FAQ

I’m a beginner – where do I start?

Which classes are good for me to start with?

We’ve got lots of places for beginners to land! Our Yoga Basics will help you build a solid foundation of yoga knowledge. Our Yin classes are a gentle, relaxing way to learn more about your body, and build flexibility. In our Slow Flow classes, beginners can take their time building steadiness and confidence. Our Hot Yoga classes are also at a slow, steady pace that is beginner-friendly! Our Yoga 101 Workshop is excellent for beginners to go more in-depth about alignment, breathing, balance, and modifications to suit your body’s needs.

What should I wear to yoga? What should I bring?

You can wear any comfortable clothes that you can stretch in – but keep in mind that some of our classes are toasty. Wicking athletic fabrics are best to help sweat evaporate and keep your skin comfortable. Well-fitting tops or t-shirts are best, because a baggy shirt will drop towards your face in a forward fold! If your hair is longer, consider a ponytail or bun. We don’t wear shoes in the studio, so it’s practical to wear flip-flops or shoes that are easy to take off, and put on. Bring a hand towel for your sweat, and a water bottle to help refresh you during practice. Please bring a yoga mat – if you don’t have one, we can let you borrow one to ‘try before you buy’. Yoga mat towels are a good idea – more on that, below.

Should I put electrolytes in my water?

YES. To ensure that your muscles have the fuel they need to feel successful in a toasty or hot yoga class, electrolytes are key. When we sweat out the minerals that our body needs for optimal nervous system and muscle function – we need to replace them, or we will feel weak, nauseous, dizzy, get muscle cramps, and possibly feel like a wilted flower for the rest of our day. To set yourself up to have more consistent energy during class, and a better recovery after class, find an electrolyte supplement that you enjoy – or squeeze some citrus juice into your water bottle with a pinch of sea salt.

How do I prepare my body/mind for a yoga class?

Make sure that you are hydrated, and have electrolytes. While you don’t want to eat a heavy meal for 2 hours before you come to yoga class, an easily digestible snack like fruit, a smoothie or yogurt, is fine. Also, setting the tone, and creating a good mindset for your class is extremely helpful. We have 30 minutes between our classes at Yogacreatives, so that you have time to arrive early if you choose to – you can enjoy soothing music, and do a little pre-game stretching and deep breathing. However, even if you’re flying into class last-minute stressed and distracted – it’s still going to be great. The only bad yoga class – is the one you ‘didn’t’ do!

What happens in a workshop, and why should I take one?

In a workshop, we get an opportunity to focus on skills training. We fine-tune certain areas of our yoga practice, to be able to work more successfully in our regular weekly classes. We have time to discuss, ask questions, and get individual help in whatever it is we’re learning about – arm balances, backbends, et cetera. Workshops are fun, informative places to help beginners get a head start – but, no matter how long you’ve been doing yoga a workshop can give you insights that help breathe new life into your yoga practice.

What do I need to know about yoga accessories, and yoga lingo?

What kind of yoga mat should I buy?

A good yoga mat should give stability, be durable, easily cleaned, and have good grip for your hands and feet. Some yoga mats are heavier for maximum stability (like the Manduka Pro), some are lighter and easier to carry back and forth to yoga, (the ProLite, EkoLite, and Manduka X), and some have an extra-grippy surface for hands and feet (Manduka Grp). We have samples of the types of mats for you to try a class on, before you invest. Having your own mat guarantees a clean and pleasant experience, and you can use it for home practice, too!

What are the yoga mat towels for?

Yoga mat towels work both to provide a comfortable, sanitary layer on your mat, and to keep your hands and feet from sliding when things get sweaty. Some are extra soft and feel great on your skin (such as, the Equa mat towel) and some, have small grippers on the bottom to ensure they don’t slide (the Yogitoes towels). These are easy to put in the washing machine, and always have a fresh, clean surface for your yoga practice. However, refrain from using fabric softener, because it can block some of the wicking properties in athletic wear and yoga mat towel material.

What are yoga blocks, and how do I use them?

Yoga blocks help support our practice in a variety of ways. In a forward fold, they can be a place to rest your hands and bring the floor closer to you. In a sideways facing pose like Triangle, they can help you feel the sensation of pressing ‘down’ into the block with one hand, to help you reach ‘up’ with the other! When we’re seated, blocks can elevate our hips to make it a little easier on our knees and hips. Our teachers will give suggestions, and you can decide whether to use a block, or not.

What are yoga straps for?

Yoga straps are to assist us in accessing deeper stretches, and help us feel muscular engagement in new ways. For instance, looping a strap around the ball of your foot in a seated hamstring stretch, will help you use your arm muscles to facilitate the stretch in your leg muscles. Straps are excellent for accessing arm and shoulder stretches, that would be impossible to feel without them. Your teacher will give options to use straps, or not, and the choice is always yours.

What does ‘vinyasa’ mean?

‘Vinyasa’ is Sanskrit meaning “vini” – to move, and ‘nyasa’ – in a special, mindful way. In yoga, vinyasa commonly means a transition that creates and maintains heat in the body, such as the transition from Plank, to Low Plank, to Cobra, to Down Dog. If you feel like you have enough heat and would like to skip a vinyasa, that is completely alright. Our Hot class has minimal vinyasa, since the body is already sufficiently warm from the room itself!

What is ’savasana’, and what is it for?

‘Savasana’, or Corpse pose, is a place to take rest at the end of class. It’s a place where we practice getting comfortable on our mat, being as still as we can, and letting the body breathe naturally – like when we’re asleep. When we close our eyes, there’s nothing to see. When we are completely still.. there’s nothing to do. In this still, quiet place… we can access some much-needed cognitive rest for our mind, as well as our body.

What are some of the physical benefits of heated yoga?

