About The Owner

So here I was, about a few thousand jumps into my skydiving career having a great time destroying my body. When my parachute would open, that camera setup on top of my head wasn’t so kind to my neck; neither was backbending myself in half to demonstrate to students how to “arch”, or spending all kinds of time in strengthy, bendy, awkward positions as I trained/coached in the wind tunnel, physically corrected students, manhandled big military guys in freefall, packed thousands of parachutes, etc.

Hey there—I’m Cory, founder of Pragmatic Asana and a yoga teacher with a love for anatomy, nervous system regulation, and not taking myself too seriously.

Before yoga, I spent years as a full-time skydiving instructor (yes, really). After thousands of jumps, parachute packings, and in-air student wranglings—my body hurt. I had chronic neck pain and my posterior chain muscles were so tight that anything resembling a forward fold felt like it was going to end my world. Something had to change.

So I tried yoga. And it helped… but not in the clean, simple “this fixed everything” kind of way. While I gained flexibility and some relief, my pain just shifted. So I sought more help. I worked with chiropractors, physical therapists, massage therapists, yoga teachers, and anatomy nerds of all stripes—absorbing a lot of useful info and taking all of the suggestions, but without real success. Eventually, I learned to filter it all through my own direct experience, [overly] analytical mind, and what my body tells me.

That became the foundation for my teaching.

For a couple of years, I taught trauma-sensitive yin yoga at a residential addiction treatment center, where both clients and staff found the practice incredibly calming and restorative. Later, while diving into more active styles of yoga, I had a breakthrough in a subsequent teacher training—realizing that the best results came not from following every cue, but from tuning into my own body’s signals and experimenting beyond the usual frameworks. That insight sparked the development of my current, blended style.

Today, I offer practical, down-to-earth yoga which blends functional strength, mobility, and nervous system support—offered slowly, intentionally, and with plenty of room to say “no thanks” to any cue that doesn’t feel right.

My goal when bringing classes to workplaces is for the employees to emerge feeling blissfully rejuvenated with a calm, sharp focus and feeling great about their decision to come to work that day. My goal when working individuals is to help them build a safe, sustainable, and informed yoga practice that lasts a lifetime.

Expect no chakras, no dogma, and no guru vibes—just science-informed movement, compassionate coaching, and a few dad jokes sprinkled in.

Made it all the way down here? Let’s schedule a free consultation.