Kate Oates Yoga

Kate Oates Yoga I’m a yogi and yoga teacher offering Vinyasa Flow classes and private tuition to people of all levels including beginners.

Established Senior Yoga Teacher ✦ Inclusive, anatomy-led tuition ✦ Specialist in Yoga for Men, Sport & Athletes ✦ Group, private & corporate sessions ✦ Executive Coach ✦ Focusing on strengthening, heating and balancing poses to awaken muscles and safely challenge the body, with restorative postures to bring the body and mind to a nurturing close. For me, the apex of Yoga is finding strength and confidence, mentally and physically, and is accessible to everyone.

Who else has a Someday Maybe list? 🩷⬆️ Mine does exactly what it says in the title ~ it’s not a to-do list or a planner,...
23/01/2026

Who else has a Someday Maybe list? 🩷⬆️
Mine does exactly what it says in the title ~ it’s not a to-do list or a planner, it’s a dedicated place (a notebook, for me) to dump thoughts and ideas that aren’t for now. It’s genius 🎉

I worked in the media industry for years, I know how we can live at 100mph. Never looking up. (Probably heightened by my ADHD-in-media combo). Either way, decades go by before we pause to think ahead.

We’re brilliant at capturing what we need to do NOW - work to-dos, family calendars, summer plans. Digital or paper, our short and mid-term lives are covered.

But never the “one-day-I-want-to” stuff ❗️

We don’t capture that. The ‘now’ stuff feels big and stressful, so the ‘Someday Maybe’ ideas just float around in our brains (and fatigue our brains, too) 🧠

Things like:
☘️Get a PT qualification just for joy
☘️Learn how Spanish or to use a pottery wheel
☘️Travel to Brazil (“when the kids are older”)
☘️Move house. Move city
☘️Landscape the garden
☘️Start your own business!

These don’t fit on a to-do list, so they drain brain space instead (plus, when they just stay a floater, we start to think we can’t action things )

I describe brains as being full of post-its. Chaos. Disorganised. Some falling off the wall. Missed. Forgotten.

Write them down!! ✍️
Writing them down matters - writing something on paper commits it to your brain. The mental load eases because the thought finally has somewhere to live.

This is my Someday Maybe list. I don’t open it often, but when I do, I laugh out loud. Things that felt impossible when I wrote them ARE NOW REAL 🎉
(Actual words from mine:
My own yoga space ✔️
Create my own business ✔️
Have freedom in work diary ✔️ )

Ironically, ‘Someday Maybe’ makes them already more likely to become “Someday Definitely!”

Tempted?? *goes notebook shopping* 🛍️

22/01/2026

I’ve never really loved a yoga mat and I’ve definitely never felt compelled to talk about one…. Until now! 🩷

Sticky mats are fine. They’ve done me right for 12-13 years. I’ve always said that. Prep them properly, look after them, job done. Top tips always available.

But this one…
This one was gifted.
And I didn’t expect to love it.
But I LOVE IT!

It’s just easy.
The grip is effortless. No thinking. No adjusting. No slipping. It feels natural to practise on (natural rubber apparently) which matters when yoga is something I return to regularly.

It’s vibrant, supportive, and genuinely a joy to get down on the mat 🩷
A very welcome surprise in something that’s usually just… routine!

And because I’ve loved this collaboration so much, have offered 10% off for my people!

✦ Code: KateOatesElevate
✦ £55 mat (already a steal!)
➜ Under £50 with the code
🛒 Shop from link in bio 🔗

If you’re in the market for a new mat, go have a look. I wouldn’t be talking about it if it wasn’t genuinely a JOY!

One of the non-negotiable things I do for myself (and have done for a few years now) is reflexology 👣 [get your mind out...
21/01/2026

One of the non-negotiable things I do for myself (and have done for a few years now) is reflexology 👣 [get your mind out of the gutter!]

In my last few corporate roles, I went every 2 weeks. I needed regulating so much that the focus was pretty much always on my adrenals! I joked about it at the time, but I say it totally seriously now: reflexology kept me sane 🫶🏼

But the point isn’t about feet. Reflexology is my nervous system management. It’s a core part of my toolkit alongside cold water therapy, yoga, breathwork, sleep hygiene, and trying to remember to eat. I genuinely can’t do without it.

It isn’t indulgence or needless pampering. And yes, still not about feet! 😄

It’s about finding a way to properly, truly, deeply relax 🌈

The kind where your system drops out of alert mode and into deep regulation.

