Airah Drapeza

Airah was introduced to the life of fitness and a full lifestyle makeover after a simple Google search, “yoga near me” and discovered The Yoga Barre in Gulfport, MS in April 2018. She decided to take a chance on the art of barre after a year of only taking vinyasa yoga classes. In January 2019, she became serious about barre and kicked off the new year at the studio each day. Ever since, she has seen a positive drastic change in her fitness knowledge, self-image, and relationship with food and nutrition. Airah was suggested an upcoming Barre Intensity training by a dear friend, who is also a barre instructor. She shortly became a Barre Intensity Instructor under Master Trainer, Maria Scafide, after attending a training session in March 2019. Airah has recently obtained her certificate for certified Barre Intensity Instructor in March 2020.

Airah has prepared for her Barre Intensity training by completing observation hours and assisting Sandi Anderson, certified Barre Intensity Instructor and The Yoga Barre owner, in her barre classes in 2019. She is currently flourishing her teaching skills as a Group Fitness Instructor at The University of Southern Mississippi’s Payne Center and teaches Barre Intensity, Yoga Barre Fusion and HIIT. Airah is genuinely thrilled whenever she sees people walk into the studio for her class and she does not hesitate to get to know them. She reminds everyone that they matter by focusing on each individual and their personal fitness goals, offering modifications and not to mention, feeds them constant motivation during the workouts. After devoting time to volleyball, track and dance in high school, Airah is grateful to be more grounded and knowledgable in the life of fitness and says it impacted her life for the better.

At The University of Southern Mississippi, Airah is a junior Public Relations and Advertising major. She envisions herself pouring her endless creativity into advertisements and working in an environment where fitness and advertising is promoted. With fitness and her major, Airah is always working with people, and she even used advertising to her advantage — During her first semester as a new student and instructor, she printed out countless copies of USM’s group fitness schedule with no hesitation and passed them around campus. Not only did she advertise her own class, but every instructor’s class at the Payne Center as well.

Airah plans to continue representing Barre Intensity at The University of Southern Mississippi and promote healthy, active lifestyles through her various classes.