Instructor Bios

Get to know your instructor

Diana Christinson

Diana is the founder and Director of Pacific Ashtanga Yoga Shala in Dana Point, CA.
She is one of an honored group of students who studied with and received certification to teach the first and second series of Ashtanga yoga by its founder, Shri K Pattabhi Jois, and his grandson, Sharat Rangaswamy, at the Ashtanga Yoga Institute in Mysore, India.

Diana lived in Asia for two years and began her yoga practice in Kyoto, Japan in 1987, which inspired her lifelong studies of Eastern Philosophy. She began teaching yoga in 1996, and in 1999, after practicing yoga for more than a decade, Diana took the first of 9 trips to India to study at the Ashtanga Yoga Institute. She founded Pacific Ashtanga Yoga Shala in 2005.

With a Master's degree in Psychology, and an appreciation for Eastern philosophies and meditation, Diana's approach is anchored by her passion to inspire students to use their yoga practice to keep their mind and body healthy. Teaching with an understanding and refinement informed by her anatomical knowledge and keen sense of touch, she is committed to the importance of the student-teacher connection and focuses on helping each student create a practice that is distinctive to the individual.

Staci Bina

When Staci Bina walked into her first yoga class in 2004, she knew that she would never be the same. She found something that changed the way she saw her body, her life and the universe around her. And so the journey began…

She became certified to teach yoga at the Institute of Progressive Therapies in San Diego and went on to study at the Ashtanga Yoga Center with Tim Miller, where she received her first and second series teacher trainings. She has also studied at Karma Kids Yoga, New York and received training to teach children and teens. Staci is honored to be teaching and sharing her passion for the practice with others. "Watching the practice spill off the mat and into people's lives is the greatest reward."

Timea Agnew

Timea was born and raised in Budapest Hungary, where she studied Modern Dance until she moved to the United States at age 19.
Her first yoga class was at the local gym where she was inspired by her teacher's deep respect for the healing and calming effect of yoga.

After taking a few different styles of yoga classes in 2007 she knew it was the Ashtanga Method which she wanted to pursue. From there on she studied this traditional form of yoga. Her teacher training was with master teacher Tim Miller on the Primary Series.

Over the years she was fortune to study with many of the most respected Ashtanga teachers like Sharat Rangaswamy, David Swenson, Nancy Gilgoff, Richard Freeman, Kino MacGregor and many more.
When she is not doing yoga Timea is helping her husband Terrill's business and devoting much of her time to their two daughters Sophie and Vienna.

Josh Plotkin

An Ashtangi at heart, Josh studies many styles of yoga. He believes each discipline rooted in form and functionality offers unique benefits to individual practitioners. His classes are focused on combining the principals of breath, gaze and movement to create a practice equal in strength and grace, a moving meditation.

500 HR Yogaworks
30 Adjustment Intensive with David Regelin

See Josh's video Folding and Floating.

Sarah Mitchell

Sarah was first drawn to yoga in 2006, while she was attending law school. She noticed that taking even one class each week brought her not only relief in her physical body, but also a sense of mental grace and focus. As a result, the practice of yoga became increasingly important to Sarah as the years passed.
She found herself focusing on Vinyasa flow, while continually seeking new teachers and classes to challenge her. In order to deepen her practice and better understand the philosophical underpinnings of yoga, Sarah completed her 200-hour Hatha teacher training at Triad Yoga & Pilates in Fall 2013. During this training, Sarah felt called to start an Ashtanga practice, and she dedicated exclusively to that practice as of December 2013.
In 2014 and 2015, Sarah practiced and interned under her then-current Ashtanga teacher Itay Dollinger. Sarah was fortunate enough to join the Pacific Ashtanga community in Fall 2015, and has been under the mentorship of Diana Christinson since that time. Between 2016 and 2017, Sarah engaged in a six-month teacher training internship with Diana. In June 2017, Sarah completed a 100-hour training with Ashtanga teacher Tim Miller at his Shala in Encinitas, California. Since 2013, Sarah has endeavored to dedicate to her own practice, and to share her passion for the Ashtanga practice with fellow students.
With so much love and gratitude for this amazing community and this beautiful practice!

Kim Renik

Kim Renik became a student at Pacific Ashtanga Yoga Shala in 2012. For the last four and a half years, she have been an observant and dedicated student/practitioner at the Shala. This year Kim Renik decided to dive deeper into her practice, beginning an internship with Diana and earning her teacher certification in Ashtanga from David Swenson.