Not asleep. Not numbed. Just deeply settled. This is a state most of us barely touch anymore because we’re constantly stimulated, interrupted and switched on.

I know lots of people get this on the yoga floor, and I LOVE that 💫 I experience that too! But this, as a yoga teacher, is my complete step away from thinking. It’s not linked to what I teach or deliver. It’s all mine ☺️

In all the conversations I have with people who are stressed, neurodivergent, suffering or shrinking, the nervous system always comes up.

If you haven’t found something that switches you into safe, deep calm, please find it! 🔎👀

The nervous system underpins everything and it really needs some proper attention x

(Please only take if there is still space for me because I won’t give her up without a fight☺️💛👣) (she’s awesome but that also means she’s very busy and sometimes has to lock her books to new folk) (That’s the dream, business people) (yes I use too many brackets, won’t stop)

Habits matter. And so does role-modelling them.I shared last week that early on in my career, I was genuinely surprised ...
20/01/2026

Habits matter. And so does role-modelling them.

I shared last week that early on in my career, I was genuinely surprised to realise that not everyone greeted people in the way I did at work. Reception teams. Kitchen staff. Security. It honestly didn’t occur to me that there was an alternative. Humans are humans and frankly, the boss can’t do their job if everyone else doesn’t do theirs too. Everyone matters.

Turns out my norm wasn’t universal. People showed up differently depending on who they thought they were speaking to. More effort when a title mattered. Less, or none at all, when it didn’t. EW.

That level of humanness is a trait of good leadership (alongside being a good human). And when it’s missing, you feel it. You feel it when you walk into a building. You feel it in how a boardroom’s been set up for a big meeting. The sense that people are respected, and understood as part of the same machine, seeps into culture in ways that are hard to articulate.

But whilst we’re talking titles and humans… I’m not innocent here.

When I left my industry, fresh out on my own, I realised how much I leaned on my old titles!! 🫣 For a good 12–18 months, I’d introduce myself as a coach, a yoga teacher, and then almost instinctively add what I used to be. The L word. Leadership. The titles made me feel credible. Not because I didn’t believe in the work I do now, but because I didn’t quite believe in myself yet. That title felt safe. It gave me something to lean on while my confidence caught up.

Titles can quietly become part of how we understand ourselves, almost an identity. Realising you’re more than your last role takes time. When I clocked I was doing it, I felt a bit cringey… but it also made sense. I was rebuilding. Finding my feet.

I’ve never cared much about titles in others, and I’m glad that, with time, I don’t rely on mine either.

We’re all better humans when we’re treated with respect. I hope you feel respected in your role and your world. I’m glad I finally do 🌍

Let’s talk about Wednesday mornings….Which weren’t a thing in my world a year ago.Not a twinkle in my eye.And I almost g...
19/01/2026

Let’s talk about Wednesday mornings….
Which weren’t a thing in my world a year ago.
Not a twinkle in my eye.
And I almost gave up when it became a thing, but not to many people, because it felt like a failure. Until it didn’t.

Because what happened instead was:

A small group of humans kept showing up 🫶🏼

Some half-awake 🫣

Some with kids climbing over them / joining in / watching Bluey a few metres away 🤪

Some with teens who needed waking up. Repeatedly. Mid downward dog 🧡

Some very much not morning people 🙏🏼

Some in their pyjamas. Or garden office 💫

Some having a rough time, feeling knackered, burnt out, wired, all of the above 😵‍💫

And almost always, getting up in the dark 🌑

And yet slowly, together, even though geographically apart, Wednesdays became… non-negotiable ✨

Not only non-negotiable but joyfully anticipated.

Not loud.
Not glossy.
Not “smashing life at 7am” (I beg to differ)

Always grounding. Familiar. Regulating.
A voice you know ( 👋🏼 )
A body waking up gently but in a way that invites energy not wastes it.
A nervous system exhale before the world gets noisy.

I read messages like these [real one pictured] and I’m reminded why I didn’t quit ☺️
Why consistency beats hype.
Why quality beats quality.
Why small, steady things change lives more than dramatic ones.

Wednesday mornings and the crew who chooses to love in the dark with me - thank you. It’s not only you that gets a freeing practise with a warm, wonderful crew every mid-week and I don’t take that in anyway for granted 💫

I feel properly lit up! A conversation today has left me feeling alive, vibrant + amazed at humans 🫶🏼With someone who kn...
14/01/2026

I feel properly lit up! A conversation today has left me feeling alive, vibrant + amazed at humans 🫶🏼

With someone who knew survival mode and recurring burnout, who wants to show up and take charge. The overlaps kept layering up!

