Claire Ewing is a natural connector. As a yoga instructor in Eagle, she helps people deepen into their true selves, and as a marketing expert, she connects business owners with their communities.
BRANDING
When Nicole Hustad hired Ewing to market her handmade blankets company, it was like “a match to kindling,” Hustad says. “It just took off with her joining the team. She always had great ideas. She really gets to know people. Her networking is incredible.”
After training as a yoga instructor through CorePower Yoga, Ewing worked as the national marketing manager. From 2014 to 2019, she opened more than 50 studios nationwide, forging partnerships with players like REI. From there, she traveled all over as a lululemon ambassador. Though she loved her career, she felt something was missing — mostly, an outdoor lifestyle.
In 2019, she and her husband quit their Denver-based jobs and moved to Eagle, her husband’s hometown. She launched Brand and Body Fit, supporting entrepreneurs with marketing, while also teaching yoga classes and hosting yoga retreats. She specializes in shaping up both peoples’ brands and their bodies. To her, branding involves showing up in the world authentically as you are, while fitness lends confidence.
MOVING INTO HEALTH
Ewing grew up as a ballet dancer, which became a touchstone during her parent’s divorce.
“In the studio, I was able to get clear and present,” she recalls, talking about how much better she always felt when dancing. “Movement is truly healing, not just for physical issues. Mentally and emotionally, stagnant energy can be shed away with the power of movement.”
Movement is truly healing, not just for physical issues. Mentally and emotionally, stagnant energy can be shed away with the power of movement.
After college, she discovered yoga allowed her a similar feeling of presence in her body, something essential to balance her self-described Type A personality.
Her yoga classes revolve around power yoga and yoga sculpt, blending strength with surrender for a full body-mind experience. She credits her CorePower training for her ability to develop foundationally sound classes that warm up the body intelligently and allow time for respite.
Another major component of her classes involve connection: she truly gets to know her students.
“The yoga room is the biggest place of connection, where I’m able to authentically show up,” she says. “My life is transparent. I let them know that I’m just a human being. I’m not some euphoric yogi up on a stage; I’m learning just as much as they are.”
FERTILITY JOURNEY
Her transparency led her to create an infertility awareness group, which incorporates mindful movement classes and guest speakers to support women going through fertility challenges.
After about two years at a fertility clinic, Ewing understands firsthand just how difficult infertility is.
“A big part of it was the fear of being judged and the loneliness,” she shares. “I want to be an advocate and normalize the situation; one out of eight families deal with infertility.”
She has generated a tribe of supportive people who support all types of families, from adoption to fertility treatment and more.
After giving birth to her daughter, Blake, on Valentine’s Day 2018, she and her husband now are undergoing their second fertility journey.
“Blake is my guru,” she says. “She teaches me about patience and a whole new way of being a mom.”
Ewing is passing her love of yoga onto her daughter at an early age; the two practice “good-night yoga” together, taking deep breaths, moving their bodies and releasing any tension before bedtime. She also teaches monthly preschool yoga classes in the Vail Valley.
HEALING MOVEMENT
Ewing’s own struggles, along with her father’s mental illness, have shown her how resilient and strong humans are. Through her branding and yoga business, she continues to connect people with their core strengths.
“Mental health and wellness in mountain communities is essential,” she says, explaining how movement draws people out of their heads into a more creative, clear space.
While she blends yoga with weights, cardio and upbeat, relatively loud music, she encourages students to listen to, and honor, where their bodies are at on a daily basis.
“She has such a fresh take on yoga,” Hustad says. “I just love the energy she brings to class. She’s very empowering of others — especially women. You feel very seen and encouraged.”
“I love continuing to learn about incorporating the body, mind and spirit into a workout,” Ewing adds. “Sometimes you need more cardio, sometimes you need calming or the ability to surrender. The adaptability of yoga is what I continue to learn.”
Photos courtesy of Claire Ewing.
Originally published in Summer + Fall 2022 Issue.
Kimberly Nicoletti is an award-winning freelance journalist, editor and writing coach. She has taught yoga, Nia, Zumba and tai chi throughout Summit County, Colorado, and earned a master’s degree in Somatic Psychology and Dance Therapy from Naropa University. She loves traveling, outdoor adventures (especially floating through deep powder and diving), photography, dance, her dogs and her family.
