Hop on the mat for this 22-minute yoga session designed to help you feel good! Stretch your body, tap into conscious breath, and get your endorphins kicking!

No perfect scenario or pre-requisite is necessary for this session. Meet yourself wherever you are and embrace it!

Looking and feeling our best sometimes requires checking in on our thoughts about how we see ourselves and how we work with our bodies. Experiment with these poses and find what works for you so that you can step into the rest of your day embodying your best self.

Let us know how you are feeling and where you are practicing today in the comment section down below!

Namaste.

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Yoga With Adriene, LLC recommends that you consult your physician regarding the applicability of any recommendations and follow all safety instructions before beginning any exercise program. When participating in any exercise or exercise program, there is the possibility of physical injury. If you engage in this exercise or exercise program, you agree that you do so at your own risk, are voluntarily participating in these activities, assume all risk of injury to yourself.

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Yoga To Feel Your Best | Yoga With Adriene

Britney Spears is going to be doing more "acro yoga" in 2020.

In an Instagram video shared with her followers on Thursday, the "Toxic" artist showed off her yoga moves while wearing tennis shoes and a purple bikini. Her dogs also made a couple of guest appearances.

"Today Im outside, and Im about to do a little bit of yoga to open up my back and my chest, and Im out here with my dogs, and were going to have a beautiful day," Spears said in the video.

The 38-year-old Grammy winning artist wrote in a caption that she planned on doing more acro yoga this year in order to "let go."

Acro yoga is a more acrobatic form of yoga that is generally performed in pairs. One person usually lifts another, either with their legs or arms in different yoga poses.

"Im a beginner and its kind of hard to let go . learning to trust and letting someone else hold your body !!! I have a lot of things I keep bottled up so I have to keep my body moving," Spears captioned her video. "Thank God for Mother Nature . shes really no joke . she grounds me and helps me find my feet and always opens my mind when I step outside."

More: Britney Spears makes upside down look effortless in gravity-defying gymnastics videos

More: 'Just keep it to yourself': Britney Spears slams trolls who say 'the meanest things'

She added that she was grateful for the beautiful weather and noted that she was also running to gain more speed.

"I just flew in from a trip with my family and I ran a 6.8 speed outside my house for a 100 meter yard dash ... I did 6 in high school so Im trying to gain speed," Spears wrote.

She continued: "I hurt my thigh so I apologize if my legs look swollen . I hope you all have a wonderful new year and GOD SPEED !!!!!"

Last month, Spears addressed her followers in an Instagram video saying that it's hard to share things with her fans because of trolls.

"Happy holidays friends !!!! I love sharing with you all ... but its been hard to keep wanting to share because people say the meanest things !!! If you dont like a post ... just keep it to yourself and unfollow that person !!!" she captioned the video.

She continued, adding crying emojis, "Theres no reason to ever go out of your way to make mean comments and bully people. Stay happy and nice this holiday season yall and God Bless !!!!!"

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Britney Spears shares her 2020 goals: 'I will be doing a lot more acro yoga' - USA TODAY

The new year for many means new fitness resolutions. Runners and walkers alike will crowd the trails from Crissy Field and the Marina Green to deep inside the Presidio. But for those who arent runners or hard-core gym-goers, there is an alternative activity that can bring many of the same effects of more intense exercise to muscles, and even better, to the mind: yoga. Its many benefits have been documented by both the fitness and medical community for years. Yoga can increase flexibility, build strength, up lung capacity, and offer relief from stress and anxiety. And one of the best things about this ancient practice is that anyone can take yoga classes; many studios offer classes geared to beginners, and any yoga pose, or asana, can be modified to accommodate anything from creaky joints to minor injuries. For those who want a stronger workout, practices such as vinyasa, power yoga, and hot yoga ramp up the action.