What is hot yoga good for?

Hot yoga is good for the body and mind, in a variety of ways! The heat can ease tense muscles, and soften knots/muscular adhesions from stress or prior injuries. Our ability to deeply stretch our muscles, tendons and ligaments is greatly enhanced by heat – similar to a hot stone massage, or sauna. Sweating can be extremely beneficial to open up our pores and clear out bacteria – leaving our skin rosy and healthy-looking. Heat will increase your metabolic rate, activating your respiratory and circulatory system to flush your physical body, similarly to performing an engine flush on a vehicle.

Will yoga help me lose weight?

Yoga will help your physical body get leaner in a few ways: When we exercise in a way that makes us breathe more fully and increase our heart rate – we are burning fat as an energy source. When we tone our muscles, the increased muscle tissue will continue to burn fat even when we’re not exercising – sometimes referred to as the ‘afterburn’ effect. In yoga class, we build a relationship with our body in a mindful way, which helps us not give in to cravings, or mindlessly eat out of boredom or distraction. The combination of these factors make yoga an excellent way to lose excess weight, have your clothes fit better, and reduce the risk of weight-related health issues.

What are the benefits of infrared heat panels?

Infrared heat panels have the unique ability to heat objects, rather than the air. You body will get toasty warm, but the air will not be stifling to breathe. High levels of heat and humidity can interfere with our oxygen uptake, which is one reason we can feel sluggish on humid days. So, by utilizing infrared panels, we can maximize our oxygen uptake, and keep ourselves vibrant and energized while we do our yoga!

Are ALL of your classes heated?

No – our Yoga Basics, Family Yoga, and Yoga 101 workshops are non-heated.

What should I know about breathing, mindfulness, and meditation?

Is there a certain type of breathing I should be doing?

Great question! Chances are, your body will breathe in a way that naturally suits your oxygen requirements for any given physical activity. So, you don’t have to worry about breathing ‘correctly’ or incorrectly – breathe in a way that feels supportive and natural. If your body wants to breathe swiftly because it’s an active or challenging class like power or sculpt, please do. If you have room to breathe more deeply and slowly in a slow flow or yin, then please do. Yes, there are breathing ‘exercises’ in yoga, but those take a good bit of practice and time. Once a month, we have a ‘Breath and Meditation’ class that explains more in depth about types of breathing exercises, and with practice you can merge both breathing exercises, and physical exercises, together.

I want to start to meditate, where do I begin?

Meditating is something you already probably catch glimpses of in your life – in moments of forgetting about the past and the future, enjoying a beautiful moment in the here and now. For instance, cuddling with a loved one or child, watching a sunset, enjoying a cup of tea. Mindfulness and meditation, start with making a decision to practice feeling these states, regularly. Starting with setting a timer for 5, or 10 minutes and reading something inspiring before doing a little deep breathing, is enough. Or thinking of something you’re grateful for and ‘practicing’ that feeling, is enough. You can listen to instrumental music you love, and perhaps repeat an inspiring thought to yourself. We don’t meditate to get better at ‘meditating’… we meditate to practice being where we are, and to practice being present for the beauty in our everyday lives. We have quiet moments before and after class where you can practice meditating, and it does set the tone for your yoga practice!

What if my mind is racing during a slow yin class, meditation, or ‘savasana’? Is that normal?

Fantastic question. Our mind, is a reflex organ – it reacts to everything that comes its way, and is constantly churning information, envisioning future scenarios, and … stressing over situations that may not exist yet, and perhaps never actually will. When we are busy with life, we don’t notice the mind’s constant churning; but when we are quiet, in a yin class or savasana… the jumble of thoughts and worries can be quite surprising to notice! To help slow the mind down, we slow the body down, slow the breath down, and eventually – the mind WILL slow down. It takes a little practice, but that’s why we’re here.

What if I have injuries, movement restrictions, or I’m a senior? Can I still participate?

What if I’ve got injuries, and can’t do a pose?

In the course of living life, we will have injuries, scars, and places that just don’t bend. This is normal, and completely ok. Chat with your teacher before class, and they will be able to give you options that suit your body. The yoga poses are not set textbook positions that look a certain way, rather than positions that help us feel a stretch in a certain way. They’re not one size fits all. For instance, one person’s warrior pose will look completely different than the next – but if they are both FEELING a great stretch in their hips, and strong engagement in their legs, core, and arms – they are both doing the pose correctly for their individual body.

Are there classes that are suitable for seniors?

Yes. Our Yin yoga classes are a wonderfully peaceful way to gently move the body and increase our flexibility. As you build confidence, you can progress into Slow Flow classes, which will help build balance and stamina. With practice, or if you’re already an active senior, you can attend any of our class offerings – yoga is an activity that you can do at any age, and our senior teachers are a testament to that.

What kind of floor does the studio have? My joints hurt on a wood floor.

Our studio floor is designed to be kind to our joints. The tatami-style flooring has just enough softness to accommodate knees and elbows, but enough stability to support standing poses and arm balances. The material is also more durable, more eco-friendly, and more anti-microbial than a wood floor. They are the preferred flooring of Yoga Journal, and are similar to the tatami mats used in traditional Japanese dojos.

What amenities do you have for people who need to get to work after yoga?

Do you have a place for my belongings?

We have lovely cubbies of different sizes, underneath the benches in our lobby area. Whether you just bring shoes and keys, a tall pair of boots, or a bag with a change of clothes, we’ve got you covered. We have security cameras, but not lockers – so, our recommendation is to not bring valuables into the studio.

Do you have showers, and somewhere to dry my hair, etc?

Yes, we have private shower rooms, and a beautiful mirrored vanity area where you can relax as you get ready for your day – complete with hair dryers, basic toiletries, and other cozy delights.