Through the continuous pursuit of her own body awareness in asana, becoming a teacher has heightened her awareness not just with movement, but with the breath. Kim, even in this short time, that she have cultivated a deeper understanding of this practice.
However, Kim Renik is a student of life, of this yoga, and she will never stop learning. She looks forward to learning from other students and teachers alike.

Kim Renik is so grateful to have found Pacific Ashtanga, and honored to be a teacher now.

Joyce Battersby

Joyce is certified as a 200-hour RYT through Yoga Alliance. She has been practicing yoga for over 10 years, and is a devoted Ashtangi. Joyce has been a student under Diana since 2015, she is currently an intern at the Pacific Ashtanga Shala. Joyce studies with Tim Miller on a regular basis and had participated in his teacher training on June of 2017.
Joyce is a life-long Buddhist and practices vipassana and concentration meditation. Her interest in Buddhism and breath meditation led her to yoga.

Joyce views yoga practice, and teaching, as acts of generosity and compassion with spiritual significance for both the student and teacher. Physical and mental fitness are priceless.

Peter Kornhaber

Peter Kornhaber started his love affair with Yoga back in 1977 preparing for foreign study in India. As a philosophy major he was intrigued with Eastern Philosophies and as an athlete yoga spoke to him. Peter studied with a Raja yoga teacher in India (Pune) daily for 8 months while studying with BKS Iyengar one day a week during the same time.

When Peter returned to the states he continued some practice on his own while also studying martial arts for 8 years. In 1998 Peter came back to Yoga and taught for 4 years from 2004-2008. Peter began his ashtanga practice with Diana in 2006 and got his teaching credential from Tim Miller a few years later. For the past few years' work has kept Peter from being able to teach but as he plan to leave his workaday life behind he is happy to once again be able to share his love for Yoga and it's benefits with others.

Monserrat Munoz

Montserrat began her Asana practice and Yoga studies in 2007. Since 2012 she has been practicing and studying Ashtanga Yoga under the guidance of Diana Christinson. Along with Diana, Matthew Sweeney, of Byron Bay Australia has been her other primary teacher. Matthew is regarded as one of the most influential Ashtanga instructors in the world and Montserrat has traveled to India and Indonesia to study in his intensive programs. In 2015 she received her teacher training certification in the Moon Sequence (Chandra Krama) by Matthew Sweeney.

Currently she is in the process of finishing her six month internship with Diana Christinson. Upon completing this internship, she will begin the Ashtanga Yoga Primary Series Teacher Training with Tim Miller in Encinitas Ca. "I am very humble and grateful to my yoga teachers for sharing their unbounded insight and generosity, and I am also honored to share that generosity evolution with others."

Eric Berg

In 1995, after a decade of sitting at computers to complete his Physics Ph.D., Eric began a weekly led primary practice with Tim Miller. Though embarrassed at first, he soon felt his body straightening into self-alignment and was hooked for life. He was content to practice the same poses for the next 10 years, and devoted himself to formal Buddhist meditation training.

Moving to a remote work site in Washington inspired him to develop a Mysore-style practice and begin teaching, which led him to complete David GarriguesвЂ™ teacher training (RYT200) in 2011.

Eric met Diana in 2006 and began practicing with her at Pacific Ashtanga Yoga Shala. He moved back to Orange County full-time in 2011 and is so happy to be part of the sangha with his wife Cindy. He is currently completing an internship with Diana and plans to continue sharing the practice.

Allan Chen

I moved from Taiwan to the United States when I was in high school for a better future. Now I am a husband, father, dog lover and founder of Caruse Design. Ashtanga has given me the opportunity to find true happiness. My journey with Ashtanga started during a trip to Kauai back in 2012. I had the opportunity to practice with Eagle at Pineapple Yoga. The practice style of Mysore was unlike anything else I have practiced in my life and I was instantly hooked. Coming back home I searched and found my second home, Pacific Ashtanga Shala. After completing teachers training with David Swenson and receiving the guidance and internship from Diana, I am honored and happy to have become a member of Pacific Ashtanga Shala.

Being an Ashtangi gave me deeper meaning of lives and brought me peace, harmony, and abilities to make better decision in my daily life. I would love to continue sharing the love of this practice for rest of my life.