Cow Hollow and the Marina are home to myriad yoga studios. They offer many different styles of yoga, but most focus on vinyasa yoga, which involves moving from one pose to another in whats called a flow, where practitioners rarely stop moving. Breath, alignment, and staying present are key tenants of vinyasa and most other forms of yoga. So-called hot yoga involves taking a class in a studio heated to 8590 degrees, which loosens tightness and purportedly releases toxins. Experts differ on the actual benefits of hot yoga versus regular yoga classes, but theres no denying that a heated studio on a chilly winter day feels pretty darn good.

Yoga Flow is a family-operated, community-based chain of three studios with one located on Union Street. It offers beginner yoga classes every day. The majority of its classes are heated, vigorous, and fast paced with modifications for both beginners and advanced practitioners. The goal is to offer physically challenging full-body workouts as well as a moving meditation. Yoga Flow teachers move students through a series of postures at a rapid rate in addition to holding poses to build strength and flexibility (Yoga Flow, 1892 Union Street, 415-440-9642, yogaflowsf.com).

The Pad on Union Street offers challenging power vinyasa yoga classes in a room heated to 85 degrees, and private and group Pilates reformer classes set to upbeat contemporary music. The Pilates reformer machine has a bed-like frame with a flat platform that rolls back and forth on wheels within the frame. This carriage is attached to one end of the reformer by a set of springs. These springs along with a set of adjustable straps with handles provide different levels of resistance during a series of exercises designed to work every muscle in the body.

In addition to vinyasa and Pilates, The Pad has other classes like Align and Flow, an all-level vinyasa class that emphasizes proper alignment and activation in yoga poses. This class is geared toward newer yoga students or those preferring a flow class at a slower pace.

The Pad also offers hatha yoga classes, which teach proper alignment with a strong focus on binding breath and movement. Hatha yoga is based on classic, ancient yoga practices and offers instruction in practice with emphasis on yoga philosophy and meditation techniques.

Both the Align and Flow and hatha yoga classes are taught in studios heated to 85 degrees. Other classes at The Pad include prenatal yoga, postnatal yoga, with babies, hot Pilates, and private yoga instruction (The Pad, 1694 Union Street, 415-929-1690, thepadstudios.com).

Body Temp Yoga and Movement Studios on Chestnut Street is a combination of a hot yoga studio and gym, with two locations directly across the street from one another. It offers classes in Bikram yoga, hot sculpt yoga with weights, hot and regular vinyasa, candlelight vinyasa, hot Pilates, and several other stretching and strengthening classes. Body Temp heats its studios with infrared heat that is purportedly better for promoting healthier skin and is environmentally friendly. Bikram yoga is a proprietary system of hot yoga classes consisting of a fixed sequence of 26 postures practiced in a room heated to 105 degrees. Extra-hot Bikram classes are taught at 110 degrees and followed by a cooldown (Body Temp Yoga, 2425 Chestnut Street, 415-922-1958, bodytempyoga.com).

Other nearby yoga studios include Karma Yoga on Union Street and Core Power Yoga in various locations including Lombard Street. If all this fiery yoga sounds too hot to handle, the city is literally bursting with yoga studios that offer all styles of the practice in cooler spaces. Always get your physicians take on any new workout, but the good news about yoga is that there is a practice for everyone, and its a positive start to a brand-new year.

E-mail: julie@marinatimes.com

More:
Flow into the new year with yoga - Marinatimes

Theres a revolution in America, one thats been steadily growing for years. This revolution is driven by consumers who are taking charge of their health and well-being. They want to stay healthy and functioning for as long as possible, rather than relying on after-the-fact healthcare. These consumers include a growing number of aging baby boomers looking for self-care tools to enhance and expand their wellness.

Yoga is perfect for this wellness revolution. Here are some reasons why.

Move it or lose it. The number one reason people get stiffer as they get older is because they stop moving. Our bodies were made for moving. Watch children for any length of time and you see they rarely sit still. As kids get older, theyre told to sit down and sit still. Eventually, we lose the playfulness that young children have. We become adults and sit at our desks, sit on the couch, sit in the car. A sedentary lifestyle stiffens our joints and weakens our muscles.

