Semperviva Kits Beach

After touring the growing YYoga chain, I turned my attention to Vancouver's other yoga chain, Semperviva. Semperviva's studios are located on the west side of Vancouver (Kitsilano) and are all quite different. They offer a mix of hatha, vinyasa, yin, kundalini and pre/post natal classes. The Kits Beach location is a newer location and sports a very large yoga space. Here are my thoughts...

What: Semperviva Kits Beach

Where: #110-2201 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver, BC

When: May 14, 2010, 10:30am-11:45am

Class: Vinyasa Power Flow

Teacher: Charlie

Drop-In price per class: $18

Comments:

Space:

Very nice front entrance lobby area with clothes, books, jewelery, mats, etc, for sale. A good place to hang out before class. The yoga studio space was HUGE. Converted from an outdoor sports store, this is one of the biggest yoga studios I've ever seen. The thing that I didn't like was that the washrooms were in the yoga studio and you couldn't use them before class. In other words, if you were outside and a class was going on, there were no washrooms. There was only one toilet for men's and two for women's. There was no water fountain outside the studio either. Also, there was only one communal changing area with cubbies and no lockers. The changing spaces had simple drapes that didn't really make things the most private. With all the challenging power classes they offer, you'd think they would have better freshening up facilities.

Atmosphere:

The yoga studio was very white and lacked in ambiance. No particular attention to the decor was given. The cork floors were alright, but still kind of had that "shop floor" vibe vs. yoga studio. There was a stage for the instructor, which I am never super fond of, but with a studio that size, I suppose it does serve a purpose. I was in the back of the room and with the side door slightly ajar I could hear lots of street noise and people talking as they walked up towards busy West 4th Ave. I really wished that this space was a little warmer. The front entrance really had a lively, friendly vibe that could have been carried into the main studio space.

Teacher/Class:

Charlie was a cool guy. He led us through some interesting hand stretches and warm-ups at the beginning of class. This power vinyasa flow was seriously powerful. I sweated a lot! We attempted some crazy arm balances again and spent a lot of time on our wrists. He made us hold our standing warrior poses for a long time, which really got the sweat flowing. This was an advanced class, for sure. I would have appreciated maybe some modifications. I'm finding that a lot of teachers are forgetting to teach to the beginner levels and include all levels in their classes, regardless of whether or not it is called "power". He did a lot of hands-on modifications, which were appropriate and useful. The class was a lot of fun and his attitude was very personal. I liked the reggae music he played too!

Rating: 7/10. I really liked the space and location, but the changing/washing up facilities need to be expanded and it was annoying to not be able to use the washroom before class. Semperviva has a good thing going on, but the ambiance was lacking.