The recently-opened Indaba Yogain Marylebone has quickly become one of the capital’s top yoga studios. David Hudson paid it a visit…
Yoga is one of those disciplines that I’ve always known to be good for you, but which I’ve never actually tried. The recent arrival of Indaba Yoga to Marylebone (just a few minutes from the Out In The City office), offered me the perfect excuse to take the plunge.
Indaba (the word means ‘gathering’) first threw open its doors in mid-2011. It’s run by the American-born Ellen Walsh Moorman. Her aim is simple: to offer “yoga at its top level”.
As soon as you step through Indaba’s doors, you are immersed in an atmosphere of calm. Incense perfumes the air, and you are invited to shed your shoes in the reception area on the first floor, next to the first yoga studio and gorgeous changing rooms. On the second floor is a larger studio space, while a third floor offers a couple of luxurious private treatment rooms for massage, plus a one-on-one studio for private lessons.
Indaba offers a bewildering array of different classes… enough to delight those familiar with their yoga, but perhaps a little intimidating for anyone who has never tried a class before. However, advisers are adept at putting newcomers at ease, and will happily chat to you about the different classes, your ability and expectations.
I grew up in Dorset surrounded by beautiful countryside in which I immersed myself, and for as long as I can remember I danced. In the 1980s I trained as a dancer at the Laban Centre and in art at Goldsmiths College, and was looking forward to a profession in the performing arts. But after breaking my back in a riding accident my life was changed, and I turned to the ‘healing arts’, qualifying in massage and aromatherapy in 1990.
Yoga also drew me in because it had enabled me to come to terms with my injury, physically and mentally.It helped people help themselves, rather than rely on somebody else.
After training as a yoga teacher (Yogi Siromani) at the Sivananda Centre in Kerala, India, my eyes were opened to the holistic approach to life yoga offered and I came back eager to continue learning. I have not stopped. I have learned enormously from several yoga practices, including Iyengar, Kundalini, Ashtanga and Jivamukti, and I give great thanks to all my teachers (especially Stewart Gilchrist). I have developed my teaching, working with yoga as a moving meditation; an uninterrupted flow of breath, mindfulness and concentration, encouraging the individual to become self-aware and explore all aspects of yoga to find their own peace.
‘Yoga is for everyone, not just the physically able, as long as you can breathe you can practise yoga’.
In my experience, yoga is an all encompassing training allowing us to cope with the ups and downs, stresses and challenges of our daily lives.
What I liked about the class: Iyengar yoga is differentiated from other styles of yoga in that alignment is seen as the path to enlightenment. Thus precision and focussed awareness are paramount. There is no ‘flow’ between poses, although classes may be themed around a general concept eg. opening the groins / hips, working on standing poses. Thus classes are relatively “slow” – you build strength, stamina and flexibility (you certainly ‘work’) but you do not get a cardio work out. Each pose is broken down into minute detail so that the action of every limb (in fact every bone, muscle, ligament and tendon!) is carefully considered. There is a lot to digest and to think about in an Iyengar yoga class.
Whilst I wouldn’t want to only do Iyengar yoga as it is quite ‘heady’ and ‘intellectual’, it is a style of yoga that I am increasingly drawn towards and is currently by far and away my favourite type of class to attend. If you want to avoid injury and to deepen your understanding of the asanas then Iyengar yoga is absolutely essential. And this class was perfect, for me. There is not a single thing that I would change about the way that Helen teaches. She is all the things that one looks for in a teacher. She is inspirational and passionate, she is kind and looks after every student in the class – helped by the small group size -, she adjusts and takes you further into the pose and she conveys an awful lot of extremely useful, in fact invaluable, information within the time. Not only does she tell you about the poses but she sets it up so that you can actually feel what it is she is talking about. You learn experientially. Helen is also happy to answer questions and directs her teaching at the level / ability of the attending students. I only wish that I could remember all the interesting things that she told us! I am definitely a big Helen-fan.
There are things most of us imagine we will never do. For me, hanging upside down in a pike position with my shoulders balanced on the feet of a stranger was one of them.
I’ve seen this sort of thing done by Cirque du Soleil and been amazed. But actually, it’s not as hard as it looks.
AcroYoga, as this gravity-mocking exercise is known, is a combination of acrobatics and yoga practised with a partner or in groups.
Indaba in Marylebone is the only yoga studio to offer a weekly AcroYoga class, and while experience of yoga helps, novices are welcome.
We warm up with sun salutations, before practising headstands to prepare for being upside down for most of the next hour.
Our teachers, Anna and Bryony, demonstrate how to form each posture move by move, for both the “base” (on the floor) and the “flyer” (balancing on top), and how spotters can rescue anyone who starts to topple over.
We may be climbing on top of one another but at no point is it scary -although there are a few screams of laughter.
Cost and contact: £15 drop-in, Sundays 2-3.30pm at Indaba, 18 Hayes Place, NW1, 020 7724 9994, indabayoga.com.