Theres a naturally occurring fluid, called synovial, between our joints that helps keep us mobile. The more we move, the more fluid is created. Think of a car. You would never skip putting oil in your cars engine; it would freeze up. We cant inject oil between our joints but we can keep them lubricated by moving consistently and systematically, such as through a yoga practice.

Keep your balance in life. Keeping our balance can be taken literally or metaphorically. People of all ages can have poor balance. Sometimes theres a physical reason but sometimes its just a matter of being out of practice. And the older we get, the more important balance is. How many times have we heard, or voiced it ourselves, the fear of falling and ending up in a nursing home? Yoga poses are perfect to help you improve your balance and you dont need to stand on one foot to do it.

Yoga helps us keep our balance metaphorically, too. Yogas emphasis on mindfulness, of staying in the moment, teaches us to take a step back in stressful situations or during a conflict with another person. By learning to stay present, we develop the composure and self-control we need to handle our stress without a knee-jerk reaction.

Community of like-minded people. Its easy to make excuses not to continue a yoga practice at home. Piles of laundry, errands and kids call us away from our mat. Or you may not even know where to start. Thats the beauty of going to a studio. You dont have to figure it out on your own. Theres someone there to guide you through the practice. Plus theres a group energy that cant be found watching a video, no matter how friendly and upbeat the instructor is.

Builds strength. The average American has muscles that are too tight or inflexible, areas of the body that are weak or misaligned, and an overall lack of body awareness. Yoga is a great antidote for these issues but they dont get resolved in one, two or even three classes.

Is this the year you decided you needed to take control of your health, find a way to de-stress or find balance in your life?

Yoga can be a key piece of your personal wellness plan.

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Joining the yoga revolution - AdVantageNEWS.com

Anyone who has practiced yoga can tell you the benefits it has on their body and mind. But there hasn't been a whole lot of scientific data to prove just how much of an impact it can have.

University of Illinois professor Neha Gothe hopes to change that.

Her research team just published a review of a number of studies that looked at brain activity as it relates to yoga exercises, published in the journal Brain Plasticity. The review confirmed what we already thought we knew: That practicing yoga indeed does have an impact on brain function.

"It's called systematic review," Gothe says. "The purpose is to really synthesize systematically what we know. And then where do we go, how do we move forward?"

Of the 11 studies the review focused on, many looked at the difference in brain activity between those who practiced yoga regularly and others who didn't. Some of the studies would engage participants who had no yoga activity and put them on a yoga regimen for a number of weeks.

"Now we have some studies that show where and how," Gothe says. "We identified some specific area, like the hippocampus. It's the first structure affected by Alzheimers and dementia as you age. It's a key area for memory processing. People who practiced yoga had a larger hippocampus."

Gothe worked in tandem with her team of graduate students as well as colleagues at Wayne State University.

She said the results were not unexpected, but that there is still more research to do. But it might be done best through scientific method as well as just talking to participants.

"A lot of it is through science for sure," Gothe says. "Anecdotally, anyone you talk to will tell you it helps them. The instructors, even though they are not scientists, can tell how different poses will help. But there definitely needs to be more science to back it up. The more research that gets out through popular media and other channels, that is really key to get people hooked on to it."

The studies they looked at ranged from 10 weeks to six months. Some asked participants to practice yoga for different amounts of time.

So, how much yoga do you really need to do in order to have a benefit on your brain?

"We don't know what the dose of yoga should be," she says. "Should I do it once a week, is that enough? Should I do it daily, for six months?"

All that science is nice, but Gothe says sometimes it's good to just talk to people who are practicing.

"We researchers tend to have very specific measures, but it's nice to get participants and hear what they like and don't like," she says. "I sometimes think I learn more just talking to people taking a yoga class. It's always good to see those perceptions."

Gothe, who serves on the U of I Athletic Board, even got the athletics department involved. She started a yoga program for the men's gymnastics team. The 12-week, hatha-based program already produced favorable results.

