Through the discipline of yoga, Becky Whidden Huff promotes healthy living. The instructor with Marietta Center for Yoga and Well Being at 317 Alexander St. in Marietta (near the Cobb County Central Library on Roswell Street near Marietta Square) said yoga offers experiences helpful in daily life.

"When you're on your mat in a pose and you're having difficulty with it, I look at it as a mini-life lesson," she said. "You have to have your breath, your body and your mind working together so you're able to work through that."

Becky became interested in yoga after her daughter Lily, 9, was born and subsequently diagnosed with Down syndrome. Married to local attorney Parks Huff, the couple also has a 17-year-old son, Reid.

At 4 months old, Lily required heart surgery.

"I was searching for ways to deal with (Lily's medical issues), Becky said. "That's when I started getting into (yoga). Yoga became something really different for me because it became a way for me to try to work through things."

Becky took her first training class in Chicago nine years ago and then earned her 200-hour Yoga Alliance-approved Yoga Teacher Training & Certification through Peachtree Yoga Center in Atlanta, and her 500-hour Yoga Alliance Advanced Studies Teacher Training Certification through Asheville Yoga Center in Asheville, N.C. She studied with many internationally known yoga teachers, including Bryan Kest, Doug Keller, Paul Grilley and Scott Blossom.

She said she incorporates the physical practice, pranayama (breathing control) and meditation into her classes. In an effort to help her students with meaningful meditation, the Georgia State University alumna wrote "Moonbeams and Fireflies," a collection of 5-minute, imagery guided meditations. She has earned her Bachelor of Arts in communications with emphasis in print journalism.

"Meditation is the whole purpose of the physical practice of yoga. Yoga prepares your body and mind for meditation," said the former reporter for Marietta Daily Journal, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and Athens Daily News/ Athens Banner-Herald.

"The idea is that if you can find that peace, then when you leave the mat and have to deal with issues that come up, you can find that (peace) off your mat," she said. "That's how yoga helps me in life. Yoga is an amazing thing."

To learn more about Becky or to order her book, visit www.yoga becky.com. For more on Marietta Center for Yoga and Well Being, visit www.mariettayoga.com.