Melis Soguttekin

I’m originally from Istanbul, Turkey, and I’ve been a movement enthusiast for as long as I can remember. I was that kid doing cartwheels and trying to twist into strange shapes. In my younger years, I was a competitive figure skater that helped me to develop a love and appreciation for discipline from a young age.

After moving to the US for grad school, I took my first yoga class in 2012 during a time when I desperately needed something to calm my mind and balance out the stress of life in Los Angeles. Yoga quickly became my physical, mental, and spiritual therapy. I gravitated toward Ashtanga, Power Yoga, and Vinyasa flow classes, and I was lucky to learn from so many amazing LA teachers such as Chad Hamrin, Bryan Kest, Annie Carpenter, Ella Cojacaru, Dylan Werner, and more. In 2017, I left LA and returned to San Diego- the first place that truly felt like home in the US, and where I felt most at peace. In San Diego, I practiced at Tim Miller’s Ashtanga Yoga Center in Encinitas and at Prana Yoga Center with Gerhard Gessner in La Jolla.

In 2019, I received a scholarship from Radiantly Alive in Bali for a 200-hour Vinyasa Teacher Training, but the COVID era put travel on pause. In the meantime, I completed my first 200-hour Vinyasa training in 2021 under the mentorship of Gerhard Gessner at Prana Yoga Center. Once travel opened up again, I finally made it to Bali and completed a second 200-hour training with Kimberly Utama at Radiantly Alive in Ubud in 2023.

In my own practice, I’ve always been drawn to playfulness, pushing my edges, trying new things, arm balances, and being upside down. I’ve always loved Ashtanga, especially when practiced with a sense of freedom, modification, and improvisation. When I realized that some of the teachers who inspired me online (like Miles Mortensen and Carson Calhoun) were Rocket teachers and students of David Kyle, I knew I wanted to explore Rocket more deeply. I’ve since completed 100-hour Rocket trainings and a Level 2 advanced training with David Kyle, and I’ve been teaching Rocket Vinyasa in San Diego since 2025.

My teaching philosophy is rooted in the belief that yoga is a journey of self-discovery, self-awareness, and self-realization. I’m deeply grateful for the transformative power of yoga and hope to pass along what has helped me transform my life so that it might do the same for my students.