JP Centre Yoga | Boston, MA

After a really intense + inspiring conference at Dartmouth College (where there were absolutely no yoga studios in walking distance... sigh), I was able to catch a class in Boston the night before I flew back home!

LOCATION: A friend of mine lives in Jamaica Plains, so she drove me to the right spot. Street parking was packed near the studio, but down the road there were plenty of spots available. It was in the evening, so the meters weren't charging.

STUDIO: I think the studio is new—because there was absolutely no signage. Once inside the building still no signage, but a little sign near the stairs pointing upwards. On the top/third level is the studio. Great entrance, great lounge area, cute little changing rooms, large/bright practice spaces, and a sweet kitchen in the back with water and hot tea. They take credit cards. Mats are rented at $3 each. 

CLASS DESCRIPTION: Deep Stretch: This class is designed to stretch the muscle and fascial tissue with the aim of improving circulation and range of motion within the joints. Beginning with stretches to warm the body, the class will progress into a series of postures that stretch the hips, back, neck/shoulders, chest and legs. More attention will be placed on muscular release than on strength building.

INSTRUCTOR: Brenna Matthews has always had the understanding that everything is connected. When she started practicing asana and meditation regularly, she felt herself truly wake up physically and mentally. She teaches because she wants the world to be a more loving place and thinks it can start by more people looking within. She is ever grateful for the many teachers she has had throughout this journey, most significantly Ame Wren, Schuyler Grant, and her rescue dog Fey who has shown her the meaning of trust and unconditional love.
CONTACT: JP Centre Yoga

Though it was difficult to find with it's lack of signage—once inside—this space and the people working there are so nice! I love the simple yet urban way the space was designed. The layout is roomy and refreshing. The class was exactly what I needed after my week of travel and still a couple flights ahead of me.

Brenna described the class as a sort of yin style of yoga—where we would hold the poses for longer to get the deeper stretch. We barely left our mats short of one downward dog, and just soothingly moved from pose to pose. Brenna style of teaching was gentle with a few details to get us in the stretch. Often there was a gentle reminder to adjust and get further into the pose.

It really was rejuvenating class that was well overdue for this girl. My only complaint was I couldn't hear Brenna at certain points, so I would recommend sitting closer to the front of her class. So grateful for this evening of yoga.

Community board in the foyer was where you kick off your shoes

Love the huge orange door to the lounge

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Lululemon at Keystone Crossing | Indianapolis, IN

Well this was a new experience. And yes, yoga in a mall before it opens is new. But what I didn't see coming was my lacking desire to do yoga today. Today was my first half-assed yoga class. So please take this review in stride, as I strangely didn't want to be there, and of course that will influence my perspective.

LOCATION: It was easy to get to the mall, but if you've never been here what door do you go to? The first one I tried was locked, the second one wasn't but was on the opposite side of the mall. Sigh. Park by the Cheese Cake Factory + Starbucks, using that same entrance. Parking is free!  

STUDIO: It's a Lululemon store—long narrow room with clothing racking of drool-worthy yoga clothing/gear pushed to the side. We faced the back of the store to avoid the distraction of mall-walking glory, I assume.

CLASS DESCRIPTION: I was under the assumption that these were beginning classes that would introduce you to instructors at different studios surrounding said Lululemon location. Similar to the places who have a Yoga in the Park program in place (which I love + you should take advantage of if you live near one). This class felt a bit more advanced.

INSTRUCTOR: James Jafari, after decades of practicing a variety of eastern arts found Yoga, during an extremely stressful period in his life. Yoga has provided him a way to find inner calm as well as blissful freedom from pain due to chronic injuries, received during years of participation in competitive athletics. James is a dedicated student of Yoga and in 2012, received his 200 hour certification from Cityoga under the instruction of Nikki Myers and Marsha Pappas. James brings his knowledge of the human body gained from his years (since 2000) as a full time, self employed, and Nationally Certified, Therapeutic Body Worker/Massage Therapist. James strives to serve students through an alignment based Yoga practice that is designed to deepen their body awareness, build strength, increase flexibility, strengthen focus and coordination, while maintaining poise and grace.
CONTACT: Lululemon's Facebook Page at this location

So yeah, I so didn't want to be at this class, but I shuffled in and set up in the back of the practice space. This was the first time "yoga voice" sorta bothered me. Have you ever had a friend who is a radio DJ and has his/her radio voice and then their regular voice? Yoga instructors do it too, but it's much more soothing, and less artificial... for the most part. Today, the voice was a bit too motivational speaker for me. It took some getting use to. See, judgmental smurf in attendance today, sorry.

