Bending the Rules Issue #39

Asanas for the rest of us

By Erica Phillips
Published: March 1st, 2009 | 1:32pm

With the practice spreading from granola-munching hippies to latte-slurping soccer moms, it’s as though the now-ubiquitous yoga trend has filled some fashionable exercise void left by Jazzercise. But with studios popping up in hipster ‘hoods throughout the land, it seems the cheesy new age stigma has at last been lifted from this ancient meditative art. Ready to get your downward facing dog on?

There’s a first time for everything, kids
Looking at a catalog of yoga classes or a studio website, there are a lot more options than “beginner” or “advanced,” and it’s important to understand which styles of yoga will be right for you. Debbie Desmond of Namaste Yoga and Tranquility Center in Brooklyn says the Hatha form of yoga is good for anyone who is just starting out. “There are styles of yoga that can be a little bit dangerous for beginners,” she adds. These include the popular styles of Bikram (practiced in a very hot room) and Vinyasa (which can be strenuous on the wrists and lower back).

You can take it with you
If you can’t find what you’re looking for in a studio, online yoga videos and DVDs are a pretty sweet alternative. Chaos, the L.A.-based, tattooed instructor behind the For Indie Rockers exercise DVD series, says she wanted to reach out to a different audience. “Maybe that Hot Topic kid who listens to punk music would be intimidated to go to yoga class, but I want them to know that yoga is for everybody,” she says. Trying different styles of yoga at home – Wii, DVD, or Internet-based – can help you develop your own routine and rituals. Once you’ve got the hang of it, you can string together a few of your favorite combinations for a totally DIY yoga workout.

She’s going the distance
For the true yogis among us, many ashrams (yoga centers) around the world offer intensive program options. At the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Massachusetts, for example, college students spend four months practicing daily yoga, eating yummy organic meals, and learning harmonious life skills. Chicago-based private instructor Jessica Goldsmith picked up yoga casually during her first year out of college. After taking every class at her local studio and even attending a few weekend yoga retreats, she realized it was more than a hobby and signed up for a month-long teacher-training program. “It requires commitment,” she says, but you shouldn’t be intimidated. “[Yoga] is not meant to be a designer thing, it’s just supposed to make you feel good."