"We found that this season they had fewer injuries," she says. "They reported lower college-life stress. We are in the process of analyzing and publishing this data. It should be published sometime in the next few months.

As more research is done on the topic, we will hopefully be able to quantify something that most people who practice already know: Yoga is good for you, even if you can't exactly say how good.

See the rest here:
Illinois research investigates the science of yoga: BTN LiveBIG - Big Ten Network

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) Suffering a traumatic brain injury can be debilitating, leading to a wide variety of health issues. Our Avery Powell looks at a yoga program in our area that's working to help people heal.

"I don't care if you're laying in bed. There's yoga for you," Pete Daigle said.

Daigle suffered a severe traumatic brain injury years ago leading to a coma, weight loss and even paralyzation.

Through his healing, he discovered LoveYourBrain Yoga.

"We do a lot of modifications to support with improving balance, the pace of our classes is slow and consistent to prevent people from feeling confused or experiencing challenges following the instructions," said Kyla Pearce, the senior director of the LoveYourBrain Yoga program.

It's an evidence-based six-week series for people who have suffered traumatic brain injuries.

The LoveYourBrain Foundation was started by Pearce's husband, Adam, and his brother, former Olympic snowboarder Kevin Pearce, after Kevin's severe brain injury while training for the 2010 Olympics.

A study last year through the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and Dartmouth College found the program shows positive results.

"People are experiencing higher quality of life, more positivity, greater resilience, so greater ability to adapt to adversity and improvements in their cognition," Kyla Pearce said.

Daigle has seen those results at the classes taught at Sangha Studio in Burlington, the first studio to do LoveYourBrain Yoga.

"When you have a brain injury, certain things don't work a certain way. People say, 'Well, I can't do what she's doing.' Well, it's not about what another person's doing. It's about doing what works for you," Daigle said.

"I think it's just a part of what we wanted yoga to be. We wanted it to be a place where everybody wanted community and connected to one another," said Abi Maviricke of Sangha Studio.

The program is free and the next six-week series at Sangha studios starts Jan. 8. Mighty Yoga in New Hampshire is also hosting LoveYourBrain starting Jan. 20.

View original post here:
Yoga program aims to help people love their brains - WCAX

HERE

Deals for new skiers and snowboarders

Want to learn to ski or snowboard? Consider taking an adult clinic at Pats Peak in New Hampshire and get a lesson, half-day lift ticket, and lunch for less than the cost of a regular half-day lift ticket. The Weekday Adult Ski/Snowboard Clinics run Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday mornings (with a few holiday exclusions) through the end of the season. Clinics cost $40 per day for a one-time pass to $300 for a 10-clinic package. Or sign up for Passport Program PLUS, a weekend program that includes four beginner lessons, lift ticket, and rental packages. After finishing the program, you get a free Pats Peak Unlimited Season Pass, a free pair of Elan skis and bindings (limited quantities available), and discounts at ski shops in Concord, Salem, Nashua, and Manchester, N.H., and at The Ski House in Somerset, Mass. The prepaid program costs $389, for 18 and older. 888-728-7732, http://www.patspeak.com.

Bostons annual Celtic festival

Celtic musicians, singers, and dancers from around the world gather in Cambridge Jan. 16-19 for the 17th annual Boston Celtic Music Festival, known as BCMFest. The event includes more than 60 performances at Club Passim, The Sinclair, and The Atrium in Harvard Square, showcasing artists from Irish, Scottish, Cape Breton, and other Celtic communities. Enjoy performances by renowned Cape Breton fiddling duo Mary Jane Lamond and Wendy MacIsaac, Irish step dancer Kevin Doyle (a US step dancing champion), and dozens of local dancers and musicians. Dont miss the Boston Urban Ceilidh Jan. 17, a Celtic dance party with live music at The Atrium, and Dayfest, which features more than 12 hours of Celtic music Jan. 18 at Club Passim and The Sinclair. Tickets range from free to $25, depending on event. Two workshops on Cape Breton music and dancing take place Jan. 19 at The Passim School of Music ($45 per person). 617-492-7679, http://www.passim.org/bcmfest.

