The Shala • 11.02.09
I have subconsciously been avoiding the Shala even though no one has anything but good things to say about it. Everyone from yelpers to some of my most personally influential yoga teachers, like Mia Baer. But I shied away from it after hearing some classes were “ashtanga inspired”, and seeing the various ashtanga offerings they had on their site. I have to be in a specific mood to do ashtanga. The bindings, and the increasing difficulty of the sequence often becomes an exercise in frustration for me. I have to mentally prepare to be disappointed in my practice. But at last, I couldn’t resist — I convinced my friend Yadana to try out the studio, and somehow in the mix of it we both signed up for the unlimited monthly plan (for first time students), a Manhattan rock-bottom price of $100.
So far their classes have been remarkably good. The teachers take special care to guide us through proper alignment, and build heat by (often) having us hold poses for 5 breaths or more. This was a welcomed change for me, having just come from Laughing Lotus where the sequences are inventive, but often held for a brief half second. I whole heartedly appreciated the slower flow and hearing my breath instead of music. And they do good physical assists, a rarity now in many yoga classes, but such a powerful learning experience. Truthfully no matter how well a teacher describes a pose, the connection you make during physical assists is unparalleled. Shala teachers also seem to have a higher level of experience, so far each one has spotted a mis-alignment in my practice that has helped get past the stagnation that’s been weighing me.
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