Inhale, exhale: a guide to yoga classes in the DC area

It's very hard to convincingly describe yoga's benefits to newcomers: how it teaches you to live in your body, gain control of your mental states, and unlocks reserves of vitality and joy you never realized you had. But for someone who has heard enough fervent testimonials to at least be curious, the next question is: so how do I get into it then? You really do need a teacher; books and videos are great, but not enough. So, here's a personal guide to getting into yoga in the DC area (with a bias towards the Dupont area). Please, send me your own experiences and I'll add to the guide!

Considerations: Factors include convenience of location, price, convenience of time, teaching style (vinyasa/ashtanga/iyengar etc, as well as whether yoga ethics and spirituality are included), teaching quality, the quality of the physical space, the number of other students... There is a plethora of ways to teach yoga - especially now it's so trendy - and it makes me sad when someone tells me about a bad experience they've had with a yoga class. If you don't like it, try somewhere else!

Convenience of location: Depends on where you live and work, obviously. Since a yoga class is about relaxation, it's crazy to stress yourself out getting there on time every week.

Price: Standard price is around $15 for a one-time class, with progressively better deals for multiple-class passes. Most studios offer introductory deals, either the first or the second class free. In addition, some studios have a monthly free class, or cheaper classes that are taught by teachers in training, or they offer deals where you trade work at the yoga studio for free classes. I think there's the general attitude, among quality studios at least, that if somebody really wants to learn yoga, it would be tragic if money was a prohibitive burden for them. Be creative and remember that you're dealing with people who are probably very empathetic and understanding.

Convenience of time: Things to consider when you're looking at available class times: it's best not to eat 3-4 hours before doing yoga (it's uncomfortable to stretch and twist and turn upside down with a full stomach). For some people, yoga is harder to do early in the morning because your body is stiffer, and they prefer it in the evening; others feel that it gets their day off to a fantastic start. Find out which one you are. Being able to shower beforehand is a wonderful luxury because it loosens your body up (but it's not necessary); showering afterwards is nice if you sweat a lot. It's wonderful to go out with friends after a yoga class because it puts you in such a good mood (and it makes your hips sway more.)

Teaching style:
Yoga is a mighty tree with many branches. Although those branches might seem very different at first, with time it becomes clear that they all share the same roots and the same soil. That being said, it's important to find the branch that's most comfortable for you to sit on!

Iyengar: BKS Iyengar is one of the most famous yoga teachers this century; he puts a lot of emphasis on precision and body alignment in the poses, using blocks and blankets and straps where necessary for beginners. Iyengar yoga studio are strict about teacher certification, so you're certain to get a competent teacher. It's also especially good for beginners because you learn to do the poses precisely and you avoid getting into any bad habits; if you overtwist your body in an ugly way because you want to reach your toes with your finger, your teacher will gently pass you a block or strap and show you how to do it right. However, I feel that it's also tricky for beginners. You don't actually get much of a workout in the beginner Iyengar classes. A large percentage of class time is purely didactic, and there's no emphasis on flowing with the breath. Especially if you're initially skeptical about yoga's benefits, it can be frustrating (to say the least) to spend ninety minutes learning to stand up straight. And even if you have rock-solid faith that your initial drudgery will pay off, there are some poses that you simply need to build up the appropriate muscles and flexibility to learn, regardless of your intellectual knowledge about how the pose is supposed to align - and for that, you need your yoga class to give you a workout. Learning yoga for me has works better as an iterative trial-and-error process; if I had been required to get every detail perfect before learning the next detail, I probably would have been too discouraged to keep it up. That being said, if you have the motivation and the discipline, Iyengar studios are excellent and you will get superb lessons there.

Ashtanga: Sometimes known, in its bastardized forms, as "power yoga," this is the most vigorous and challenging form of yoga. Ashtanga classes teach set series of poses which are progressively more challenging; they always start with flowing sun salutations, then continue to standing/balancing and finally seated poses. Expect to be dripping with sweat at the end of an Ashtanga class. It's a very beautiful style of yoga and an excellent workout; however, I wouldn't recommend it to beginners. Even in the most basic Ashtanga class, the poses flow so quickly that it's hard to explain anything and beginners often feel completely lost. In addition, if you don't have a certain base level of fitness, strength, and flexibility, some of even the introductory poses will be completely impossible for you (and everything flows so fast that it's tough to fetch a prop). So: if you have some experience with yoga, or previous athletic experience with dance, gymnastics, or capoeira - Ashtanga yoga is fantastic. Otherwise, you're likely to be flummoxed, or even get an injury.