Media industry.
Being told you’re not creative when you’re in fact the opposite.
Constantly coming up against unfriendly walls. (Au)ADHD.
High nervous system awareness.

I speak openly about neurodiversity, but the unprompted nervous system chat today was refreshing 👌

It was validating on a selfish level (!), to weave in media chat, making their context easy to understand, no energy wasted on translation.

The irony too ~ I left a system that didn’t work for me. A culture that didn’t make sense to me. I’ve designed my own system, found ways that work with me not against me ~ this conversation was a literal demonstration it (penny drop joy! 🌈🎉)

Coaching helps brains get out of the cage. Take the mask off. Realise what they want, and what they are good at (in their opinion, not someone else’s). Coaching opens eyes (and ears) to what’s possible.

Today was a massive, joyful reminder that there are people walking around with worlds that overlap with mine in ways I couldn’t predict or plan. I LOVE THAT 🌍🌈🎉

Humans are so frickin’ interesting.
And they satiate my relentless curiosity ☺️

That’s all for now, curious humans! X

Is it sad to admit that I’ve genuinely never had a yoga mat I loved, or gave much thought to, or definitely enjoyed enou...
11/01/2026

Is it sad to admit that I’ve genuinely never had a yoga mat I loved, or gave much thought to, or definitely enjoyed enough to write a post about?!

In yoga we talk about non-attachment. Less stuff. Less fuss. More lived experience. I’ve always said I don’t need fancy mats because it’s what you do on the mat that counts 🧘

Yet also… after 13 years of practising on countless floors, studios, cities and countries, moving from flat to flat, south to north, rolling mats out in hectic spaces, offices, warehouses (!), gardens, church halls, and only last year finally having a space I can call my own (🙏🏼🏡 even though I still call it the garage)… I honestly think this invite to try a ‘proper’ mat came at exactly the right time 🩷

It’s surprisingly refreshing to find joy in the thing I put my body on so regularly! 😆 A welcome lift for a practice that naturally ebbs and flows.

🩷This mat is VIBRANT. I dig vibrant.

🙌🏼It’s properly grippy. Frickin’ essential. Made from natural rubber, the grip is legit (so no more pinching the kids’ chalk in sweaty seasons).

📐It’s extra wide & extra long!

👌Rolls up easily & comes with natural cotton bag.

🩷🩵💜🩶🖤Comes in a range of colours.

Safe to say, in full honesty, I DIG THIS MAT.

I only looked at the price after I’d tried it (the only way to buy anything performance-based ~ seriously ~ think gait-analysis running shoes 👟) and I was massively pleasantly surprised!! Compared to others in its league, it’s a STEAL at £54.99 full price.

BUUUT, here’s the good bit ~ David (who created these) at .ltd messaged me, to offer my crew 10% DISCOUNT! 💥

Use KATEOATESELEVATE or shop at http://butfirst-yoga.com/KATEOATESELEVATE 🛒🔗 (so it all tracks properly). Smooth checkout + a fiver-ish off 🎉

At a time of year when wellness is high on the agenda, it’s been unexpectedly lovely to feel a fresh buzz for something that’s already such a solid, long-term part of my life ☺️

If you get one, tell me what you think, yeah?

Kate x

Let’s talk about expectations vs human behaviour 🗣️ Leaders. The senior folk who are expected to know what to do straigh...
07/01/2026

Let’s talk about expectations vs human behaviour 🗣️

Leaders. The senior folk who are expected to know what to do straight away, but is that realistic?….? No. No it isn’t 😳

Leaders need to voice their thoughts without it having to be conclusive.

Leaders needs to be heard and validated in spaces that aren’t going to affect anything.

Leaders need to strategise and question, without someone judging or taking an action.

Leaders need to be able to think the wrong things, to get to the right things!

Coaching, simply, creates space, clarity, and a forum for their thoughts and ideas to be shared, heard, adapted as a core part of the strategy process, so that by the time words reach the team and require an action-plan, they are untangled and ready! 💥

I was a leader who made people feel heard and valued. That’s really important to me; that every individual can process and validate to suits their needs. With a safe forum, leaders can stop managing impressions and judgement, and think clearly so they can do their best work! 🙌🏼

I’m all for untangling 🌈

I’m on a coaching high this week already (I’m on a yoga high too, always) ~ powerful conversations today already, and more on the agenda for Thursday and Friday ( 🎉 )

PS. How’s the first week back.......?

