Erin Mercuri

Erin and her husband, Eric, live in Strongsville. Together they have five adult children ages 19-32. There are Erin’s three daughters Jillian, Skyler and Hannah whom are all married and Eric’s two sons Jackson and Carter, both in college. They are also blessed with two wonderful grandchildren; Harper and Levi and their adorable dog, Ollie.

During COVID Erin left a career in sales and returned to her roots in food. In addition to teaching yoga, she supplies desserts to a local restaurant, takes on the occasional catering job and enjoys teaching people how to cook. “I love the diversity of what I do and the flexibility it gives me to be there for my family.”

Did you know??

See Erin's Schedule

Erin started a beautiful blog during COVID where she shares her love for food and cooking! Check out breathingandcooking.com or follow @breathingandcooking on Instagram!!

What inspired you to become a yoga teacher?

“Yoga found me during a time in my life where I really needed someone to just hold space for me. I didn’t know that at the time, I thought I was there for the work out, but there was some quiet “yoga-magic” going on that helped me reestablish my footing post-divorce. I found balance and a new trust in myself through my practice. I realized I was strong. We live in a culture that’s all about “go go go” and it’s hard to discipline ourselves to truly disconnect and come inside for an hour. We need that time. I wanted to provide that opportunity, to hold that space for people to connect and find whatever it is that THEY need on that day.”

What is one piece of advice for your students?

“Your practice is YOURS, so don’t compare yourself to anyone else. Listen to your body. You are unique in the most beautiful way and yoga is all about honoring that uniqueness.”

What’s Your Favorite Asana?

“First, I’m so grateful I don’t have to choose in real life because it would be impossible! I love some of the simplest asanas- child’s pose for how grounding it is, or the way cow and cat at the beginning of a practice really connects breath and movement. However, one leg balances are probably my favorite and I have a special place in my heart for airplane. I love the feeling of unfolding slowly and intentionally, noticing all of the big and little shifts that create stability and lift. Squaring your hips, extending your leg, flexing your foot, the slight lift of your chest, lengthening of your arms and the softening of your fingers. It’s a beautiful illustration of soft and strong working together.”

What inspires you to get on your mat?

“Sometimes it’s the need to get quiet and sometimes it’s the need to feel strong and empowered. That’s the beautiful thing about yoga, every practice is different.”

What are your passions outside of yoga?

“I am very passionate about food, I love cooking and feeding people! We have a big family dinner at our house every week. My oldest daughter, Hannah, loves to cook too. She has a small regenerative farm and we use a lot of ingredients that she grows and raises there.“

“I am especially interested in our food system. I’m curious about what happens to food through processing, and how that’s impacted our health. I believe that food is medicine and I’m constantly reading and learning about holistic nutrition, the gut-to-brain connection, regenerative agriculture, etc. I have a food blog (breathingandcooking.com) that I started during COVID. I’ve neglected it a bit the last 2 years because of things going on in my personal life, but I’m hoping to pick it back up again very soon and bring that whole conversation there.”

Just for fun…do you have any irrational fears?

“That there are spiders in the fingers of my gardening gloves. I don’t keep them in the garage with the rest of the gardening stuff, instead I keep them in the laundry room, rolled up and I pinch all of the fingers before putting them on.”

Last Question…Who is the smartest person you know?

“This is more like best advice I’ve ever received. It’s from my Dad…”

“Being open to viewpoints and opinions different from yours doesn’t mean that your convictions aren’t strong. It’s actually the opposite. They’re strong enough that you aren’t afraid to have them challenged. Because, really, only two things can come of that – either your beliefs are strengthened, or your mind is changed because you learned something new (and that’s growth!). Either way you’re better for it.”