Reel fun in Belmont

Bring your kids to Belmont World Films 17th Annual Family Festival and enjoy animation workshops and more than 35 films from around the world. This years festival, themed Where Stories Come Alive, features live action, animated, and documentary films geared to children 2 to 12. It begins Jan. 17 at Belmonts Regent Theatre with the East Coast premiere of Hacker, a Danish film about a boy whose mother, a scientist, disappears under mysterious circumstances and that ends happily. Subsequent days focus on different themes: the animal kingdom (Jan. 18), short films (Jan. 19), and the ideals and values of Martin Luther King Jr. (Jan. 20). Also attend The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show Storytime with storytelling and an audience participation puppet show, and talks and workshops with writer/director Cinzia Angelini, the head story artist for Abominable. Tickets: $6 (shorts) to $20 (workshops); $50 festival pass includes all programs except workshops. 617-484-3980, http://www.belmontworldfilm.org.

THERE

Tis the season for Drunk Yoga

Two people walk into a bar and their discussion over a glass of wine leads to the founding of Drunk Yoga, a program that encourages people to try something new without feeling intimidated. Eli Walker, the founder of Drunk Yoga and a certified astrologer, isnt a proponent of getting drunk though youre welcome to enjoy a complimentary wine, beer, or mimosa in her yoga classes but its about getting drunk, in a sense, on the good feelings of connecting with others, celebrating community, and trying something new with supportive strangers. Walker has teamed up with CheapCaribbean to offer a three-day New Year, Do You Retreat in Cancun, Feb. 20-23, which focuses on self-care, mental wellness, and beachside fun. It includes Drunk Yoga classes (with cocktails, coffee, or water in hand), one-on-one birth chart readings, sunrise (sober) beach yoga, Walkers character-development workshops, and a copy of Walkers book, Drunk Yoga: 50 Wine and Yoga Poses to Lift Your Spirit(s). Cost: $1,299 per person, includes roundtrip flight from Boston, three nights at Haven Riviera Cancun Resort and Spa, and the above activities. http://www.tiny.cc/3ul2hz.

New hotel within Austin city limits

Austins newest hotel has a state-of-the-art gym overlooking Lady Bird Lake, an in-house yoga studio, and a welcoming dcor thats influenced by the areas historic craftsman-style homes and art nouveau flair. Austin Proper Hotel, the areas first LEED Gold-certified hotel, offers 244 rooms and suites that come with Nespresso machines and Apple TVs. Borrow an electric bike to cruise around town or have a Peloton bike sent up to your room for a private workout; the hotels full-service spa and swimming pool with private cabanas open this spring. The property has a Mediterranean grill with Israeli- and Turkish-inspired fare and an elegant sunken bar with signature cocktails. A coffee shop and caf with take-out options opens soon. Rates start at $350 per night, double occupancy. 888-333-0546, http://www.properhotel.com.

EVERYWHERE

An insulated chair for travelers

Keep warm on your winter adventures with Helinoxs portable Chair One and Seat Warmer. Chair One has rugged aluminum poles with internal bungee cords that make setup and breakdown a breeze they spring into place during setup and easily come apart for packing and a durable canvas material that quickly attaches to the frame. Slip Helinoxs new Seat Warmer, made of synthetic down, over the chair for extra warmth on colder days; cinch the cover in place using the drawstring cord so it doesnt shift around when you do. The low-riding chair packs down to the size of a loaf of bread and comes with a handy zippered travel bag so you can stuff it in the corner of your car or backpack. It weighs less than a pound and supports up to 320 pounds. $100 chair, $70 seat warmer. 877-267-2882, http://www.helinox.com.

KARI BODNARCHUK

Kari Bodnarchuk can be reached at travelwriter@karib.us.

