Best of New York: Yoga Classes

Yoga fever swept through Manhattan in the early 2000s, and now it's a rare afternoon where you don't see someone carrying their yoga mat back from class. Classes abound in NYC, where there are offerings for beginners or experts, vinyasa addicts or bikram enthusiasts. Check out these studios when you're itching for some inner calm:

Yoga to the People

This is an NYC staple for yoga lovers, and for good reason. They have several locations around the city, each of which offers something different: hot yoga, power vinyasa, and hot vinyasa. The central location in the East Village, which teaches power vinyasa, is a destination for everyone from NYU students to major celebs, who you can spot with their mats and towels between classes. But you don’t need the budget of a superstar: A suggested donation of $10 makes it one of the most affordable studios in the city.

Multiple locations; yogatothepeople.com

Pure Yoga

Far more than just a studio, Pure Yoga is like an entire gym dedicated solely to aligning your chakras. Their schedule of classes is one of the most varied in NYC, including everything from hatha to anusara, as well as special rooms for hot yoga, one-on-one classes, newbie tutorials, and well-kept showers and locker rooms. There are also programs that are a little more unorthodox, like AcroYoga, which brings together the traditional poses, acrobatics, and massage as attendees get lifted and swung about by their classmates.

204 W 77th St, Manhattan; 212-877-2025
pureyoga.com

Iyengar Yoga Institute

Not seeing what all the yoga hype is about? Take a chance and head to the Iyengar Yoga Institute, whose style has produced many new converts to the craze. Iyengar uses props like belts, balls, and blocks, to help you balance and maintain the poses that many find difficult to keep up on their own. The form is also known for its healing potential, and attendees with pulled muscles or pinched nerves rave about the Institute’s restorative powers. The staff can be a bit removed, but includes some of the most knowledgeable instructors in NYC.

150 W 22nd St, Manhattan; 212-691-9642
iyengarnyc.org

Dharma Yoga Brooklyn

This beautiful studio in Park Slope brings you a sense of calm as soon as you walk in the door, thanks to its peaceful, candlelit ambiance and the expanse of stained-glass windows. There’s also a familial feel, since there’s only a handful on instructors, and the limited selection of classes are kept small: at most, 25 people. But best of all, Dharma maintains a donations-only policy, allowing attendees to drop their bills into a box by the door. The open pay policy means you’ll see a veritable cross-section of NYC at this yoga studio, and will most likely get to know a few of the friendly regulars after a few classes.

82 Sixth Ave, Brooklyn; 718-395-7632

Earth Yoga

Fans of “hot” yoga flock to this NYC favorite, which has practitioners sweating it out in rooms heated up to 110 degree. Unlike bikram, a traditional style of hot yoga that repeats the same poses every class, Earth Yoga specializes in vinyasa hot yoga, which takes attendees through a “flow” of various positions to change up the routine. The attitude here is funky and fun; you won’t hear the same Enya tape every class, and instructor Halle Becker is known for her wisecracking way of powering you forward.

206 E 63rd St, Manhattan; 212-486-4111
earthyoganyc.com