James walked us through a really nice practice—it looks like he only teaches hot yoga at CityYoga, which I'm not a fan of, so that could be the third off-putting part of my morning (wait, what was the first? oh yeah, running all over a mall to find the store). It was a really great reminder of just staying open to the process of going to a new space with a new instructor. Also, a lesson on respecting your body's wishes. Half-assed at least gets me an hour of good breathing and focus on myself, so it's never wasted. But maybe I should have sought out a more meditative class.

He did encourage us to attempt a series of poses I couldn't (wouldn't?) do—but wanted to share as a wonderful goal for future practices. Marichyasana (there's great sequence photos here, starting with this photo—which is where we started):

But then we were encouraged to take it from sitting to balancing:

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It was beautiful to see James execute it, but I was not up for the challenge today (oh really? who would have guessed that?!). So I observed, in awe of those trying.

James did do a great job of walking around the room adjusting all of us. Though there was rarely alternate poses for those at different levels, but his verbal instructions were articulate. I always appreciate new ways to hear instructions.

At the end of the day, the fact that Lululemon offers up free yoga classes in their communities is pretty great (even if it is a bit of a marketing ploy). And the opportunity to try new instructors in a neutral location for free is pretty appealing too. So, despite my Eyore attitude (ohhhhh dear), I would recommend trying these classes to learn more about your yoga community!

The entrance you want!

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Sanctuary | Nashville, TN

We're spending our weekend in Nashville, TN with some rugby friends—rented a gorgeous house that we highly recommend. Last night was a night down on the strip hopping from music venue to music venue, always coming back to Legends Corner (definitely the best music of the night). Needless to say, I needed to balance that out a bit today and am opting for a something to sweat out the evening before. Something to fire me up and wake up the senses. Vinyasa Flow!

LOCATION: The drive from our rental was gorgeous, just around the edges of Nashville through beautiful rolling countryside homes. I'm really starting to love Tennessee and can see myself making this drive as a daily to do, for sure. Waze did it's normal job of greatness, but I do have to say, the ginormous Sanctuary Yoga sign did the trick when I came into a business-ish district and wasn't sure what would come. Free + plentiful parking.  

STUDIO: The inside was clean and modern with what I believe was an overall tone of pale purple on the walls—soothing like lavender. The front desk and merch area greeted you at the entrance. Once you walk through the hallway there are lovely changing rooms to the left and two studio spaces to the right, further back were standard public bathrooms updated with beautiful fixtures. Overall pleasing to the senses while still staying professional. $15 drop-in, credit cards accepted.

CLASS DESCRIPTION: Vinyasa Flow is Sanctuary's offering of a flowing style of yoga that seamlessly moves through the poses one breath at a time. Classes incorporate an intentional and creative blend of sun salutations and other namaskars with a full range of poses sequenced in a way that provides the foundation to cultivate inner and outer alignment, strength and flexibility, stamina and grace. Music is selected for each class that perfectly complements the flow. Join us to grow stronger, connect with your breath, and open your body, mind and heart. 

INSTRUCTOR: Laurel Walsh first discovered yoga after looking for an alternative way to manage back pain. Subsequently yoga became her physical therapy after undergoing lower back surgery. She soon realized that her practice had become a significant part of her daily life. Yoga provided Laurel with a sense of freedom not only physically but also a freedom in her mind and spirit.
CONTACT: Sanctuary

I knew I was signing myself up to sweat, but apparently (as the instructor informed me later) I chose the "sauna" section of the room. Bring. It. On. I haven't challenged myself in yoga for a really long time, and the pent up negative energy from all of life really caving in on me needed to come out... in tears, sweat, and breath. I was ready.

The flow class wasn't as vigorous as  other flow classes I've been to, possibly because it was level 1. I say this in a wonderful way, because I'm not normally attracted to flow classes, this one landed between my regular choices and a flow—just enough to kick up the heat, but not scare me off after being away from mat for so long. It was perfect.

I appreciated Laurel's direction in class from reading her bio, I felt she was protecting our backs at every step through verbal cues. There was little, if any, adjustments—but the sequence was very familiar and possibly didn't need as many adjustments in her class. Always hard for me to tell when I'm visiting new classes.