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Celtic music, drunk yoga, and a new hotel that brings a Peloton to your door - The Boston Globe

indica News Bureau-

In an attempt to test the effectiveness of yoga as an intervention for treating many diseases, Indian-American cardiologist Indranill Basu Ray, will present a new method at the upcoming Indian Science Congress (ISC) in Bengaluru. His new protocol will be presented at the 107th ISC which is being held from January 3 to 7.

The cardiac-electro-physiologist at the Veterans Hospital in Memphis, US, said that as the RTC (Randomized Control Trials) was not proving to be very useful in testing the effectiveness of yoga, new scientific methods need to be devised, Hindustan Times reported.

Despite understanding the molecular mechanism, large trials of yoga using the standard protocol called RCT (Randomised Control Trials) has not shown as much promise as expected, said Ray, adding, We proved tobacco was toxic not by doing clinical trials, but by following people who smoke and showing they develop a particular type of lung cancer it would have been almost impossible to prove this using an RCT other than being phenomenally costly, he said.

Ray said, same is true for yoga, as a person who has a disease like hypertension that is due to chronic adaptation to stress, may be treated with a yoga protocol to eliminate the disease.

The Kolkata-born cardiologist proposed that with advanced molecular biology available wearable devices, the adaptive stress-response can be measured with yoga by monitoring hormone levels, a well-established biomarker of stress.

He added that the same may also be done through complementary physiological signals such as electro-dermal activity and heart rate variability, proxies for the arousal of the sympathetic nervous system.

It is the chronic arousal of this system due to adaptation to chronic stress that causes hypertension, he said.

Continued here:
Indian-American cardiologist proposes new protocol to test effectiveness of yoga - indica News

Dallas weekends are packed full of events, but how many of them are truly worthy of your time?PaperCitys newevents calendaroffers a curated look at all of the best things to do in North Texas. But everyone can still use an expert.

PaperCitys Weekend Expert Megan Ziots culls our calendar for your must dos in this regular weekly series.

NYCs Original Drunk Yoga class debuts at Virgin Hotels Dallas this weekend. Founder Eli Walker is coming in town to teach special classes from this Friday, January 3 through Sunday, January 5 at the brand new Design District hotel. A twist on a vinyasa yoga class mixed with happy hour, classes are always held in non-traditional venues like at bars, on rooftops, or yachts.

At Virgin, a 15 minute happy hour will kick off festivities with wine and mingling. Your teacher will then begin a 45 minute beginner yoga class with wine in-hand. Then, a 30 minute wine-down will conclude the event. The $45 tickets include the yoga class and two glasses of wine. Students must bring their own mat.

Go to the fullPaperCityevents calendar listing.

The giant pyramid that was recently built just outside of Globe Life Park is now open for virtual reality showings. PY1 popped up on New Years Eve and will be open until February 1. With Dallas (or Arlington), its first stop in the United States, PY1 is offering two shows:Through the EchoesandStella The Time Machine Journey.

On Saturday nights, the pyramid will become a club-like nightlife venue and party for those 21 and up.Through the Echoesis a multimedia show that takes visitors on a virtual reality odyssey through space and time, whileStellais a new participatory show that encourages kids and families to move and dance together. Tickets start at $23.5o.

Go to the fullPaperCityevents calendar listing.

Head over to the Farmers Market this Friday for a Drink Dash. In celebration of the New Year, purchase a $10 ticket for 11 drink fills at participating locations and a souvenir glass. From mulled ale to wine, The Market shops will be open for an evening (6 pm to 8 pm) of strolling, shopping and eating. Merchants include The 2nd Tap, American Butchers, Beyond the Butchers, Cajun Tailgators Cafes, Rexs Seafood and Market, Charming @ The Market, Simply Irresistible, Market Provisions, Lone Chimney Mercantile, Scardello Artisan Cheese and Doc Popcorn.

If you sample at least five drinks, you can guess the number of black eyed peas in a jar for a chance to win a prize.

Go to the fullPaperCityevents calendar listing.

