At The Tonbridge Bean, we love to highlight our brilliant local businesses. This month, we are focusing on another fantastic Tonbridge venture: Candice Machtus Yoga.
For over a decade, Candice Machtus lived in the fast lane of London’s corporate recruitment sector. High earnings, constant urgency, and relentless competition defined her daily routine until her physical health drew a firm boundary. Suffering from severe dry eye disease and an autoimmune skin condition that left her unable to look at screens, she faced the prospect of surgery for both conditions. That severe wake-up call prompted a complete career pivot—one that brought her to yoga, brought her health back without medication, and eventually led to a thriving local business in Tonbridge.
From Corporate Rush to Restorative Practice
After moving to Tonbridge in 2019, Candice launched Candice Machtus Yoga in September 2022. What began as weekly classes quickly expanded to meet a strong demand for slow, restorative wellbeing across the local community. Reflecting this growing need, the business nearly tripled its turnover between 2024 and 2025.
Having experienced burnout firsthand, Candice shapes her teaching around nervous system regulation and stress recovery. Her weekly group sessions across Tonbridge and Hildenborough are slow, gentle, and entirely beginner-friendly, requiring zero prior experience or flexibility.
“I know what it feels like to be exhausted and kaput, body aching, unable to switch off,” Candice shares. “My classes are for people who are tired of being tired. Not fitness, not performance. A genuine pause.”
A Buffet Approach to Wellbeing
What distinguishes Candice’s sessions is a permissive, tailored philosophy where participants are encouraged to listen strictly to their own body’s signals.
“Think of each class like a buffet,” she explains. “At every moment participants have options and simply take what serves their body and energy that day. You might see one person moving through a standing flow while another rests in a gentle restorative pose beside them. Both are doing exactly the right thing. That is not accommodation. That is the practice.”
This philosophy extends across varied settings. Beyond regular local studio classes, Candice teaches at festivals—including the mainstage at the Kent Wellness Festival and the World Yoga Festival—and leads gentle sessions combining yoga and Qigong for residents at Hilden Heights care home in Hildenborough. Her work earned her a nomination as a finalist in the Health and Wellbeing category at the Tonbridge Business Awards 2026.
Deepening Impact and Community Support
In addition to group sessions, Candice offers one-to-one private programmes designed for individuals navigating chronic stress, life transitions, or severe burnout. Working individually allows for deeper, focused work on nervous system recovery that group environments cannot always accommodate.
Community engagement and charitable work remain central to her operations. Candice regularly runs “Yoga with Goats” sessions at Princess Christian’s Farm in Hildenborough—a charity supporting individuals with learning disabilities—with a portion of ticket proceeds going directly to the farm. Her efforts have previously been featured on BBC Radio Kent, alongside fundraising initiatives for West Kent Mind.
Upcoming Events
For those looking to experience restorative movement firsthand, several upcoming events are open for booking:
Yang to Yin: Energise and Restore (Charity Workshop)
- Date & Time: Thursday 27th August, 6.30pm – 8.30pm
- Location: The Quadrangle, Shoreham, Kent (TN14 7RP)
- Details: A two-hour evening workshop combining gentle yoga, Qigong flow, Yin yoga, and sound healing deep rest. Held outdoors in the grounds, with the historic Big Barn available in case of rain. All proceeds support West Kent Mind.
- Price: £40 per person
Yoga Retreat for Clarity and Calm
- Date & Time: Saturday 12th September, 2.00pm – 5.00pm
- Location: Fordcombe Village Hall, Tunbridge Wells (TN3 0RY)
- Details: Co-hosted with guest mindset coach Nicola Pope, this half-day retreat combines movement, breathwork, deep rest, and mindset coaching.
- Price: £55 per person
For full schedule details, class bookings, or private consultation enquiries, visit http://www.candiceyoga.co.uk.
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