My first official studio trial is with Breath & Body Yoga in north-central Austin. They have two deals available, $20 for the first week unlimited or $60 for the first month unlimited. I did the month because I think I'll get more out of it with my current busy schedule!
The first thing I did when I decided to start with BBY (their own abbreviation) was to look at the class schedule. I have to admit I was a little disappointed because there is only one class per day during the week that I would be able to go to (6:30-8pm) and most of my other yogi friends would be in the same boat. The others are during work hours and I am not able to get out for that amount of time to attend. The weekends are better with 3 viable class options per day. I am a big fan of the morning classes, it wakes you up/stretches/all kinds of good stuff, but there is only one on Wednesday mornings when we have MyEdu corporate yoga at night so that's out for me.
Anyway...moving on from that was my first impression of the studio. It was small, but intimate, which I like. The facility is very clean and everything is neat and put together. They don't have a locker room which is a bit of a bummer because the one bathroom gets backed up when everyone must change into their yoga clothes. I did experience this problem :( There are cubbies and because the entrance is in the back of the center it seems safe to leave things there, in addition you can see out into the foyer while you are in class. The actual room where you practice was nice...it was open with a lot of windows and a high ceiling - this was great because it made the room and the amount of people attending seem less crowded and stifling.
A few more notes before I talk about the class...if you are a new trial member you can use mats and towels for free, but if you become a member you need to rent or bring your own. I figure if you buy a membership to a yoga studio you should have those things anyway. They have water for purchase but also a water cooler for you to fill up your bottles.
The class was AWESOME. I have to say it was one of my favorite yoga classes to date. The instructor was Georgette and I was told she was great but of course always want to form my own opinion. The hour and a half class flew by and was hard yet do-able. I loved the speed of her power flow, it was fast and rigorous, which really gets you sweating! The last half hour or so was dedicated to more floor work with strength integrated for the arms and core. She didn't do any adjustments which would've been my only critique. The class was made up of a variety of people, a little older crowd than I'm used to at Black Swan, but they had blocks and straps to help them so everyone could develop their practice.
Overall it was a good experience and I look forward to attending the classes of all instructors over the next month and will definitely keep you updated! I won't rate the studio until the very end so stay tuned...
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Black Swan Yoga
So, I have to admit that this is my go-to yoga studio because you don't have to purchase a membership or certain number of classes, no auto-withdraw from my bank account...just simple donation. Overall, I'll say that this is the major draw to Black Swan, for those of you who don't want to fully commit to yoga or a studio.
The payment works as a donation, like I said above, and this means that at the end of class you give Black Swan however much you feel like it was worth to you. You'd think that people would skirt the system and I'm sure some do, but everyone I know is honest and really appreciate the trust they have for their visitors. I know of people who will give for instance $20 one night and then go two or three times on that donation. Or, if you only have a couple bucks one day, you can fill in the gaps on the next visit. Mats can be rented for $2 and water can be purchased for $.50 - this they also don't track but rely on the honor code. There are computers available too for those of you who like to swipe.
Now for the classes. Some will say (many actually) that the guy instructors are much better than the women, I however have had positive experiences with all of the lady instructors so I will not testify to that. I personally have tried the Vinyasa, Power Yoga and Sweaty Yoga classes which are all a good level of challenging. They do a great job of giving options for poses so that the beginners and more advanced have a good practice. To be honest I've found that these three classes are very similar depending on who the instructor is and the weather outside (we'll talk about facility later) but my favorite remains the Power Yoga, and that seems to be a favorite of a lot of friends as well.
The Black Swan facility is it's downfall, simply because it is not large enough to house the demand for the most popular classes. Most times there is a hand's width between mats at the early and late evening classes and even the early mornings are fairly full. This is negative for me because you have to be very comfortable sweating and breathing all over a stranger and the instructors don't have as much time for adjustments. In addition, because it is donation everyone must wait at the end of class in line to use the computers and for a large class this can take up to 10 minutes. They have two bathrooms but there are only public facing cubbies for shoes in the main lobby, so nothing resembling a locker room like many other studios.
