines at Camp Pendleton. She also co-developed the KOCT series, “Health and Harmony Yoga” which can be seen on Oceanside community channel. One of her specialties in yoga is a therapeutic approach with postures and the use of therapeutic balls for the purpose of myofascial release and self-massage. She is a strong believer that, through meditation and yoga, we can all find peace where we least expect it.

Pawan has been involved with the contemplative arts for nearly 30 years but his training in eastern spirituality goes back to his early childhood in India. Pawan teaches various classes and workshops on Yoga philosophy, āsana, kuṇḍalinī, prāṇāyāma, and meditation, spanning from many of the traditional schools of India (Sivananda Yoga, Himalayan Institute, Bihar School of Yoga, Ashtanga, and Iyengar to name a few).

Pawan also holds a Master of Arts in Yoga Studies from Loyola Marymount University. His research and passion spans classical Indian philosophy with a focus on the acoustic and neuroscience aspects of mediation and consciousness.