Our Trainers

Alice Allen

Yoga Teacher

Alice is passionate about the positive effects movement has on body and mind, and its ability to help us connect more deeply with ourselves and others.

She first tasted yoga over a decade ago and more recently discovered a love for improvisational contemporary dance. Alice’s experience of yoga as a powerful anchor and resting place in times of stress has been transformational and she is grateful to the teachers who facilitate this growth.

In the spirit of learning and sharing, she completed her 200 hour TTC at the Yoga Alliance accredited Himalaya Yoga Valley Centre in Goa, directed by Yogacharya Lalit Kumar. Alice leads an Ashtanga inspired class, with a focus on breath and inner alignment.

Brian Yates

Cardio Tennis Coach

Physical exercise and helping the community has been a key element of Brian’s life from a kid. Brian is a great advocate of exercise for both physical and mental health.

Brian is a registered cardio tennis coach with TA and is an avid cyclist and trains either on the bike or in the gym daily. Brian also assists with Mood Active’s risk management processes.

Cameron Wilson

Tennis Australia - Certified Cardio Tennis Coach

Cam Wilson is a Tennis Australia certified cardio tennis coach, Mental Health First Aid certified, and he has decades of personal experience of how reliable and effective exercise is as therapy for depression and anxiety. Cam‘s classes feature his own music mixes - plenty of disco, pop, soul, and good old Aussie rock’n’roll!

Caroline Friend

Yoga Teacher

Caroline spent 22 years running a business while raising her family. She attempted to manage the stresses of daily life with a regular fitness regime, but it wasn’t until she attended a yoga class that she experienced an emotional release unlike anything she had known before, and so her yoga journey began.

Having discovered deep transformation and positive change that yoga brought within her life, and becoming a dedicated practitioner of yoga and mindfulness (introduced through MBSR), Caroline was keen to expand her knowledge and completed over 500 hours of training including 350 hours of training at Sukha Mukha with Idit Hefer and Katie Menastis. She has also trained with Jasmine Tarkeshi, Donna Farhi, Ari Levaneal and Marianne Edwards and will forever be a dedicated student of yoga. Caroline also regularly attends silent retreats in the insight tradition to deepen her personal mindfulness practice.

Through breath and movement uniting the mind and body, Caroline is passionate about sharing the possibilities for self-discovery, connectedness and freedom that yoga offers.

Cathy Lloyd-Prowse

Group Fitness Instructor

Cathy is an accredited personal trainer, group fitness instructor and coach. For the past 13 years Cathy owned and ran her own fitness business, Mums the Word Fitness.

In this role she helped many mums with post-natal depression by providing fun varied outdoor training sessions.

She was very proud of the Mums the word fitness community she created, bringing likeminded people together and brings this experience to Mood Active.

Cathy knows firsthand how being active lifts your mood. Exercise helped her after her she gave birth to her son.

Jane Donaldson

Certified Yoga Teacher

Jane has been practicing yoga for nearly 20 years and is a 200 hour certified teacher. Practicing yoga has improved her physical and mental health and helped her feel more balanced.

She believes everyone can benefit from yoga and she welcomes students of all levels. Her classes are friendly, non-judgemental and non-competitive. Postures are designed to promote physical strength, flexibility and balance — on and off the mat.

Jane has also completed first aid training.

Juliette Lay

Fitness Instructor

Juliette is a certified fitness instructor and stretch therapy teacher and an accredited gymnastic coach. She’s been active since she was young and has trained in dance, aerial acrobatics circus and gymnastics.

Juliette is passionate about promoting holistic health and fitness and has seen the power of exercise to improve mental health, as well as creating balanced bodies that are strong, mobile and flexible. Juliette has lived experience with depression and anxiety and feels grateful for the support and help she received form the community, whilst on her healing journey. Volunteering as a personal Trainer with Mood Active is Juliette’s way of giving back.

Khalil Saab

Boxing Trainer

Khalil has been in the boxing industry for 20 years, competing in boxing as both an amateur and professional, before becoming a coach.

Khalil’s foundation is the Russian boxing system but he has traveled the world gaining knowledge and experience - being schooled in both the American and Russian boxing systems.

In 2012 Khalil started his own sports gear and apparel brand called Killa, and have been working on growing the brand within the boxing industry since.

His goals are to develop his sports brand through technology to be a leader in both USA and Australian performance athlete markets, while also developing my boxing knowledge by coaching the next generation of boxing stars in both Australia and America.

Naomi Blair

Personal Trainer

Naomi has been active her whole life, participating in physical culture, gymnastics, athletics, yoga, altitude training and weight lifting. She recently qualified as a Personal Trainer from the Australian Institute of Fitness. Upon discovering Mood Active whilst doing research for an assignment, Naomi knew she had to get involved with Mood Active as it aligns with her values so well.

Naomi loves the sense of achievement physical activity can bring and has personally used exercise as treatment for anxiety. She wishes to share this coping strategy with others and motivate people to discover just how they good they can feel.

Tania Curley

Trainer

Tania has been with Mood Active since 2013 working as a volunteer Events and Marketing Manager and then Funding and Sponsorship Manager.

Tania is now the General Manager of Mood Active. Tania holds a Masters in Coaching Psychology, Masters in Strategy HRM, a BA in Tourism Management, and a Cert III in Fitness.

Tania is also a leadership facilitator and coach.

Cathy Sparkes

Yoga Instructor

Cathy (aka Sparkles) had ‘done Yoga’ on and off for a number of years but became a dedicated practitioner at the end of 2016 resulting in completing her teacher training in 2019. She loves the practice of Yoga as a perfect blend of physical, mental and spiritual disciplines. Coming to the mat brings a deep sense of joy, calm and presence. Sparkles teaching style is interactive, offering both intense Vinyasa flows, that will challenge the participant to step into the fire and cleanse their body and mind; and a slow, mindful flow, that maintains a sense of challenge while focusing on postures to centre and ground. The philosophy of Yoga practice, meditation and mantra are areas of ongoing study and interest for Sparkles and she weaves these themes throughout her classes. She brings her love and dedication to ongoing practice to each class in the hope of igniting a love of Yoga for her students on their own Yoga pathway.