I was really excited because I did a new pose today—nothing difficult, but I was surprised I had never come across rabbit pose (sasangasana) before. Worthy of a picture of someone else so we can all share in the rabbit experience. This is what we were instructed into...

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This is what it eventually looks like, I believe (please feel free to correct me, if you know more about this): 

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She warmed us up with dolphin pose to prep for head stand. If we felt like we could try to go into headstand we could move to the wall, but no one needed to do it. Two of us went to the wall on the first try... a couple more on the second try. On the first round I went into the nicest headstand I've ever done. I should clarify, this isn't me bragging about how awesome I am. This was a much needed moment for my body + mind to remind me, "You're strong, you're balanced, you're focused... and you can handle this." Yoga has a beautiful way of humbling you when your ego is way too big and encouraging you when you feel oh so small. I needed the reminder today, and was incredibly grateful for it.

Before the second round of headstand Laurel did a quick demo of where the strength comes from—she floated only halfway up and just held it there. Explaining that before you go up into the headstand you inch your feet towards your face and at some point the weight shifts and your legs just want to go up. It's true! Or at least it was a great verbal cue for me to use for activating the right muscles.

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After a couple headstands it was time to cool down—where did the time go? Laurel walked around placing eye pillows on those who wanted one (sign me up!) and quietly my body thanked me for a much needed weekend—of not only flow yoga but quality time with friends in a beautiful part of Nashville, TN.

Namaste.

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Yoga on High | Columbus, OH

On our drive back from North Carolina we stopped about halfway in Columbus, OH to visit with a high school buddy of Jafe's. The next morning I decided to check out one more class before I accept that our vacation is over.

LOCATION: Waze navigated me to an adorable part of downtown Columbus, OH. Yoga on High is located in a decent size brick building on a corner with free parking.     

STUDIO: When you get to the front door, the person at check-in buzzes you in. The entry is huge with lots of merchandise, cubbies, and places to hang your coat. Most yoga props are in the practice space, but the mats are actually at the front desk where you check-in ($15, I paid cash, but they do accept credit cards). I was one of first to enter the space where I discovered it was a heated room. There is at least two practice spaces down the hallway, and beyond that is large bathrooms like you'd find in a public building. 

CLASS DESCRIPTION: Mysore Yoga | Mixed Level 1 + 2 | Ashtanga Drop-in: This class is open to all levels of ashtangis. Brand new beginners through experience students practice side by side at their own pace, each receiving individual instruction and hands-on adjustments. Use this class to memroize the sequence of poses in your series and to move toward an independent practice supported by the energy of the class. This class format is the traditional method of learning Ashtanga yoga as taught by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois in Mysore, India.

INSTRUCTOR: Taylor Hunt has been a devoted student of Ashtanga yoga since 2006. He was first introduced to yoga by a persistent friend who encouraged him to attend a class. Although his first experience was met with resistance, he was inspired to come back again. While lying in savasana after his second class, he felt a sense of comfort and ease unlike anything he had experienced before. Since that day, Taylor has maintained a daily Ashtanga practice and committed himself to the study of classical yogic texts including the Sutras, Vedic chanting, Indian philosophy, and Sanskrit. In 2009, Taylor felt the calling to share his love of yoga with others and completed the 200 hour teacher training program through Yoga on High.

CONTACT: Yoga on High

I had no idea what I was getting into, but the class was scheduled for three hours and that alone intrigued me. When I walked into the practice space to discover a heated room, I wasn't too happy. I don't like hot yoga or Bikram yoga—it scares me a bit. Not because it's challenging, but more so because it warms up the body so much I'm worried I'll injure myself not realizing I've gone past my edge. But I was here and I was going to do my best to stay open to the experience.

Taylor introduced himself immediately and was very patient with me explaining the process. Basically it was an open class for yogis to practice the Mysore sequence without instruction to create a meditative state. But Taylor would give me a couple instructions, practice it with me once, and then walk off to let me do a set. The first two were Surya Namaskar A + Surya Namaskar B—five to eight times each with some serious Ujjayi breathers reminding me to activate my own. At some point all of us came together to chant, which I didn't know, so I om'd and listened. It was beautiful.

Once I was warmed up (aka sweating my ass off) Taylor and another instructor in the room taught me the first six standing poses. At this point the room is now packed, and the yoga that is happening is truly breathtaking. The woman next to be floated into her positions—and when I say floated, I don't mean she was graceful. If you're not familiar with this reference, take a moment to watch this:


OK, I did not do that, and that's alright—I did however enjoyed peaking over at my neighbor to watch her do some of this.

