Yoga

[msmemory_archive]

My doctor, who is a smart lady, suggested I look into taking a yoga or pilates class, or get myself a good yoga dvd to work out with. She says I should look for the words "gentle" or "relaxation" in the course info.

Any suggestions for good yoga classes/studios in the suburbs? Woburn or Burlington would be ideal for me, but I’d go to Arlington, Stoneham, or Winchester for the right class. I’m looking for Complete Beginners Handholding. (Alternatively, how expensive IS a private session or two to get started?)

Comments

[lanome.livejournal.com]

I can not say enough good things about yoga. I have been achy for years (yeah, yeah, I know I'm too young for that sort of thing), and just taking one class a week has made my whole body just feel so much better!

Anyway, my mom says her neighbor recommends Samadhi, which is not in any of the towns you mention, but is in the suburbs, so I have no idea if it will be convenient for you or not. Mom herself likes the gentle yoga class she takes at Healthworks, but doesn't know if they'll let people just pay for the classes instead of taking them as a member.

[dlevey.livejournal.com]

I know someone who teaches Tai Chi, if that is close enough - she's in Burlington. I don't remember any yoga teachers there.

[elizabear.livejournal.com]

*Love* yoga.

I first gave it a try by going to the Y. Waltham has a $12 day pass you can purchase if you're not a member.

Now I just do it at home. I have a number of DVDs if you'd like to borrow and try them out, or you can get a lot of good ones from the library. I recommend starting with "You Can Do Yoga" (also called "Yoga You Can Do" - the instructor says it both ways in the show!). It demonstrates all the poses first, then walks you through a 30 minute gentle session.

[elizabear.livejournal.com]

Oh, and I'm being silly to forget - if you want to come over and try it with me, just let me know. Or we could go to the Y together. I went with my sister the first time, and it was nice to have someone there.

[metahacker.livejournal.com]

My spies in Woburn say the Y up there also has yoga classes... definitely closer for you.

[goldsquare.livejournal.com]

Yes, I think they do.

I have a membership, I could "try them out" for you, msmemory. It might be good to give me an impetus to return to Yoga. :-)

[msmemory.livejournal.com]

If you're willing to scope them out for me, that would be excellent. I'm gathering a nice list, between the links posted here and the yellow pages, of places to check into.

[goldsquare.livejournal.com]

At one time, I used the yoga.com web pages for that. I found them particularly helpful, since they included descriptive pages.

And, sure: I'll take that challenge, if I can fit it in... YMCA Woburn web pages, here I come!

[goldsquare.livejournal.com]

Looks like a lot of them are during working hours, but I'll try to make the Wednesday evening class. You can join me, if you want. :-)

[goldsquare.livejournal.com]

I would not start yoga with a tape, unless your ability to imitate a visual with perfect body kinesthesia is amazingly above average. It's good for suggesting sequences of poses you already know, but not for learning. I make this as a very strong suggestion - a lot of yoga is putting your muscles and tendons to their limits, and a small slip of alignment can breed pain.

Yoga private lessons are quite expensive, and not all that necessary.

Two of the very best places I have taken yoga, were Mystic River Yoga (very best for beginners) and The Arlington Center in Arlington.

The classes I took at Mystic were when I was starting out. They work an a semester-subscription system, where you start slowly and build a vocabulary. At first, you do very few poses, but each student is checked and adjusted and helped. It was fantastic.

I went only a few times to The Arlington Center, to take classes with Chip Hartranft after I broke my leg. He is a phenomal teacher, very gentle and fun. The classes felt like reunions, as so many students were regulars. I've heard only good things from his students about him, and the other teachers there.

I've had good and bad individual teachers at gyms and such. I've not been practicing for a while, so I have no current names.

I'd urge you to look at either the About.com web pages on yoga or perhaps Yoga.com, and the different forms and styles of yoga teaching, and settle on a style that sounds appealing to you. I'm a big fan of both the Hatha style (gentle yoga) and Iyengar (which can be gentle or not, but uses a lot of straps, props and tools that my not-at-all-flexible body really benefits from).

An interesting book on yoga, with modifications for various body types, surgeries and injuries, is "Yoga For The Rest Of Us", and there is also a video that you can probably purchase, borrow from the library, or rent.

If you are going to use videos, borrow them from Netflix or something first.

[msmemory.livejournal.com]

You are one of the people from whom I specifically hoped to hear. Thanks!

[isisofcool.livejournal.com]

I keep collecting names, but never getting to a class myself. But I can share...

The instructor here filled in for my old yoga teacher a few times (back when I took yoga pre-Michelle) and I found her to be really good. Its Wakefield, but not too far out of range.
http://www.yogaeast.net/

I've walked by this place in Winchester a bunch of times, but have no personal experience.
http://www.yogamandala.com/

I like Iyengar yoga, because of the props that help you when your body just won't go where the pose wants. But I haven't really had extensive experience with anything else.

[ladysprite.livejournal.com]

I go to Om City Yoga in Cambridge - it's probably a bit of a hike for you, but the instructor there runs a wide range of classes for all experience levels and abilities. I've taken everything from her intermediate to her Gentle Restorative classes, and the latter were *really* good for relaxation and stretching.

[chaiya.livejournal.com]

Bwa! That's so funny, that's the yoga teacher I was just talking up to you!

[jenwrites.livejournal.com]

If you can't find a good class nearby, my favorite DVD is Gaiam's "Yoga Conditioning for Weight Loss." Ignore the "Weight Loss" part -- that's just crap they put on the cover to sell DVDs. What I like about it is that there's four different people doing all the poses: Stiff Chick, Not-so-Stiff Chick, Chick You Aspire to Be Someday, and Freakishly Flexible Chick. So no matter what level you're at, there's someone on the screen doing the pose at your level. It's a 45-minute session that's fairly easy.