Meet the Team
Roman Hanis
Co-founder of Paititi Institute Author / Healer
Roman Hanis is a co-founder of the Paititi Institute, healer, and author with over 20 years of lived apprenticeship in Amazonian and Andean Indigenous traditions. He has worked closely with Indigenous communities in Peru since 2001, cultivating long-term relationships grounded in reciprocity, service, cultural preservation and ecological restoration.
Roman was featured in the critically acclaimed documentary The Sacred Science (2010), which documented early cross-cultural healing work in the Amazon.
Through Paititi Institute, Roman helps steward ancestral schools, cultural heritage projects, and healing retreats that unite elders and children and support intergenerational transmission of wisdom in the Amazon and the Andes. He is the author of Beyond Ayahuasca, an international bestseller in Shamanism dedicated to the Amazonian Yahua people, with proceeds directly supporting their ancestral school and cultural initiatives.
Roman is a certified Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner in Peru and trained in acupuncture under the direction of Myriam Hacker at the Open International Institute of Oriental Medicine in Iquitos. He also holds a degree in medical massage therapy and Eastern bodywork from the Swedish Institute of Health Sciences in New York.
After being healed from severe Crohn’s disease in 2002, Roman was formally pledged as a healer-curandero in 2004 by elders of the and Yahua tribe. He has since served an international community through ceremonial work, retreats, and educational programs addressing healing on physical, psychological, emotional, and spiritual levels.
At the heart of his work is a commitment to restoring right relationship between human beings, ancestral wisdom, and the living Earth.
Robin Lyons
Holistic Health Coach &
Co-Facilitator
Holistic Coach & Mentor Robin Lyons holds over two decades of extensive experience in athletic pursuits, elite coaching, and transformational work. Through her years of training and guiding athletes and individuals towards their goals and potential she discovered that self-actualization isn’t about physical strength or external achievements, it’s approaching life in balance with your whole being and having the courage to face oneself with honesty and compassion.
Robins own hardships became a catalyst to a greater purpose: helping people claim their true potential through developing the strength and courage to face their struggles and transform old patterns into greater freedom and purpose that aligns physical and spiritual wellbeing.
In 2000 Robin started her strength & conditioning coaching career, working under world class coaches and pursuing her competitive athletic career in Track and Field, Bobsleigh, CrossFit and Long Drive Golf.
In 2010 Robin returned to academic studies to complete her master’s degree in Sports Conditioning and Human Performance and becoming certified as a Strength & Conditioning Specialist. She then took a position as a strength and conditioning coach for 2 years at University of Southern Utah.
In 2013 Robin moved to Arizona to pursue an elite coaching position that provided an opportunity to broaden her coaching skills beyond physical performance. She dived deep into individualized coaching and consulting, integrative medicine and holistic lifestyle coaching. She proceeded to become a Functional Diagnostic Practitioner to support her clients by identify the root cause of injury, sickness, hormonal imbalance and performance plateaus.
In 2017 Robin moved to Idaho following her heart calling to live the mountains and immerse herself in outdoor pursuits. This led to opening MTN LAB Performance Coaching, an in-person holistic training studio that supported coaches and local mountain athletes. With much success she educated and mentored people to embrace a more intentional relationship with their body, mind and soul. Robin guided people to embrace a new relationship with oneself by defining deeper meaning behind their routines and goals.
In 2020 Robin was called to Peru for an Indigenous wisdom retreat with Roman Hanis of Paititi Institute. She was introduced to the foundations of personal transformation, inner work and Romans approach on how to work with inner trauma, limitations and conditioning. The experience was life changing; awakening a space to feel what it really means to live life authentically and fully…outside of external success and ego. In 2021 she became a Somatic QiGong practitioner supporting her inner journey and learning to weave the physical strength, mental, emotional, and spiritual connection.
Today Robin lives in Peru, taking the next call as a collaborative adventure with Paititi Institute in offering her gifts and support ancestral wisdom.
As Physical & Spiritual resilience coach Robin mentors those seeking to awaken to their true potential through living in alignment with Mind, Body and Spirit. By nurturing all these aspects, her clients learn that real strength comes from living with courage and openness.
Robin guides clients through practices that foster deep self-awareness and transformation. Her approach includes:
Mindfulness and reflection to uncover patterns and hidden beliefs
Shadow work to integrate unprocessed experiences
Time in nature to reconnect with innate wisdom
Authentic expression through Song & Movement to embody ones creative power
Physical Readiness training to support competence and vitality for ones life path
Nervous System Balance to align the body to harmonize ones energy and emotions
This process helps clients release limitations, expand their perspective, and step into their fullest potential.
Robin’s mission is to empower individuals to reclaim their personal power and live with authenticity. By creating a safe and supportive space, she helps client’s step beyond their comfort zones, embrace vulnerability as strength, and take aligned action toward their passions and purpose.