Comedian Taylor Tomlinson is coming by Addison Improv for the second year in a row to do a weekend of shows. Having recently filmed her first stand-up special for Netflix, Tomlinson is on a roll as one of the countrys youngest and most successful touring comedian headliners. Shes also appeared onConan,The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, and The Comedy Lineup.

Tomlinson is sort of a millennial comedian for the non-millennials. Her comedy is a mix of self-deprecation and jokes about being in her twenties, as well as others in the millennial generation. Tomlinsons putting on six shows this weekend through Sunday, January 5. Tickets start at $20.

Go to the fullPaperCityevents calendar listing.

See Just Mercy early at a special private screening at the new Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum this Sunday, January 5. Based off the true story of human rights activist Bryan Stevenson (Michael B. Jordan) as he takes on the case of Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx), Just Mercyis a must-see film.

This special fundraiser screening will begin at 5 pm with a reception and follow with the screening at 6 pm. Tickets are $100 each and will 100 percent benefit the Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museums Museum Experience Fund, which provides free transportation, admission and curriculum support to students from Title I schools.

Go to the fullPaperCityevents calendar listing.

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Drunk Yoga, Pyramid Wonders and a Young Star Comic the Best Things to do in Dallas - PaperCity Magazine

With all the Christmas drama-la-la-la-la-la-la over, we decided to give our bodies a good, om-azing stretch at a chill yoga studio.

By Stacey Makiya and Katrina Valcourt | VISUALS BY KATIE KENNY

Published: 2019.12.30 06:00 PM

Editors Note: Stacey and Katrina are at vastly different fitness levels (and ages) but both enjoy working out. We thought itd be fun for the two of them to try new or interesting workouts together each month. This time they took the Flow 75 class from The Yoga Room Hawaii.

The Yoga Room Hawaii offers a variety of invigorating yoga-and-Pilates-focused classes that stretch the mind, body and soul. The heated studio offers hot Hatha, Pilates and sculpt workouts in 90-to-95-degree temps. The chill studio, located across the parking lot from the heated one, holds vinyasa, restore and Shakti (yoga, dance and functional fitness) sessions in a nonheated studio. We took the Flow 75 vinyasa class, a 75-minute class that concentrates on breath and posture, ending in meditation.

Katrina: I finally recovered emotionally frommy last yoga class. And this one is open to all levels (read: newbies), so I knew Id be OK. I brought a towel this time to keep the sweat out of my eyes and off my palms. Plus, I know what a tree pose is now. Bring it on.

Stacey: I needed a chill class. Shopping, soires and story deadlines were making me bah humbug. And all of the delish cookies, cakes and charcuterie snackies I inhaled in the last couple of weeks were putting me on the naughty list. So, yoga sounded very merry.

The chill studio is a bit smaller than most yoga studios, but the class we attended had about 10 people, so there was plenty of room to make house and s-t-r-e-t-c-h. Of course, it being a flow vinyasa class, the people were very Zen, including our instructor, Rian Mokiao-Lee.

Foam blocks (used as support or to enhance the workout) are available. Its $2 to rent a mat.

SEE ALSO:We Tried Bouldering at The Arch Project Climbing Center

Stacey: My position on warming up in a yoga class is indifferent. To me, a yoga class, especially a noncardio one, is just one long warmup. We started off with childs pose. Katrina, howd you feel?

Katrina: Like an idiot. Right off the bat, Rian pointed out that my mat was upside down and flipped it over. Aaaaand then my foot cramped. But after that, the first few poses helped me get into the zone and work on my breathing. Im a shallow breather, which is probably why I hate endurance movesits not that my muscles hurt or Im tired, I just get out of breath quickly and want to stop.

SEE ALSO:How Do You Do Yoga on a Horse? We Found Out at Turtle Bay Resort

Stacey: After stretching our inner thighs and backs with childs pose, we jumped into one of my favorite moves: the bird dog. You start on your hands and knees, then extend one leg and the opposite arm at the same time. Then, you pull in that arm and leg in a crunchlike move.

