Yoga Spirit

Today I visited Yoga Spirit in Burnaby, located near Holdom Skytrain station. It was my last Burnaby stop on the Passport to Prana promotion. I've wanted to always check this place out because the owner is a friend of a friend. I've heard good things, so here's my review!

What: Yoga Spirit

Where: 5681 Goring Street, Burnaby BC

When: May 25, 2010, 6:15pm-7:15pm

Class: Power Core

Teacher: Jes

Drop-In price per class: $16

Comments:

Space:

Located just one block south of Holdom Skytrain station, this space was very easy to get to. When I first walked into the studio, I was a bit surprised at how small it was. You could comfortably fit 10 people and up to 12 or so. It had a cool vibe though. It kinda felt like I was in someone's new apartment. The building did have apartments above it, so I suppose it might have very well been converted from a residential space or something close to that. There was one washroom just outside the main studio that was well kept and clean. It was an apartment-style bathroom complete with a bathtub that was covered up and converted to storage space.

Atmosphere:

Some serious TLC was given to make this place a warm and welcoming space. The front area had a reception desk and some goods for sale, along with cubby holes and props storage shelves. The front wall had a cool lotus decal-style painting and the whole space was adorned with nice ornaments and decorations. There was a great vibe in this space - I just couldn't quite kick the feeling that I was in someone's living room.

Teacher/Class:

I knew Jes from my prenatal yoga teacher training course and I went specifically to check out her class. I was really impressed with her alignment cues and attention to postural adjustments. She definitely had an anusara-inspired flavour. The class was a Power Core class and man, was it challenging! Lots of ashtanga-style poses, which I like, but can aggravate wrist issues for some people. The class definitely lived up to its name! It was a great core workout! She did a good job of incorporating yogic philosophy in her teaching as well. We tried to do a forearm balance as in scorpion with your legs straight up and I ended up falling out of it by rolling forward and almost smacking the person in front of me... eep! It was a bit scary! I'll need a spotter next time, for sure. The hour passed by very quickly and I really enjoyed the feeling I was left with at the end.

Rating: 7/10. A small space, but with great teachers and overall character. The decor was nice and the place had that "homegrown" community vibe that you don't always get with the bigger studios.