Fitness Clubs
Aum Center Yoga
Aum Center Yoga has taken over Krudar Muay Thai's former location, and they're filling it with the power of deep breathing-based exercise, and joules, too (more on what those are later).
I show up at 6 pm for what they call the core yoga class. It's focused around abdominal breathing and core strength. Owner Wally Podilchak or Wally-ji (ji being an affectionate Hindi epithet) comes from a fitness education and university sociology background, with training from Gyan Yoga, so the fusion makes sense to me.
Our class takes place in the rear Moon room, as opposed to the more frontward Sun room for hot yoga. It's about seven degrees cooler than normal since the heater is on the fritz today, but no matter. Wally-ji reminds us that it's not the stretching and posing in yoga that makes us sweat, but actually the core breathing (which we just happen to be focusing on today).
And it's true; after five minutes of the focused breathing, my body is noticeably warmer. As an added bonus, he's more like a supportive father figure than the marble statue of an instructor that's often seen in trendy spa-styled yoga studios these days.
There's respect for the spiritual aspect of the tradition, with nods to the physical workout, but Wally-ji's approach is innovative, as well. Having practiced yoga on and off for the past ten years, I'm happy to be forced into new tricks like an elbow and abs-based pushup movement that he's improvised.
Lying flat on our stomachs, we inhale deeply into the abs, lift up, and pull back in an upwards dog crunch, driven by the core. "This might be a little more advanced than what you're used to," he says, but he laughs along with us, sensing our frustration.
I also love their creative pricing plans. A standard class is only $10 and you can even pay in Joules spent. Their website explains it best: "We price our classes in Joules: the energy created when you release the tension from inside your body and enter a mindful yogic state. With unlimited Joules passes, you can convert and transform a great deal of yogic energy."
Aum Center Yoga is affordable and aligns itself with true yogic values of health and well-being, rather than arguably secular health and wellness marketing fads. They offer over 20 different styles, from classics like Hatha and Nidra, to specifically tailored and modern creations like "Oceanic," an aquatic-themed class that blends dance with underwater movement, and "Yoga man! (Am I STIFF)," for unwinding tight muscles.
The green lychee tea is always plentiful and waiting for you in the Kensington-styled chill-out lounge, just be mindful that working on your cell phone is not permitted while you wait for class. Try doing something revolutionary, and make a new friend instead.
Writing by Jesse Ship. Photos by Jesse Milns.
Discussion
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I've been intending to check out the studio. I had an online coupon but misread the expiry date and didn't begin to use it in time.
Andrea, LA, Lemur: The website is being redesigned that will have our unique imprint. Interesting how there's an expectation that yoga should have a similar look and design. Yoga is more than one (consumerist spa) style. Our motto is diverse yoga for unique people. The 'random symbols'represent diversity of languages (and peoples), not a linear conforming impulse. Same for my play on some words.... yo(ga) a -- yoga always moves us to go beyond our boundaries and expectations.
Thanks for your response.
Regarding, "Interesting how there's an expectation that yoga should have a similar look and design. Yoga is more than one (consumerist spa) style.":
I wasn't implying that it should, I was giving examples of what exist to serve as inspiration. When creating a website you want to think about user experience. For example, how easy information is to find, and visuals. Visual identity and branding are an integral part of marketing and there are general design principles that exist for a reason - such as sticking to 3 colours on a webpage and a small number of fonts. The look and design in other yoga templates work because they're clean, simple, uncluttered and easy for the website visitor. It doesn't mean you need to use those, but do keep in mind what you want to achieve with the site.
Think about yoga: It's freeing. It makes people stretch and relax. It's calming. It provides a sense of peace, a connection to that feeling of spirit. A cluttered site, like a cluttered room or a closed chakra, has an opposite effect.
I say this to share my expertise and help. In both this comment and my previous was my intent was to use helpful words rather than critical ones. It comes from a desire to help your promotional material be as beautiful as the studio and classes probably are. People will judge you by your website because it's the first thing they see. One DOES judge a book by its cover.
Yoga is certainly more than one style and I like the logo. Thank you for the information about the coupon. I look forward to visiting. Let me know if you want to chat further. You can contact me through my websites. (Each of my comments links to a different site.)
Namaste/sat nam
I am sure the website will get fixed in the future, til then find the address and go.
Namaste.