Next, we threaded the needle, another favorite stretch of mine. Check out the video of Katrina doing it! GET IT GIRL. This move is supposed to relieve any tension or stiffness in your shoulders, neck or back. If youre a desk sitter and stare at the computer all day, this is a great, easy stretch.

Katrina: Easy is not the word I would use. Everything looked and felt wrong since its not a natural position, leaning on your head with your butt up in the air, but the longer I held it, the deeper I sunk into it.

Rian helped me get into position a few times and showed me where to put the foam blocks to make certain moves easier. He adjusted my downward dog early on so I knew how it was supposed to feel when we did it again. And again. And again. (It took me a few cycles of upward-to-downward before I realized thats what svanasana meant.) It wasnt hard but my sweaty feet kept slipping off the mat. I never know if Im supposed to be up on my tippy toes or down flat. Maybe I need two towels. And a fundamentals course.

Stacey: I was sweating! I thought chill studio meant it was an air-conditioned room (it is not), so I wore a long-sleeve top. And, since it was a flow class, there are no breaks. You go with the flow and jump from one pose to the next. On one hand Im glad I was feeling the burn; on the other, I wanted to hang loose.

Katrina: There was no slowing down. Things just kept getting more twistedliterally. I had a hard time going into Figure 4, balancing on my right foot with my left ankle crossing my right thigh. I broke the pose a couple of times as I tried to bend my right knee and lower myself into a sitting position. I seemed to be the only person shaking. Crossing my right leg over the left was easier, but then I was supposed to rest my right elbow in the arch of my foot and look up toward the ceiling. How is that possible?!

Stacey: My booty got off the ground when trying the bridge pose. Thats some heavy lifting, so I was proud! Rian tried to come and help me lift my body higher, but I was cracking up and (ungracefully) fell to the ground. He tried to be calm and not laugh, but he let out a small giggle.

Katrina: Toward the end, my glasses fogged up and I felt sweat dripping down my face like a teardrop. When we were supposed to take three more breaths, I took like nine. I couldnt do the move where you crouch like a frog, put your knees against your forearms and lift your feet off the ground. I just looked at Stacey and laughed. So much for all levels. Neither of us attempted a headstand.

Stacey: Yeah, HARD NO for the headstand. But major props to the women and men who made it look like cake.

Stacey: We ended with a three-minute shavasana. If youve ever been to a yoga class, you know this is the icing on the cake. This is the feeling when you bought your last Christmas gift. This is the moment when everything is calm and jus riiite. All you do is lie down, face up, hands by your side, close your eyes and not think about ANY. THING. Ahhhhhh.

Katrina: Lying on my back isnt relaxing to me. I tried not to think about anything but since I wasnt comfortable, I was very aware of my position, and the fact that Id have to get up in a few minutes, so better not get too comfortable. But I did like the final stretches. When breathing in, I could feel my spine lengthening; breathing out, I folded my body even lower. I was definitely more flexible than when class started.

Stacey: Sooo-ul good. However, within the next couple of days, my right shoulder started aching. I may have bent the rules and tried to do more than what my body is used to. It still hurts. With that said, I still want to try the sculpt, restore and Shakti classes. The heated and nonheated options are super appealing, and theres no mad rush to snag a spot in a sardine-packed studio. Plus, the staff and instructors are flexible (pun intended) with your yogi level and will help you find a class that works with your lifestyle and health goals.

Katrina: I like the idea that yoga contributes to my overall well-being and helps fix my terrible posture, but it doesnt even register as a workout on myFitbit. To me, yoga is what you do after working out. However, this studio is wayyyyy less intimidating than CorePower, and I love that the class was small, so if youre a beginner, I recommend it.

Membership fees start at $69 and go up to $220 for a 10-class pack option. Drop-in fee for one class is $27.

Heated studio: 1120 12th Ave., Second Floor; Chill studio: 1152 Kokohead Ave., (808) 888-7588, theyogaroomhawaii.com

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We Tried to Bend It Like Bikram at The Yoga Room Hawai'i's Vinyasa Class - HONOLULU Magazine