Overall, I really do love Black Swan for the flexibility and ease of scheduling. Knowing that you are not committed is a great feeling for those who are new to yoga or who aren't sure about it yet.
Ratings:
Classes: 4/5
Facility: 2/5
Overall Experience: 3/5
The payment works as a donation, like I said above, and this means that at the end of class you give Black Swan however much you feel like it was worth to you. You'd think that people would skirt the system and I'm sure some do, but everyone I know is honest and really appreciate the trust they have for their visitors. I know of people who will give for instance $20 one night and then go two or three times on that donation. Or, if you only have a couple bucks one day, you can fill in the gaps on the next visit. Mats can be rented for $2 and water can be purchased for $.50 - this they also don't track but rely on the honor code. There are computers available too for those of you who like to swipe.
Now for the classes. Some will say (many actually) that the guy instructors are much better than the women, I however have had positive experiences with all of the lady instructors so I will not testify to that. I personally have tried the Vinyasa, Power Yoga and Sweaty Yoga classes which are all a good level of challenging. They do a great job of giving options for poses so that the beginners and more advanced have a good practice. To be honest I've found that these three classes are very similar depending on who the instructor is and the weather outside (we'll talk about facility later) but my favorite remains the Power Yoga, and that seems to be a favorite of a lot of friends as well.
The Black Swan facility is it's downfall, simply because it is not large enough to house the demand for the most popular classes. Most times there is a hand's width between mats at the early and late evening classes and even the early mornings are fairly full. This is negative for me because you have to be very comfortable sweating and breathing all over a stranger and the instructors don't have as much time for adjustments. In addition, because it is donation everyone must wait at the end of class in line to use the computers and for a large class this can take up to 10 minutes. They have two bathrooms but there are only public facing cubbies for shoes in the main lobby, so nothing resembling a locker room like many other studios.
Overall, I really do love Black Swan for the flexibility and ease of scheduling. Knowing that you are not committed is a great feeling for those who are new to yoga or who aren't sure about it yet.
Ratings:
Classes: 4/5
Facility: 2/5
Overall Experience: 3/5
Sunstone Yoga
For my first review I'll go ahead and cover a studio that I tried through a Living Social Deal. It was $30 for a month unlimited, they have a variety of classes that are all based on the elements, so they call them Earth, Fire, Water, etc. They are based out of Dallas, TX but I went to the location at the Triangle in Austin.
I tested out the Fire, Wood and Earth classes, and found that Earth was the only one I really liked. Fire was a 98 degree class and that is too warm for me so I only went once...Wood was good definitely more like pilates than yoga. Earth is what you would think of as a typical power yoga class so it was my favorite.
The entire month I only had 2 different instructors...and wasn't super impressed with them. They were a little rigid and not very helpful, I never received an adjustment during my practice or any real guidance as far as improving my poses. They were not very "good" at their practice either as far as I can tell from what I've seen. So, the classes themselves were fine, definitely a step-up from the ones at Gold's Gym (duh) but not near the caliber of others.
Now for the facility, etc. They had a locker room which was nice, with showers, towels, etc. but it wasn't always very clean. The mats and towels were complimentary and there were always enough but the towels were a bit ratty, many had holes in them and were fraying at the edges...it would probably be worth it for them to invest in some new towels. I like the rooms, they had carpeting instead of wood or concrete floors so that helped for the poses on our knees and elbows.
Overall, it was a fine experience, I don't know that I would pay their pricing structure, especially with some of the iffy things I mentioned above. As far as marketing, they never followed up with me after my trial or tried to get me to sign up...bad business but I appreciate not being bothered! If there is another deal and you want to try yoga, go for it, but I wouldn't suggest a membership there.
Ratings:
Classes: 2/5
Facility: 3/5
Overall Experience: 2/5
Website: http://www.sunstoneyoga.com/
I tested out the Fire, Wood and Earth classes, and found that Earth was the only one I really liked. Fire was a 98 degree class and that is too warm for me so I only went once...Wood was good definitely more like pilates than yoga. Earth is what you would think of as a typical power yoga class so it was my favorite.
