OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM

  • Co-Founder + Managing Partner

    As Co-Founder and Managing Partner of PureFire Yoga, Michael brings his experience as an entrepreneur and his passion for yoga to the studio's operations. A recovered attorney, Michael has spent his career starting, managing and turning around businesses in software, ecommerce, hospitality and investment industries. 

    Together with Marcus, Michael helped transform PureFire from a vision into the vibrant community it is today. Michael doesn't just work behind the scenes - you'll often find him on the mat alongside his wife Aleta Margolis, and occasionally with their two yoga teacher daughters, Isabel and Mira. Michael’s presence at PureFire embodies the studio's belief that yoga is a practice that brings people together. 

    Michael’s yoga practice began when he was in his 40s. He was experiencing pain in his back, neck, and feet, and discovered the power of yoga to strengthen his body and mind. He’s grateful for the way yoga makes him stronger physically and mentally, and makes him more patient, calm and centered. 

  • Co-Founder + Teacher

    Local to the DMV, Marcus found his way to yoga through an unlikely path - as a Division I football player at Towson University. After years of practicing while training for the NFL, he discovered that the same intensity, focus, and team mindset that served him on the field translated perfectly to the yoga mat. That realization led him to start teaching in 2009, and ultimately to founding PureFire Yoga  with Mike in 2018.

    Drawing from his background as a team captain and years of teaching experience, Marcus creates an environment where every student can discover their strength. His classes blend the physicality of the Baptiste Journey Into Power sequence with the mindfulness he's cultivated through years of practice. When he's not teaching or managing PureFire, Marcus stays grounded through family time and his own training practice - living his belief that the yoga practice is for everyone who's open to it, they just need the right teacher.

  • Lead Teacher

    A former Division I softball player for Fordham University, Nicole brings her deep understanding of athletics and movement to every class she teaches at PureFire. Her journey through professional sports - working with the New York Yankees and Shape Magazine - evolved into a comprehensive approach to wellness as she became certified as a Holistic Health and Nutrition Coach, completed her 200-hour yoga teacher training with Powerflow Yoga, and earned her 300-hour certification with Claire Diab through the American Academy of Yoga.

    Drawing from her experience developing Fusion-style classes and training teachers, Nicole creates unique sequences that blend yoga, conditioning, and mindfulness. Her classes speak especially to athletes looking to increase flexibility, build strength, and quiet the mind, though she welcomes students of all abilities. At the heart of her teaching is a simple philosophy: the best life is one of balance - hard work and rest, movement and stillness, strength and flexibility.

  • Marketing Manager + Corporate Liaison

    Lana brings her experience in journalism and over a decade of entrepreneurship to her role as marketing manager for PureFire Yoga.

    A trained dancer with roots at the Jones Haywood School of Ballet in DC and Alvin Ailey in New York, Lana discovered Kundalini yoga in 2015 and expanded into Vinyasa during the pandemic. Her teaching style blends power with grace, creating flows where carefully curated playlists inspire students to dance their yoga. Beyond Vinyasa, Lana offers transformative sound bath meditations, guiding students to experience both movement and stillness as gateways to inner peace.

  • Retreat Director

    As PureFire's Retreat Director, Christina Hong brings her extensive experience leading international retreats in Costa Rica and Mexico to our community.

    After 14 years of studying Classical Chinese dance and ballet, she discovered yoga and found a path that blends movement, mindfulness, and ceremony. Drawing from her diverse background, Christina creates embodiment-focused classes that emphasize the approach to practice rather than intensity.

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