Yoga instructor Amanda Cook said she wishes someone had taught her “the power of our internal worlds” when she was younger.  

Cook has since used that motivation to improve the lives of young people with a mindfulness-based approach to body and spirit. This is accomplished through the introduction of skills that nurture physical, mental and emotional well-being in an increasingly digital and “standardized” world.

Her motivation and passion led to the launch of The Loqu Academy on Sunday at Out Here Yoga.

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The online-based program and curriculum invites youth into conversations surrounding self awareness while also helping them to build confidence and direction towards the lives that they envision. 

“Loqu means ‘to speak’. To speak is to create,” explained Cook. “Adopting a practice around refining our speech and thought habits puts us in a position of power to create potency regarding how we move in the world.”

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For the last nine years, Cook dedicated her life to making Steamboat more connected and supportive of youth-based empowerment which she sees as a vital step in preparing them for the demands and pressures of today’s world.

Cook recently relocated outside of the Yampa Valley to care for her mother. Despite that fact, she extended her love for the area by nurturing the deep relationships and connections she created as a resident.

Collaborating with community groups, businesses and educators has created a network to support students accessing Loqu resources, which allows them to remotely grow within the program while supporting their local academic and athletic pursuits.

Past collaborations have brought Cook together with local schools, sports programs, homeschool study groups and families to provide a focused curriculum of support for the youth of the Yampa Valley.

“It’s so hard for youth to grow up in our time,” said Cook. “My goal is to give them an arsenal of tools that are not found in traditional education and athletics. These teachings can be of great assistance outside of these contexts.”

The mission of The Loqu Academy is to virtually bring mindfulness into the home with live interactive studies through movement-based courses that integrate yoga, dance, and art along with sensory engagement.

Cook explained that this leads to the sharpening of self-awareness skills by building trust in themselves while also embracing creative abilities of communicating with intention.

“The messages of these tools are age-old discoveries,” she said. “It is impossible to unknow them, especially surrounding self-regulation, peripheral awareness and mindfulness. This program is really so far beyond that.”

The Saturday morning courses also provide opportunities for participants to connect with peers while learning how to establish healthy habits.

Classes are based on a body movement that is linked with a focused concept surrounding mindfulness. From there, students connect their sensory experience with a craft or art-based activity which they then share with the class virtually while explaining the power within their sensory experiences. 

One such practice involves participants envisioning and developing a mental connection with restorative natural places, which can include everything from ski runs to basketball courts. 

“It allows them to activate their superpower minds and visualize conquering the world,” said Cook. “On the other side of that is one-on-one or group study sessions which create a common language as well as a thorough integration into their lives as well as the lives of their peers.” 

Parents of students who have participated in Cook’s programs in the past have noted the deep passion and community-based connection that she is able to establish with young people.

“Amanda is helping kids prevent mental health issues as adults by becoming aware of themselves,” said homeschool coordinator Emily Gerde. “Her lessons give kids access to tools that can regulate them when stories in their head get too big.”

Past sessions have led to students being “hyper-aware” of themselves as they look at their bodies, and the world that surrounds them, in a new way that is comprehensive and based in “skillful action.”

“It helps my path and it helps me with my life and how it’s going to go,” said Sunnie, who is five years old and has been attending Cook’s classes since she was one. 

Despite working remotely, Cook is invested in the relationships that she has established in the Yampa Valley. As often as possible, she returns to contribute to the community, groups and people that she has come to love and who have supported the development of her teachings.  

“My heart is in the Yampa Valley because that is where my Steamboat family is,” she said. “The volunteer opportunities years ago allowed me to take my vision to apply it in order to see results that have been breathtaking.”

For more information, visit TheLoquAcademy.com.