Meet Clarissa Karunaratne: Yoga & Mindfulness Teacher | Founder of Sweat With Riss

We had the good fortune of connecting with Clarissa Karunaratne and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Clarissa, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I was a total type-A planner, I planned out my entire year in terms of the goals I wanted to achieve and by which months I’d achieve them by and up until last March, this had been the way I had lived most of my early adult life. I still consider myself to be type-A but now with more room for “allowing” – allowing life to unfold in front of me, set my goals but at the same time leave room to grow + pivot. I once read a quote, “the key to success is to start before you’re ready” and over the past year, this has deemed true in many ways. Before the pandemic, I had been working in social media for a fitness brand and teaching yoga at one of L.As most premier hot yoga studios. When the world began to close and the stay-at-home order was put in place, my first thoughts were “how can I ever take teaching class online?!” Well… one week later, I was playing loud music from my TV, hosting donation-based yoga and fitness classes to more than 50 people who had tuned in for class. Eventually I worked out the tweaks of the music, got myself a mic, built a website for bookings and became confident in translating at least most of the same energy and magic that you can get in an in-person, sweaty, beat-bumping hot yoga class (minus the 100 deg. heat, of course.) After months of teaching online, I wanted to offer my community a new way to sweat. One that allowed them to browse and choose between different muscle-focused workouts and skill-enhancing yoga classes that were shorter in length than my live classes – for when they were on the go or just wanted something else. Annnnd… Sweat With Riss was born! SWR is an On-Demand streaming platform with workouts, yoga classes + meditations from 5-30 minutes in length. It can be accessed through desktop or mobile and can live as an app on your phone or tablet! SWR came together in 10 days. I took 10 days off of social media consulting to build this out, refresh my website, and film a handful of videos I felt excited to share with my community. I sure was NOT ready for this, and never did I anticipate this back when I planned out each month’s goals for the new year! This proved to me that life unfolds in many ways and there’s countless opportunities before each and every one of us – we just need to open our minds and hearts to receive and see them.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I want to see you own your power. I truly believe that motivation is contagious and this very cultivated energy is the driving force during my challenging and beat bumping workouts, all while synchronizing music and movement to maximize the effect of your practice. I am so excited about bringing mindfulness and movement to the world. Fun fact: I have never pulled an all nighter! I was always the student who prioritized quality sleep over studying last minute for an exam. I mention this because my mission is to help everyone around me notice that caring for the self comes before all else.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Over the past few years, I’ve really come to understand connection. It’s one thing to be watching a movie with someone or sitting in the same room but it’s another to really be exchanging energies. If I had been asked this question a few years ago I probably would have listed all the fancy and fun restaurants across L.A. – I still love these outings no-doubt! BUT they wouldn’t be my first choice if I was spending time with a good friend after a long time 🙂 This is what I’d probably plan out! Make a big brunch spread at home. Drive down to Abbott Kinney and grab ice cream. Drive up PCH listening to beachy + laid-back music Pre-pandemic I would have suggested to take a hot yoga class or a fun, upbeat fitness class Go to the art store + pick up canvases + paint and end the evening with a paint + sip! That would be one fun-packed day!Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I just want to share so much gratitude to every single person in my circle! To my parents – they’ve always encouraged my imagination. From my younger days in theatre to my big goals as a young adult, they’ve never doubted me once. I am so grateful to be blessed with loving parents who have taught me selflessness – in that building any business should be for the greater good of others and most of all, they’ve taught me how to own my voice. To my mentors – Emily + Gracy, I have learned some HUGE life skills from both of you. Aside from you both being social media gurus – I’ve learned how to handle a tough conversation and build my backbone, learned to love (and not live without) coffee + matcha, honor self-care when the digital world gets too crazy and prioritize an open dialogue with friends and colleagues and set healthy boundaries. You’ve both brought so much joy into my life and I consider myself so lucky to have a friend in both of you. To Ryan – my boyfriend, best friend, dog dad + tech support, HE is the reason SWR operates the way it does! From the zoom malfunctions to the backend of my website, he’s been the biggest support by keeping my brain optimistic and centered through this crazy journey!!! To my best friends – I just am so grateful to have an inner circle of friends who support, recognize and encourage my goals. You’ve all kept me centered through this, sending me inspirational quotes, attending my classes, keeping me positive and excited. I will always cherish our zoom chats, beach walks and random audio messages to tell each other we’re doing great.

Website: www.sweatwithriss.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clarissakarunaratne/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clarissakarunaratne/

Image Credits
Not applicable