Tower Yoga is about balance, flexibility, and community

To make sure I was thoroughly vetting this place for you, the FresYes reader, I recently attended three different types of classes with three separate instructors. I did a slow class with Jameson, then a Buti Yoga class with Jazmen Moore, then a 5:30 a.m. Sunrise Hot Yoga with Kellee.

 

The class with Jameson was interesting because my lower back was really sore and tight when I showed up. I was considering backing out because of it. But when I walked in, Jameson said, “We’re going to do a relaxing gentle yoga today to loosen our back muscles.” So, since he could apparently read my mind, I stayed and took the class. And it felt wonderful. Afterward, Jameson and I headed across Wishon to Hi-Top Coffee for coffee and avocado toast and to talk about the studio.

 

The second class was really fun, although I’m pretty sure I’m not its target audience. If there had been a camera on me, it would’ve scored a huge number of views for my comedic performance. This was the Buti Yoga class, which is a very rhythmic, gyrate-your-hips-a-lot tribal dance and yoga combo class. I estimate that I smiled 80% of the time and only grimaced about 20%. My daughter-in-law Amanda really enjoys this class and it cracked her up just to know I tried it.

 

The third class is really the standard for this studio—hot yoga. According to an “ask the expert” article in the New York Times, hot yoga increases flexibility, you can bend much deeper, and you are much more aware of your breathing. Research says it improves balance, body strength, and range of motion, and might even improve arterial stiffness. Kellee, the instructor for this class, was also a great teacher.  

 

So what makes this yoga studio special? I really like any business or place that really embraces its community, and you can really feel the earnest love for building community when you walk in the door. The staff is very diverse and the community of students and practitioners was very diverse. This is important for something like yoga, which really had no commercial goal initially but has morphed into almost a country club atmosphere in many places, especially in the major metro cities. Tower Yoga feels like a place for young, old, rich, poor, expert or beginner.

 

 

The best way to connect with Tower Yoga is through their app, which is available for iOS devices. It has their most up-to-date class schedule and you can sign up here. They also have a website and are on social media. Tower Yoga offers one week for free, so that you can give it a try. They also have community classes which are very inexpensive, in order to make sure this practice is available to everyone.

 

As for the physical space itself, it is still being built out but everything that’s been done so far looks great, very sleek and clean. They have bathrooms with showers in case you need to clean up before heading to work. Get there early for your first class to sign in and find the parking lot. The entrance is from the back, so it may be a little confusing the first time, but after that it’s really easy.

 

I plan on continuing. I’m only 57 but I know I need to be much more flexible and I want to keep my balance over the next part of life. Plus, it’s really fun even though it doesn’t come naturally to me. Give these folks a try. I love what they’re doing and they deserve our support and good wishes for their new business.