After I practiced my first six steps maybe three times my instructors had me go into savasana, both of them congratulating me on my first class and comforting me in saying they didn't want to overwork me so I'd be excited to come back next week. I wasn't really discouraged with my level of yoga—I was easily the "worst" practitioner in the room, but I know where I am in my practice and quite comfortable with it. But that doesn't mean I didn't appreciate the kindness given to encourage me to return.

I would definitely not recommend this to a newcomer. It says all levels welcome—but no way. I almost wondered if it was appropriate if I was there after a few years of practicing. In the end, I'm glad I did go, because you have to start somewhere and this was a lovely space to do just that. 

Thank you Yoga on High and Taylor! Namaste.

Quick snapshot inside the studio

Merch

I liked the painting behind the check-in desk

Lovely pictures in the hallway

Discovered these two adorable elephants on my drive home :)

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West Asheville Yoga | Asheville NC

We managed to make it back early enough from the Smoky Mountains for me to catch a much needed gentle yoga class.

LOCATION: Used Waze for my trusty GPS system to navigate me to West Asheville which was only a 15-20 minute drive from our rental. West Asheville was described as the art district in my bazillion handouts, but at night I didn't feel completely safe walking around on my own. Luckily there was free parking right in front of the studio.    

STUDIO: Upon arrival I went to open the door to find it locked and then saw the sign that said the door is locked during classes and will open 10-15 minutes before the next class. On one hand, I liked that the door was locked through class, so no one interrupted and all ours stuff was safe at the front—on the other hand, it was chilly and waiting outside in a less than comfortable area of town wasn't my favorite thing to do. But the studio front is adorable and comforting (including a poster for our instructor from yesterday). Once inside I fell in love with the simplicity and frugality of the space. The front area was curtained off with cubbies for you belongings and a little check-in area. Class was on a sliding scale which I paid the full $12 in cash. Once in the practice area it was open, wood floors, free props in the back to the right, and a curtained off space with a sink and a bathroom to the left. One of the side walls, which I wish I took a picture of was a large white om on a white wall. It was such a subtle and beautiful addition to the room. The regulars were super friendly and we all chatted a bit before class started.

CLASS DESCRIPTION: Gentle Yoga is a very basic yoga class which focuses on the relaxation aspect of your practices. This class is great for someone wanting to de-stress, who is recovering from an injury or trauma, or who is very new to yoga.

INSTRUCTOR: Jacci Lea began yoga in New Orleans as a way to help with some back pain. Nearly 15 years later she still practices yoga. After many years of studying Iyengar yoga she now combines the techniques and alignment of that style with flow yoga. She taught classes for several years at Wild Lotus Yoga in New Oreleans before moving to Asheville—just a week before Katrina. Jacci received her yoga teaching training at Living Yoga in Austin, TX. Outside of the yoga studio Jacci has worked as a medical technologist for 25 years.

CONTACT: West Asheville Yoga

Jacci started off the class burning quite a bit of incense—mentioning that if it was too much to let us know. It took a little getting use to, but after awhile I completely forgot about it. The space was a bit warmer than usual, I assume because we were doing a gentle class. I found it all very cozy. Jacci spent a lot of time having us wake up the joints—shaking everything out even. We did a lot of nice core work from our backs (variations of drawing circles with your feet in the air). We took our time doing twists (a wonderful theme to my series of classes this week, which was much needed for this stressed out yogi). Jacci walked around doing adjustments, giving personal encouragement to each person, and as I've learned comes hand-in-hand with Iyengar, lots of detailed verbal queues (which I really enjoy).

We did a lot of openers that led us to ananda balasana (aka happy baby, wind releasing pose, and dead bug). I'm pausing here for my own tracking, because it was the first time—with some assistance from Jacci—I was able to reach my knee back to the ground. This gave me even more appreciation for having the opportunity to hike all day and end with a gentle class. My hips were very happy. Jacci was great with offering numerous options for each pose depending on your level. I haven't seen that in a while, so it also was appreciated.

We ended in a glorious savasana that was a beautiful finale to my yoga classes in Western North Carolina. Thank you so much West Asheville Yoga and Jacci! Namaste.

More from the front of the studio

Check in area

Practice space

Free props

Had to get a pic of the periodic table of yoga poses :)

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