The entire month I only had 2 different instructors...and wasn't super impressed with them. They were a little rigid and not very helpful, I never received an adjustment during my practice or any real guidance as far as improving my poses. They were not very "good" at their practice either as far as I can tell from what I've seen. So, the classes themselves were fine, definitely a step-up from the ones at Gold's Gym (duh) but not near the caliber of others.
Now for the facility, etc. They had a locker room which was nice, with showers, towels, etc. but it wasn't always very clean. The mats and towels were complimentary and there were always enough but the towels were a bit ratty, many had holes in them and were fraying at the edges...it would probably be worth it for them to invest in some new towels. I like the rooms, they had carpeting instead of wood or concrete floors so that helped for the poses on our knees and elbows.
Overall, it was a fine experience, I don't know that I would pay their pricing structure, especially with some of the iffy things I mentioned above. As far as marketing, they never followed up with me after my trial or tried to get me to sign up...bad business but I appreciate not being bothered! If there is another deal and you want to try yoga, go for it, but I wouldn't suggest a membership there.
Ratings:
Classes: 2/5
Facility: 3/5
Overall Experience: 2/5
Website: http://www.sunstoneyoga.com/
Sunday, February 13, 2011
The Plan...
My tour of Austin yoga will start in 2 weeks...why you ask? I'm running the Austin Half Marathon on the 20th of February and don't think it'd be the best idea to jump into a brand new project until it's over...
So, once the excitement of the marathon slows down I'll be ready to dive into my new project, testing out all of the studios in Austin to find the best teachers, most comfortable setting and really what I feel is the best atmosphere for a new yogi.
I have done yoga in the past and currently do it now, so I'm not a true beginner. I've got my headstand, can hold a pretty good warrior 3 and my bridge is getting close to a wheel...however everyone approaches yoga differently. Not just the poses but the mind set and mental aspect as well. Yoga is not just about stretching your body and helping it explore new ways to grow, but also to calm your mind and have you put into perspective the troubles that you face every day.
Currently, I'm a frequent visitor of Black Swan and love it! I'll do a review later but just want to make sure you all know it won't be part of the tour because I'm already familiar. I've also tried SunStone Yoga in the Triangle and in addition, my good friend and recently certified yoga instructor Sami Lipman has set up a once/week yoga class in our office. Again, I will cover all of these in later posts.
My "tour" thus far includes the following location and I urge any readers to help me set a schedule, narrow down, or check them out with me!
Wish me luck!
So, once the excitement of the marathon slows down I'll be ready to dive into my new project, testing out all of the studios in Austin to find the best teachers, most comfortable setting and really what I feel is the best atmosphere for a new yogi.
I have done yoga in the past and currently do it now, so I'm not a true beginner. I've got my headstand, can hold a pretty good warrior 3 and my bridge is getting close to a wheel...however everyone approaches yoga differently. Not just the poses but the mind set and mental aspect as well. Yoga is not just about stretching your body and helping it explore new ways to grow, but also to calm your mind and have you put into perspective the troubles that you face every day.
Currently, I'm a frequent visitor of Black Swan and love it! I'll do a review later but just want to make sure you all know it won't be part of the tour because I'm already familiar. I've also tried SunStone Yoga in the Triangle and in addition, my good friend and recently certified yoga instructor Sami Lipman has set up a once/week yoga class in our office. Again, I will cover all of these in later posts.
My "tour" thus far includes the following location and I urge any readers to help me set a schedule, narrow down, or check them out with me!
- Breath & Body - $20 for first week, $60 for first month
- Bodhi Downtown - $20 for first week
- Castle Hill Fitness Yoga - $20 for first TWO weeks
- Yoga Vida - $20 for first week
- Eastside Yoga Coop - $45 for first month
- Yoga Groove - $20 for first TWO weeks
- Dharma Yoga - $30 for 4 classes in one month (a little confusing)
- Empower Yoga - $20 for first week
- Austin Kula Yoga - 6 classes for $65 to be used in 2 months (again a little confusing)
- PURE Bikram Yoga - $49 for month
- Yoga Yoga - must purchase class package 9 for $110 (ehh, not super convincing)
- Austin Yoga Institute - 6 classes for $120 ( not much option for trial)
- Sundara Yoga - $25 for first week
Wish me luck!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)