Bikram: An always-identical series of 26 poses, taught in a heated room so that you sweat like a pig. I hate its founder, Bikram Choudhury - this article by the Economist pretty much sums up why. I suppose that for the truly sauna-addicted, this yoga style might have its advantages...as long as you don't mind paying royalties to a greasy quack.

Vinyasa: "Flow" yoga (the style I teach). Like ashtanga, vinyasa yoga also puts a lot of emphasis on movement and flowing with the breath; you're likely to be sweating at the end of a class. But unlike ashtanga, which has set series of poses that you always follow in the same order, vinyasa puts emphasis on flexibility and creativity when designing your practice, depending on what you need at the moment. This also forces you to learn more about the philosophy of the asanas (poses) and their effects on the body, in order to put them effectively together. To use a totally dorky computer science metaphor, ashtanga or bikram yoga gives you a complete set of reference libraries; with vinyasa yoga, you have to write it from scratch. But of course, this also puts more of a burden on the teacher, who not only has to concentrate on communicating and making sure students are doing the poses right, but also must basically create a dance choreography. As a result, I think that the quality of a vinyasa class depends more even on the teacher than a class in the ashtanga or bikram style, where you can sort of rely on the textbook. Unfortunately, "vinyasa yoga" has become a bit of an umbrella phrase for teachers who don't quite fit into any other style, and end up teaching a confused hodge-podge of a lesson.

Kundalini: I haven't done much of this but there is much more of a spiritual focus in the kundalini tradition, with an emphasis on eventually awakening the "kundalini energy" at the base of your spine. Breath work and energy meditations are integrated with the poses; it's pretty awesome. However, the closest Kundalini school I know of is out in Rockville.

Sivananda: I haven't ever taken a Sivananda class, but I hear that they are rather slow and relaxing.

It's the United States - everybody wants to start their own club. There are many more yoga disciplines listed here.

Teaching quality
Your teacher should have a welcoming, glowing presence. S/he should give individual attention to every student in the class and make sure that nobody is doing positions in a way that causes them injury. I'm in the habit of doing yoga by myself almost every morning, but I still love going to class, because a good teacher can push you to go further than you could alone.

The physical space
This is where gyms suffer in comparison to yoga studios, which have airy, well-lighted, wood-floored rooms painted in soothing colours, with good music systems, and mood-enhancers like candles, incense, and aromatherapy.

The number of other students
Other people are also able to notice which teachers are good, and their classes are often so crowded that people have to stagger their yoga mats to avoid bumping into each other. If the teacher is good enough you can still get in a good class like this, but it's a completely different experience to take a very small class where you can interact directly with the teacher and they can assist you often. It's worth seeking out inconvenient times (early in the morning or later at night) for this luxury with a good teacher.

So where can I go and do it?
I will be adding to this list as I explore new places!

Tranquil Space:
Vinyasa style. This is where I took my teacher training, so I obviously like them a lot. It's a convenient location: 2024 P St, near the Dupont Metro. The studio space is very beautiful; they have a big calendar of classes to choose from, so you can always find a time that's right for you; and the teachers all know their stuff very well, and structure interesting and varied classes. And classes are offered for Level 1, 1/2, 2, and 3 - so you can avoid the frustration that comes from being an advanced student in an overly easy class, or vice versa. Kimberly Wilson is the founder, and her "you-go-girl!" personality pervades the studio - check out her yoga fashion boutique. This can occasionally be annoying even for me, and I've had men tell me that they sometimes feel slightly uncomfortable in the overly-feminine atmosphere. But despite her perky curls, Kimberly is sharp entrepeneur - her studio has exploded in popularity over the past two years and she's always coming up with new workshops and yoga retreats and special events - and a fantastic teacher; her classes are full to overflowing. The stunningly beautiful Lisa Farmer is another of my favorite teachers there - and for those who'd like a Bikram fix sans snake oil, she teaches a hot yoga class on Tuesday night. There is not much of an emphasis on chakras or spirituality, but every classes closes with a dedicational reading and a mantra. Mat and towel rental is $1; you can store your mat at the studio.

