Too much of the media circus around yoga leads people to believe that it is a practice exclusively for super models and contortionists. Nothing could be further from the truth. U.S. News & World Report ran a story about Sarah Shaffer, a high school student who practices yoga to relax and improve her running.
The full story is below but the last line is the one that got me choked up. It perfectly illustrates why we focus Compass Yoga‘s mission on getting yoga to people who wouldn’t otherwise practice it. The reporter asked her if she had any advice for people new to yoga. Sarah says, “Keep doing yoga, even if it’s hard. It gets better the more you work at it. And you will feel so good after you’re done.”
Have you ever tried yoga? It’s not just for the thin, fit and athletically-built. Just about anyone who can breathe can practice yoga to some extent and reap its many benefits. We’ll prove it. In this series, U.S. News talks with people who are changing the face of yoga.
Sarah Schaffer is a senior at Free State High School in Lawrence, Kan. When she’s not playing the cymbals and triangle in the concert band, she’s sprinting and shot-putting on the school’s green and silver Firebirds track team. Sarah is a fan of country music – especially songs by Blake Shelton – and she also has Down syndrome.
Sarah is one of more than 400,000 people in the United States living with Down syndrome, according to the National Down Syndrome Society. Individuals with the condition have an extra full or partial copy of chromosome 21, which alters development and can result in mild to moderate cognitive delays. While every person with Down syndrome has unique traits and degrees of abilities, a few of the condition’s common physical characteristics include smaller stature, slightly upward-slanting eyes and low muscle tone, according to NDSS.
This low muscle tone is part of what prompted Sarah’s mom, Rose, a nurse with a degree in exercise science, to introduce her daughter to yoga. Rose felt yoga would help develop core strength, which would in turn boost Sarah’s coordination and ability to breathe deeply – a practice that would circulate more oxygen to her brain, Rose says. She soon discovered that yoga before bedtime also helped Sarah relax and sleep better.
Now, Sarah practices yoga regularly – even the “sculpting” variety with hand weights. She practices at after-school classes and at home with DVDs. (Her favorite DVDs are those hosted by fitness instructor Denise Austin because they’re fun, calm and relaxing, her mother says.) Sarah tells U.S. News more about her yoga practice. Her responses have been edited.
What’s your favorite part about yoga?
I like the music in the background, and I like the stretching because it’s fun, and it feels relaxing. The stretching helps with my running because I’m more stretched out.
Do you have a favorite stretch?
I like the bridge, and I like doing child’s pose at the end.
What’s been your biggest challenge with yoga?
I have a hard time balancing on one leg sometimes, but I’ve gotten better.
Do you have any advice for people new to yoga?
Do the same video every day until you get good at it. Keep doing yoga, even if it’s hard. It gets better the more you work at it. And you will feel so good after you’re done.
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
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