It’s been a busy week for me, as I had a lot to squeeze in before an 8-day trip away from Boston.
When I travel, I always get to know the layout of the land gym-wise of where I’m going. I’ll be in Palm Springs for a work conference through Wednesday (hotel has a gym and yoga studio that I can use and I know it’s acceptable since we had our conference at the same place last year – so I’m good for yoga/core fusion). Wednesday, I fly to Texas for some quality time with family there. I’m pretty familiar with the gym scene in San Antonio, as I am down there 1-2x per year. Per usual, I printed out some class schedules at local gyms and I’m excited to try Zumba, Texas style!
I find that yoga is always such a crapshoot on the road – I’m usually better off doing my own practice (you know you’re going to be on your own when you call the hotel to ask what styles of yoga their instructors teach, and they say, “oh, its just regular yoga” – thanks for clarifying that, guys!)
I had a great week yoga-wise this week – getting to 5 classes, plus one private yoga class with my primary (and favorite) teacher, Marc McDonald. I’ve been practicing yoga for 7+ years, and have been taking class with Marc for almost the last 4 (though only working one-on-one with him once a week for about the last year). His class at the Sports Club/LA on Wednesday nights at 6:30pm, a Level 2/3 ashtanga-based vinyasa class, is my favorite yoga class in the city (and I think one of the most challenging classes I’ve taken on a regular basis anywhere) – it’s the 3rd of my “can’t miss” classes (his “Advance Your Asana”, a workshop-style yoga class on Tuesday nights at SCLA, is rapidly approaching this same “can’t miss” status).
He’s had such a positive effect on not just my yoga practice, but my outlook on life. There are some people in this world who are just inspiring in how they live their lives – Marc is one of those people. I feel truly privileged to have been able to learn from him these past 4 years. Posturally, working with him has helped me have that “a-ha” moment about some of the more challenging postures – single legged crow, handstand, *really* floating my feet forward and floating back into low pushup, bound half moon, transitioning from crow to 8-crooked limbs. . .the list goes on and on. He teaches a challenging vinyasa class that allows students to work on the postures that NOBODY else teaches. He’s helped keep yoga interesting and fun for me over the years (his class has been a respite during those times when I’ve been frustrated by monotony in yoga since it has become so mainstream). His sequencing is original, and really stresses that the transitions from asana to asana are actually asanas themselves. I feel much stronger and have so much more control of my movement since I’ve been working with him.
He preaches non-attachment to outcome, humility, practicing in the moment and not taking yourself too seriously (as evidenced by his jokes during class). I think it also says something that everyone I’ve ever brought to his yoga class (from yoga beginners to experienced practitioners to people who don’t generally enjoy yoga) has loved it, and have commented not just on what a great workout his class is, but on the positive energy he exudes.
As one of his biggest fans (and there are quite a few of us who take his classes all over the city) – he’s at Sports Club/LA teaching yoga on Mondays at noon, Tuesdays at 6pm, Wednesdays at 6:30 and Thursdays at 12:30; Equinox Back Bay on Monday at 7:30pm and Friday at 12:30pm and Yoga Power Studio (www.yogapowerstudio.com, on Pearl Street in the Financial District) on Thursdays at 5:30pm and Friday at 5:30pm (Yoga Power is heated – not bikram style heated, but warmer than a class you would take in the gym). If you like yoga (or even if you haven’t had great experiences with it), you would be doing yourself a favor by hitting up one of his classes (or workshops) at some point.
People who are reading this who know me also know that Marc is a good friend of mine – someone I respect and admire immensely. One of the reasons I held off on writing this was because I wanted to be able to present my opinions without coming off as biased (while at the same time not downplaying how phenomenal of a teacher and person he is). I hope I succeeded in doing justice to one of my favorite people and (in my humble, objective opinion) the best yoga teacher in Boston (which was my opinion before we were friends).
She also NEVER loses count of the reps, which is great in a class like CF. We are extremely lucky at Exhale Boston to have someone of her experience and stature running the show. She is just so good at not just helping people understand the various positions in CF, but helping them get the most out of each position that they possibly can. 