A Decade of Yoga Dreams

A trip to Majorca, Spain in 2008, proved the catalyst for Donelle Gregston’s current lifestyle. It was there she met professional water skier, Steph Ouellette. They struck up a conversation over Gregston’s Lululemon bag and became friends.

Sitting poolside, eating French fries and drinking sodas, Gregston chatted about her love of yoga. Living in Dallas at that time, she often went to yoga sessions. Not long after that chance meeting, Ouellette traveled to India and through an immersive program, earned her yoga instructor certification in about 30 days.

“She is my inspiration for paddleboarding,” Gregston said. While Ouellette was teaching yoga, Gregston was still unsure of her ability to take that next step. She waited 10 years before finally braving the personal challenge. Meanwhile, she taught Pilates.

“I didn’t think I was as good as other people. I’m not as flexible as other people. I couldn’t get into the yoga poses like others could. It made me feel inferior.” Meanwhile, she did a lot of garden coaching. It’s just what it sounds like – coaching others how to grow beautiful gardens.

A trip back to Oklahoma in 2017 resulted in a turning point for Gregston. She had grown up on a farm in Geary, but this trip was to Bartlesville where she and a friend had a vendor booth at a firefighter’s conference. That’s when she met Marlow native Josh Gregston, and former Outlaw football player. Now you might be thinking here’s a tale of a farm girl and a football player who fell in love. Donelle returned to Dallas, and they stayed in touch.

As their relationship grew – into a marriage, Josh encouraged her to follow her dreams. When they moved to Marlow, Gregston used virtual training to keep in touch with her Pilates students. “For the first few months in Marlow, I had a Pilates business working through Zoom.”

She knew there was a better way to enjoy her love of yoga. She asked Josh if she could start her own studio here and he said yes.

“That was October of 2018. I drew up my plan on a spiral notebook and took it with me to my yoga certification classes, and doodled and dreamed.” She met Candace Rust Hammond, who was renting Gregston’s old home. Like Ouellette and Josh, Hammond encouraged Donelle’s dream. Hammond talked to a local business owner about Gregston offering classes in the evening. As more people learned of Gregston’s idea to start a yoga studio in Marlow, she discovered there was a need. The business owner agreed to let Gregston teach evening sessions. Gregston was still traveling to Dallas to complete her yoga instructor’s certification. The first class was held Feb. 19, 2019. And then COVID-19 happened. Gregston didn’t let it diffuse her dream. She and Josh purchased the old Culver's Chiropractic building and remodeled it over a 17-month span. It was tough, paying for it as they went instead of going into debt.

“I can't wait to see what happens moving forward,” she said. Through her love of living a healthy lifestyle, she’s made many new friends and has been extremely creative with her approach to gaining new clients. Social media has expanded the circle. People are buzzing about the paddleboard yoga sessions, yoga in the park and more. Only recently she introduced puppy yoga. (We shared that story in last week’s paper). She said her dad is interested in puppy yoga and she told him that she would do it every week if that’s what it takes to get him to exercise.

Gregston welcomes people to visit her Sunkissed Yoga Studios. She said it’s about more than just stretching. It’s about rebuilding your body, a remodel process, much like what she did with her studio.

“It would be so nice to show you the space we've created. We really have put a lot of effort into making a beautiful space for Marlow and the surrounding communities. Supporting small business is really cool, and I can promise you - we love on our people so much.”