Kate x

I’ve held this opinion for years and 2 conversations over Christmas reminded me how passionately I believe it! 📣 I now m...
07/01/2026

I’ve held this opinion for years and 2 conversations over Christmas reminded me how passionately I believe it! 📣

I now massively respect people who leave a job, see that the grass isn’t greener, and choose to go back.

My younger professional self toyed with this a lot (I was a returner though*, just not comfortably). It felt awkward, unacceptable, a bit like I’d failed?

But perspective does a funny thing as you mature. Now I see that those people dared to leave in search of better! 💥

They explored 🔎

They gathered information through real experience and they learned 📈

Then they got to choose 🎯

That’s not going backwards - that’s deciding with eyes wide open, with way more data than before!

We normalise progression as moving in one direction: Up, forward, onwards. But lateral or squiggly moves aren’t wrong and maybe the best decision is returning to a place where you more clearly see the merits, a place that aligns with what you’ve discovered you value. Even with the detour, you’ve learned waaaaay more than the you that didn’t try.

Returning = self-trust and confidence. And as a leader, when I saw returners on CVs, I thought more of them, not less.

Are you a returner?
Or a judger? Tell me why!

🤔

*I returned to one employer 3 times over my 19-year career, and another employer twice. This opinion is the same for those who dare move their lives across the glove only to realise what they’d missed. It’s all learning, and we only have 1 wonderful life!

06/01/2026

I’m really NOT just saying it!!

❄️ It doesn’t feel awful, it feels exhilarating

❄️ This is the calmest 2 mins of my day!

❄️ This really is the best weather for dipping and the most beautiful

🔥 Always warm up afterwards from the inside ~ for me it’s (1) get dry, (2) movement for the same duration as the dip, (3) warm drink.

🥶 We can feel all the benefits of cold water immersion is 5-15 degrees water. Obviously currently it’s -2-6 so this is extreme; and I do this informed and trained; I don’t do it lightly and neither should you!

‼️ Ice can damage and burn the skin in these temps so be careful (I’m wearing socks and gloves to protect the skin)

‼️ This temp can trigger nervous systems in a negative way if done stressed, rushed, uniformed. Always go carefully, ideally seek professional guidance if it’s your first time

We trust other humans’ words, which is why reviews - especially, like, real-life actual word-spillage - absolute ✨ g o l...
03/01/2026

We trust other humans’ words, which is why reviews - especially, like, real-life actual word-spillage - absolute ✨ g o l d ✨ d u s t ✨

These are real messages and verified reviews from real yoga clients, shared word for word. I’ve had them for a while, and I’m finally putting some of them out there so they can be heard by the world and maybe even make someone move their curiosity into action, because, like I won’t tire of ever saying, the world will be better with more yoga because nervous systems need nurturing and humans need that help 🌎

What I hear in my clients’ words:

💛 People feel welcome, even when they’re nervous or unsure

🦴Bodies feel better. Less stiffness, more freedom, surprising mobility

🧠 Heads feel calmer. Better sleep, less stress

🫶🏼 Yoga feels doable not impossible! Not performative. Not intimidating

💫 People come back because it actually helps!

😆 One review did say I was funny which I greatly appreciate, but you may not. I’ve hidden it.

This is what my yoga classes are built around! (The job-funny stuff, I mean).

I love yoga, and I’m thrilled my clients love coming to my yoga classes because I can’t do it without them!

More to share soon but first a MASSIVE thanks for my brilliant, committed yoga crew, whose words have created a plethora of content…. that, second, the amazing has helped me finally collate in a presentable form now that Elevate HQ isn’t solely reliant on my admin or creative skills 🙏🏼)

Back to clinging onto the weekend before we really have to start the year…..

Kate x
Senior Yoga Teacher | Passion mobility sharer | Trying to make trend…..

Address

Cheadle Hulme
Manchester
SK8

Website

https://KateOatesElevate.as.me/, https://linktr.ee/kateoateselevate, https://www.y

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Our Story

I’m a yogi and yoga teacher offering Vinyasa Flow, Rocket and Pregnancy Yoga classes, workshops and retreats. I teach groups, corporates and one-on-one people/couples/small groups for private tuition. I love outdoor yoga too so over the summer, we take it to parks and gardens.

For me, the apex of Yoga is finding strength and confidence, mentally and physically, and is accessible to everyone. I believe yoga is available to all bodies and abilities, and that there is no better time to start than now!

I am an ex-marathon runner, an M.E recoverer, and a naturally passionate and positive person. I found yoga through illness 5 years ago and have not looked back.

I would love to share my yoga enthusiasm with you!