DCYoga:
1635 Connecticut Avenue - a few blocks north of the Dupont Metro. They have passes which are slightly cheaper than most other yoga studios. DCYoga has a nice atmosphere; it doesn't feel like a business. Mats and towels are free and they have a pot-luck meditation party one Saturday every month. They have an extensive work-study program, so there are always groups of yoga students hanging around the front. And there is more of an emphasis on spirituality and meditation, which appeals to me (although not, perhaps, to you.) However, I have found that the teaching quality there is a bit spotty. Some teachers are absolutely amazing (oh I miss you Mike, kundalini master!) but some are quite green, and teach at a rather basic level, or might miss mistakes of alignment that their students make (or even make the mistakes themselves!) However - perhaps because of this spotty teaching quality - class size is often very small.

Bikram Yoga
1635 Connecticut Avenue - in the same building as DCYoga, one floor below. We know already how I feel about these guys. (Another telling detail: they charge the ripoff price of $2 for the all-important water bottle). The hot room is usually quite intense - you're contorting near a bunch of other half-dressed, sweaty people. Instructors bark orders more like aerobics instructors than yogis...it's quite unpleasant. However, they do offer an excellent introductory deal of $20 for unlimited classes for a week. I have to say, if you want a detox week, sign up and do some sweaty yoga for 90 minutes every day. You will feel fabulous at the end of the week. But this is not a studio to stick with, in my opinion.

Flow Yoga
It's right next to the Whole Foods on 15th and P, so you can stop by for a smoothie after your class. This is a new studio - it opened over the summer - but thanks to their location they've already got a lot of students. I haven't taken many classes there yet, but I've liked the teachers I've had there very much. They offer Level 1 and Level 2 vinyasa classes and an Ashtanga class on Mondays; they also offer related classes like bellydancing and African dance (perfect for showing off at the Meridian Hill Park drum circle).

Unity Woods
The DC-area Iyengar studio. They have locations in Arlington, Tenlytown, and Bethesda, among others. I've taken classes at the Arlington studio and liked it; my experience there is the inspiration for all my previous comments about the Iyengar tradition. I quite like the founder's monthly newsletter; he seems like an interesting man.

Georgetown Yoga
Ashtanga studio on 1053 31st st. I've never gone here (location is inconvenient for me) but I've heard very good things about them from my friend Scott. Classes are rigorous and there's also a strong spiritual emphasis. They also have an excellent teacher training program (one weekend a month for a year).

18th and Yoga
Adams Morgan area - I haven't gone here yet! But a friend of a friend, Liz, teaches here, so I'm sure I will check it out soon.

Studio Serenity
Another Adams Morgan area place I intend to check out soon.

Circle Yoga
Upper NW DC; I haven't been here yet.

The National Capital YMCA
I haven't been here, but my friend Mehr writes:
"I've taken beginner and intermediate classes at the National Capital YMCA with Ra; they have multiple instructors. Their beginner classes are free and intermediate classes are for $68 for non-Y members. The Y promotes healing Hatha practice. Classes usually evolve around a theme; e.g. balance, or around strengthening a physical zone. Aside from the general philosophizing that I find annoying on a bad day and amusing on most other days, I think Ra is an excellent instructor and my practice has really evolved with him (I don't think it is a yoga instructor's job to preach; spirtual discovery should be largely left to the student)."

Other gyms
I don't know much about this. If you already have a gym you go to and they offer yoga, there are definitely amazing teachers at gyms - but there are also some shoddy ones. I would say that if you're serious about yoga, it's worth taking a few classes at a top-notch studio as well, just so you have a standard of comparison.

Zoe's living room
The price is right: I'm still training as a teacher, so it's free! I try to make a lovely atmosphere, with incense and candles, and since my classes are small I give a lot of personal attention and assists. But remember what I wrote about the dangers of teaching vinyasa style? I'm new, and no doubt totally suck at a lot of stuff.