Isabella Welsch
Hi!
I’m Isabella Welsch,
Founder of AthaYoga, Book Author and Yoga Teacher for 35 years.
Hello, I’m Isabella, and I am delighted to welcome you to my space.
Yoga found me when I was a teenager—around 17 years old—and fundamentally changed how I perceive my body, my energy, and life itself. What began as a personal quest became a decades-long journey of learning, exploring, and sharing.
Born in the late 1960s in the beautiful city of Salzburg, Austria, my father first introduced me to yoga during my adolescence, sparking a fascination that has never faded. I began teaching yoga in 1990 while still a psychology student at the University of Vienna, marking the official start of my lifelong career.
“For me, Yoga is the most powerful tool to stay connected with good energy, balance, and joy in life. Its effects are almost miraculous. No matter how challenging or complicated life might seem in a given moment, a regular yoga practice will always keep you positive and recharged.”
The Path: Bridging East and West
My journey has been shaped by studying under renowned Indian yoga masters like B.K.S. Iyengar, as well as immersing myself deeply in various Western traditions. Alongside my yoga path, I worked as a psychotherapist in Vienna for many years.
Naturally, the perspective of Western psychology influenced my approach to yoga—and vice versa. As a result, my practice naturally bridges East and West, tradition and modernity, rationality and emotion—bringing these polarities into a balanced harmony. Over the years, this evolved into my own signature approach: AthaYoga.
Author & Educator
In 2013, I authored the German yoga book “Yoga typgerecht” (Yoga for Your Type), where I presented my modern interpretation of the ancient Indian system of the five elements—earth, water, fire, air, and space. This method focuses on cultivating a conscious, situation-based use of these elemental energies to balance the body's energy flow on a deep, transformative level.
For nearly three decades, I taught yoga at the University of Vienna's Sports Institute (USI) and founded two successful yoga studios in Vienna (Prana and Atha Yoga Studio).
Where I Am Today
Today, I live between Vienna, Austria, and the beautiful coastal town of Altafulla, Spain, where I established the AthaYoga Retreat Center.
While I still host exclusive, intimate retreats at our Mediterranean center, my primary focus has evolved toward year-round guidance. Through our innovative hybrid yoga courses, I support dedicated practitioners in integrating yoga as a true lifestyle. By combining home practice, breathwork, philosophy, mindset, nutrition, and lifestyle guidance inspired by Ayurveda, I help you weave yoga into every single facet of your daily life.
