My Jersey Yoga Journey
As I travel across country and eventually internationally I am excited to check out every yoga studio I have time to practice at. My first stop was Montville NJ where I grew up. I was amazed to see how many yoga studios have popped up over the past decade. All the below studios are within 10 miles of Montville, so if you live nearby and yoga is a part of your life, here is my take on each studio.
To start – I LOVE a fast paced (preferable non-heated) flow practice with great music that you simply lose yourself in. As I did not experience that style of yoga here that does not mean that it is not there. Each studio was fantastic, the staff accommodating, kind and intelligent. I can honestly say that in California yoga instructors at times act like divas and are very unapproachable, so this was a refreshing change. One note that I think is important to point out, as many of us are working with limited time, no one, and I mean no one fit their class within the timeframe. Everyone went over between 5, 10 or even 15 minutes!
Rock River Yoga - Boonton NJ - All Levels Vinyasa Teacher: Michele Vakili http://www.rockriveryoga.com/
Located on booming main street in Boonton, a very artsy street, full of international food venues, art galleries and shops, my high school alum Kenneth Mather opened this studio at the top of main street. I am incredibly proud of him & his wife. The studio is gorgeous and Ken is accommodating, kind and a true yoga enthusiast. I took a vinyasa class taught by Michele Vakili who was informative and clearly knew her shit. This is a perfect class for beginners or advanced as Michele gave numerous options to push yourself. With her endless cuing a person taking yoga for the very first time could follow this class and not be confused. Her class was challenging and interesting. For me, I would have preferred something a bit more fast paced which I stated above so I won’t belabor you with it again. One of the impressive qualities of this studio is that they have a kid’s yoga camp all summer. This really shows that Ken & his wife incorporate yoga as a way of life including extending that to their own children. I am a huge advocate of children’s yoga and plan on adding a 100-hour segment dedicated to teaching children’s yoga as I move toward my 500-hour certification. I was so happy to finally take a class there and wish them huge success – so please go take a class there! They have special classes on Friday nights which you can follow up with an art walk down main street and drinks plus music at Maxwells. Hoping to teach a special California style flow class there next summer - so stay tuned Montville Alums!
Nirvana Yoga - Montville NJ - Hot Nirvana Vinyasa Flow Teacher: Erin Moore http://www.nirvanawellnessnj.com/
This studio has two locations, one in Montville and one in Wayne. There is literally a ton of classes at all times to fit with your schedule. This class was by far the most challenging that I took. It was taught by Erin Moore and was heated. I was dripping in sweat when I walked out. Poses were held for a long time pushing your limits and transitions were different then I was used to. I feel that even someone fairly new to yoga could take this class as many options were thrown out for various levels. They did not have a 5-minute late policy and someone loudly came into the class at least 10 minutes into our seated meditation, which I found rude and disruptive. He didn’t even try to be quiet. I later watched as he was shaking in poses which clearly shows no matter how fit you are yoga takes you to a different level. Putting all that aside, this class was great and all my back pain was gone when I left. It was also very spiritual as we all ohmmed together at the end. The vibrations of a group of people coming together in an ohm is a powerful uplifting way to start your day. The Montville location has a tea lounge, full locker and showers plus many other treatments besides yoga.
NOTE* I quickly left the class as loud late guy was right next to me WHO I did not want to start a conversation with. As I walk outside, I noticed some form of red sports car parked illegally and shake my head. Who do you think that car belonged to? Oh yes, it gets better – as I open up my mom’s Honda Accord and get in, out walks “loud late guy” proceeding to his car. He actually takes off his shirt prior to getting in! Yes – I know I am looking, therefor feeding into his whole game but seriously?? Little does he know I am blogging about him! If he did his ego would swell…well no idea who he is or his name – so “loud late guy” it is – so Jersey!
Prana Yoga Center - Denville, NJ - Open level Vinyasa Teacher: Angel Nieves http://www.pranayogadenville.com/
To start – downtown Denville is a really a cute town and Prana is right next to a massage / wellness center. They also have a lot of yummy healthy food venues. I could spend a day there doing yoga, having a massage, eating healthy and shopping. The owner’s sister was so sweet and answered all of my questions, even where to park my car and not get a ticket. My class was open level vinyasa taught by Angel Nieves. You can follow him on facebook https://www.facebook.com/dancenloki/. This class was filled with yoga teachers and clearly yogis that follow Angel. He started the class going around and asking everyone about their weekend (it was Monday morning). You literally could not, not love him at first sight. He laughed, cursed and made everyone comfortable. He was completely professional and made sure he knew everyone’s injuries. It was NOT a flow class although he had an agenda. We went through a series of poses to get us warmed up and prepped for a final more complicated arm balance. It was what I like to call the circus act of yoga, full of crazy arm balances and inversions. Angel was previously a dancer so watching him was a gift all in itself. FYI – he is openly gay – so no chance ladies. I left this class doing what I call “theatrics of yoga” that I hadn’t done in a long time with my back injury. I met a lot of easy going yogis in JERSEY - no yoga pre-madonnas here! I had a blast in Angel's class. At the end we all chanted together and it was a truly playful spiritual experience.
Sadhana Yoga and Ayurveda - Montville, NJ - Intentional Yoga, Teacher: Tiffany http://www.sadhananj.com/
This studio is in Montville on River Road right off Changebridge in an office complex. You would never ever know it was there! They have been open for 3 years and are on the second level with a sun filled studio. It was a gentle flow (or at least that is what I would call it, they have weird names and you literally have no idea what type of class you are taking). Everyone was in-creditably sweet and once again as we started class I think we spent 15 minutes talking about everyone’s life. Is it me or would that drive you nuts??? I don’t know these people and really just wanted to jump right into practice and start flowing. 20 minutes later (I think) we finally started. The teacher was really good and it was a gentle flow that was challenging at times and I highly recommend for beginners. For a light filled studio the lights could have been off. Every time I had to focus my gaze at the ceiling I was staring at a fluorescent can. Which now that I think about it happens a lot and is super annoying. Note to self, never have a studio with lights like that. All in all, great gentle flow class!
All in all, I would have liked to have had time to explore more of the classes @ each studio to see if there was a flow class connected to breath that challenged me. Looking forward to hitting the south and trying out yoga studios in Tennessee. Namaste - xoxo!