Hina Sohail (Yogatiful) – Transforming Lives Through Yoga

Compiled by Pirah Aijaz

Hina Sohail is a well-trained, certified Yoga instructor, popularly known as Yogini, and managing her own brand “Yogatiful”. She has over a decade of experience as a Yoga expert, RYT 200 from Thailand, Reiki Level 1 Practitioner, YACEP Yoga Trapeze Certificate, and Pranayama and Master Meditation Certificate.

Besides being a mother of two gifted children, Hina Sohail is also an active homemaker. It’s a testament to her passion to take her career to the next level despite her busy schedule at home. Her ability to manage everything on her own and maintain a balance is truly inspiring.

Yogini Hina Sohail is the winner of several awards and honors including being named Best Fitness Trainer by the US Consulate. Her awards include the First Women Business Awards and the First Women Leadership Conference Award.

During her entrepreneurial journey, Yogini has conducted several training programs on entrepreneurship and mentored many women. Besides that, she founded and administrates the All-Pakistan Yoga Teachers Community, which has more than 1000 members.

 Yoga enthusiast Hina makes fitness a manageable and simple process. Additionally, she conducts corporate fitness training programs, virtual training sessions, and yoga teacher training sessions. However, it’s just the beginning for Hina and she is set to revolutionize fitness and yoga.

She is truly exceptional as she made Yoga her career and sets a wonderful example for other women. To know more about her inspiring journey, we at Fempreneur approached her to feature in our “Women Who Inspire” series.

Hina, the importance of Yoga and Wellness is something, we begin to appreciate as we grow older… What made you choose this as a career path?

It started with my own decreasing mental and physical health conditions, after the birth of my second child. She was very fragile and needed constant medical attention and multiple surgeries. We used to live in another city and had to move back and forth between cities, sometimes in the middle of the night. That situation took a toll on my mental and physical health and I knew I had to be stronger for my family. I started yoga at home with the help of TV and books. Then I joined an institute and started learning. I noticed a significant change in every aspect of life. I realized it was just that state that took me down and yoga helped me to get out of that state. My life changed and then I decided to help others too. I started at home, with family members, my first student was my sister-in-law, who was suffering from similar health conditions, and within weeks her life changed too, then she and all my female family members started to spread the word around the neighborhood, and in a matter of months, I was able to help a lot of women around me. It’s been 10 years now and I had been able to help many women. 

Tell us, what did the 6 yr. old Hina wanted to become when she grew up?

I wanted to be an astronaut when I was a child. The idea of being light and floating in space was fascinating to me. Although yoga helped me with that too. During meditation, your body feels very light and you can have the feeling of floating, which is amazing. 

What is your favorite type of yoga?

I enjoy every kind, depending on my mood and the time of the day. I start my day with breathing and meditation and practice Vinyasa and Hatha (Hath) yoga along with yoga Trapeze which helps me energize and find strength and balance. And I end my day with some relaxing breathing practices and Yin or restorative yoga that helps me with a good night’s sleep.

Is yoga a way of life or a way to exercise and meditate?

Yoga is definitely a way of life. It’s not just practiced on the mat but off the mat yoga is equally important and beneficial.  

Do you think it can help people suffering from anxiety and depression? 

Yoga is, like I mentioned before, a way of life, and it impacts each and every aspect of life. It is not only therapeutic but also a preventive regime. It not only cures but also keeps you away from mental and physical illnesses, consistency is the key. 

Who has been your greatest influence – people already in the field that you were inspired by?

All my teachers are my greatest influence, and I am lucky that I have found the best teachers around the world. There are countless names, it isn’t possible for me to name a few. 

What would you say, is your greatest achievement as a yoga instructor?

Every time when I am able to help someone is an achievement for me. Every story is unique and beautiful in its own way. Every time I learn something new from a teacher or even from a student is an achievement for me. 

What were some of the challenges you experienced while developing the brand ‘Yogatiful’?

The greatest challenge is the lack of awareness about mental health. It is easy to find out if something is wrong in your body, you’ll feel pain and you can do something about it, but for mental health, a lot of awareness is still required, we need to educate people, and find ways to create self-awareness and break lots of taboos.

As per business prospect, it wasn’t easy being in such a field for a housewife in the first place, I couldn’t have done it without my family’s support and a lot of support from all the good people around me. Allah Ta’ala always helps me and gave me a beautiful family and friends, support groups, coaches, and mentors. 

Where do you see ‘Yogatiful’ in the coming years? 

Yogatiful is constantly growing and branching out, it is an international brand now Alhamdulillah. Helping people from various walks of life around the world, and there is a lot more to come.  We are now Yogatiful YTA (yoga teacher’s academy) also. We are helping people who are interested in perusing the profession by teaching them to be yoga teachers and becoming their own brands. In near future, there will be many successful Yogatiful graduates in the field Insha’Allah.