Dhyana Yoga : In the Treetops of Our Urban Jungle

Category:  Yoga

Target Zone:  Core, Arms, Legs Location:  Rittenhouse

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Cardio:

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Wandering down Walnut Street, past the Apple Store and Urban Outfitters, among honking taxis, and boisterous highschool groupies hanging out on the street, it’s hard to believe that you are standing in front of a yoga studio. 1611 Walnut Street, Dhyana’s Rittenhouse location is situated in the middle of it all, but luckily, all you have to do to escape is go up. Through a secretive door to the left of American Apparel is an elevator which takes you up to the 4^thfloor, and far away from the raucous scene outside.

Hands down my absolute favorite thing about Dhyana was the fact that I didn’t have to sign up ahead of time. I just showed up, bought a very reasonable package ($30 for 3 weeks unlimited as a first-timer), and went into class. I feel like in today’s world that is practically unheard of. The growing population of healthy/ fitness crazed people (women in particular) has made getting into your favorite classes like survival of the fittest… literally. Even if I remember to sign up on the right day, if I don’t get to it until 9am I often still find myself on the wait-list. Insane! Anyway, all the more reason that being able to show up for a 630 class on a Monday night was refreshingly amazing.

The studio itself is big and open, with brightly painted walls, and mirrors lining one side of the room. It’s an older building and I loved the big open space. So since I generally have anxiety about not being able to find a space for myself in these classes, I was there a few minutes early, psyched and ready to go... but after waiting for 15 minutes for our teacher who was late, my feelings for Dhyana started to turn sour, and quickly. Now I know that things happen and though I tried to stay very zen and patient about it, I’m sorry but 15 minutes is a long time to sit and wait… especially during your precious minutes of allocated “exercise time”.

Once the teacher did get there, he made a joke about it and went on with class, which I guess is really all you can do. But honestly I’m not sure that I ever really got over my earlier frustration. Probably my fault for not being able to let it go, but my experience was definitely not what it could have been. The class itself flowed well, however (per my review about Amrita and my general disliking for classes heavy on inversions) it felt like there was a lot of time spent upside down, or for me a lot of time spent watching other people go upside down. Ultimately, it wasn’t the sweat or experience that I had hoped for.

All in all, I think it was an unfortunate coincidence that my first time at Dhyana wasn’t their best showing and I am definitely going to go back and give it another try. The location, the studio, the people were all great AND knowing that I don’t even have to sign up ahead of time makes the possibility of a last minute drop-in all the more likely. 

A Dose of Culture With Your Wednesday Night Workout : Yoga in the Art Museum

This is why I love our city so much. A yoga class, taught inside one of the most beautiful, world-class art museums in the country, by a fabulous teacher from Dhyana Yoga?! Pretty incredible! So since by most accounts the apocalypse is coming tomorrow in the form of yet another snow/ice storm, I figured there was no time like the present to check it out. 

What to Know. While its pathetic to admit, I can't say I'm exactly a pro when it comes to navigating the cultural landmarks of our city ... and by "not a pro" I mean, pretty much all I know about the Art Museum is that the steps out front are a great part of my exercise routine, the bootcamps that meet out there at 6am and on summer nights look intriguing, and its a gorgeous piece of the Philadelphia historical landscape. Where to find the Grand Hall Stairway Balcony? Absolutely no clue. And walking in with my Lulus, winter boots, and yoga mat in tow, I must say I felt a bit like a fish out of water. That only lasted a minute though as I was quickly greeted by a Museum volunteer who directed me to exactly where I needed to go, and told me what I needed to do: First, buy a General Admissions Ticket, which on Wednesday nights are "Pay What You Want".  Then walk up one flight of stairs, turn left and you can't miss it... Spread all across the "balcony" was a sea of yoga mats and a friendly teacher, Emily, from Dhyana Yoga greeting everyone as they came in. Important to note ** Get there a little early to get a good spot! I was a bit late and ended up on the end which happened to be right in front of the elevator. Definitely surprised a few unsuspecting Museum-goers when the doors opened and there I was in full Down Dog! HELLO! 

Bottom Line. This class is all about the experience. If you're a hard core yogi looking for a challenging practice and a cleansing sweat, you should probably get it in before heading to the Museum. If you are someone looking for a different kind of week night activity / a fun way to get some culture in with your workout, this is perfect. Make it social and plan a fun dinner somewhere nearby.... You probably won't need to shower before because there isn't too much sweating going on! I'm sure the fact that it is 10 degrees outside wasn't helping.. but the room was a bit chilly. Even though it is classified as a Vinyasa Flow class, this is definitely on the more "restorative" side as opposed to a "power flow". However, the teachers do change weekly so other teachers may have a different style than Emily. Either way, coming from a girl who likes her sweaty power flow, this experience was enough to outweigh the lacking "sweat factor". So as long as you know what to expect (aka if you need a hardcore workout, do it in the morning and then come to the Art Museum at night), it is definitely worth it!