LOCATION: Used Waze for my trusty GPS system to navigate me to West Asheville which was only a 15-20 minute drive from our rental. West Asheville was described as the art district in my bazillion handouts, but at night I didn't feel completely safe walking around on my own. Luckily there was free parking right in front of the studio.
STUDIO: Upon arrival I went to open the door to find it locked and then saw the sign that said the door is locked during classes and will open 10-15 minutes before the next class. On one hand, I liked that the door was locked through class, so no one interrupted and all ours stuff was safe at the front—on the other hand, it was chilly and waiting outside in a less than comfortable area of town wasn't my favorite thing to do. But the studio front is adorable and comforting (including a poster for our instructor from yesterday). Once inside I fell in love with the simplicity and frugality of the space. The front area was curtained off with cubbies for you belongings and a little check-in area. Class was on a sliding scale which I paid the full $12 in cash. Once in the practice area it was open, wood floors, free props in the back to the right, and a curtained off space with a sink and a bathroom to the left. One of the side walls, which I wish I took a picture of was a large white om on a white wall. It was such a subtle and beautiful addition to the room. The regulars were super friendly and we all chatted a bit before class started.
CLASS DESCRIPTION: Gentle Yoga is a very basic yoga class which focuses on the relaxation aspect of your practices. This class is great for someone wanting to de-stress, who is recovering from an injury or trauma, or who is very new to yoga.
INSTRUCTOR: Jacci Lea began yoga in New Orleans as a way to help with some back pain. Nearly 15 years later she still practices yoga. After many years of studying Iyengar yoga she now combines the techniques and alignment of that style with flow yoga. She taught classes for several years at Wild Lotus Yoga in New Oreleans before moving to Asheville—just a week before Katrina. Jacci received her yoga teaching training at Living Yoga in Austin, TX. Outside of the yoga studio Jacci has worked as a medical technologist for 25 years.
Jacci started off the class burning quite a bit of incense—mentioning that if it was too much to let us know. It took a little getting use to, but after awhile I completely forgot about it. The space was a bit warmer than usual, I assume because we were doing a gentle class. I found it all very cozy. Jacci spent a lot of time having us wake up the joints—shaking everything out even. We did a lot of nice core work from our backs (variations of drawing circles with your feet in the air). We took our time doing twists (a wonderful theme to my series of classes this week, which was much needed for this stressed out yogi). Jacci walked around doing adjustments, giving personal encouragement to each person, and as I've learned comes hand-in-hand with Iyengar, lots of detailed verbal queues (which I really enjoy).
We did a lot of openers that led us to ananda balasana (aka happy baby, wind releasing pose, and dead bug). I'm pausing here for my own tracking, because it was the first time—with some assistance from Jacci—I was able to reach my knee back to the ground. This gave me even more appreciation for having the opportunity to hike all day and end with a gentle class. My hips were very happy. Jacci was great with offering numerous options for each pose depending on your level. I haven't seen that in a while, so it also was appreciated.
We ended in a glorious savasana that was a beautiful finale to my yoga classes in Western North Carolina. Thank you so much West Asheville Yoga and Jacci! Namaste.
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| More from the front of the studio |
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| Check in area |
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| Practice space |
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| Free props |
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| Had to get a pic of the periodic table of yoga poses :) |
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