This month I visited the Indaba yoga studio in Marylebone, London. I love this place – it’s awesome, let me tell you why…
Nestled close to Marylebone station on the quiet non-descript street of Hayes Place, there’s no suggestion of anything amazing happening. Except for the quietly confident iridescent glow coming from the studios signage.
Walk in and you immediately feel this is a studio built with heart, a big heart! The décor is contemporary and earthy, using autumnal tones that feel warm and relaxed. Everyone seems to be floating around, all very chilled with beaming smiles as they sip the free herbal tea.
An insanely awesome art piece hangs in reception, it has dozens of giant orange and red pincushions (like your granny would use) pricked into canvas – you can’t help but sneak a feel! The changing rooms are cool! I love the balance between chic styling, earthy colours and simple practicality – you could easily be at a top rated hotel.
Now, my favourite thing about Indaba is the yoga studios – what wonderful spaces! The rooms are lit to a candle glow, rich dark wood floors, aubergine walls and tinted mirrors. You can see (and feel) the affection in the design. There’s a sense of ‘home’, which is such a contrast to the typically sparse and bleached white interiors of the common yoga studio.
The Huffington Post Article by Paola Bassanese- Hot Power Hour: a Boost to Your Lunch Break
Definitition: “a dynamic Vinyasa class taught in a heated room”.
If your lunch break lacks a bit of zing and the cold winter months are making you frown, you can escape for one hour and get nice and warm at yoga class.
Unlike Bikram where the classroom is heated at 40 degrees Celsius, Hot Power Hour yoga at Indaba Yoga in London Marylebone is womb-like: a toasty body temperature (31-35 degrees celsius) that is inviting but still challenging.
Indaba Yoga is a welcoming and friendly yoga centre bathed in earthy colours and boasting an international team of yoga teachers.
If you are a morning person you can choose to attend the class before work at 7.30am but personally I am a slow starter and the lunch time at 12.30pm is perfect to combat the “graveyard shift” later on at 3pm when all you want to do is to reach for the biscuit tin.
Vinyasa can be taught by different yoga instructors and I like the “lucky dip” nature of this class. Each Hot Power Hour is unique and has various levels of difficulty and speed of execution.
The concept is to work rapidly and precisely through a sequence of yoga postures. The instructor is at hand to correct your technique if needed but you are required to have some level of familiarity with yoga to be able to enjoy the class and reap the full mind/body benefits.
Personally, what I find extremely therapeutic about hot yoga is the ability of the body to stretch without strain. A good warm-up is still essential so each class starts with sun salutations to limber up and build extra heat.
Over the weeks you learn about what your body is capable of and what are your limitations; of course there is room for improvement and the more you practice the better it gets.
Whatever you do, either right or wrong, you will never be judged: the yoga teacher is there to help you improve your posture, balance and technique while the other yoga students are too busy practising the various positions to really notice what you are doing. As they say, yoga is about your individual journey and even in a class situation you are given the time and space to explore who you are and what you can achieve.
So next time you want to reach for a mug of hot chocolate and a biscuit, grab your yoga mat and join your nearest Hot Power Hour class.
Women’s Fitness Article …Yoga Basics: Me, Mysore, and I
Don’t know your ashtanga from your anusara? Us neither, so that’s why Women’s Fitness’ new series is finding out how to get the best out of yoga. First up, Mysore-style self practice at Indaba Yoga, London.
So what on earth is Mysore yoga, you may well ask. Well, it’s the ashtanga primary series, only you teach it yourself. Yes, you read that right: you teach it yourself. If this idea sends you into all kinds of panic, stay with us – it’s simpler than you think.
Self practice might seem like a strange place to start a basics series – and indeed, Women’s Fitness wandered into the class by accident! We had travelled to Marylebone in London to Indaba Yoga to start our yoga adventure – offering a huge range of styles for all ability levels, this friendly, stylish new studio is the perfect place to find out more about yoga. When we arrived, it was 7.30am and we walked half-asleep into the wrong room, and straight into a Mysore class. Yikes.
Game for an adventure, we stayed to give it a go. Originating from the city of Mysore in India, this style is a way practising ashtanga yoga, a dynamic sequence of challenging poses (or ‘asanas’) that flow into one another, raising the body’s internal temperatures and burning oodles of calories. The difference with Mysore is that the group is not ‘led’ by the teacher as a group; each student does a portion of the ashtanga series at their own pace, and the teacher gives individual guidance and corrections.
‘Practising at your own pace and to own breath count, you are able to become much more introspective,’ says Ellen Walsh Moorman of Indaba Yoga. ‘The focus and control of your breath helps your mind to let go of distractions from the outside world.’
Going it alone
If this still sounds daunting, believe us when we say it’s not. While not recommended for complete beginners (a familiarity with sun salutations and the basic moves of the primary series is a huge help), you certainly don’t need to be a yogi to practice solo.
At the start of the class the instructor, gave us a thorough introduction to the principles of the practice, and reassures us that if we get stuck, we should just ask. As it turns out, this is a lot! Next up, the teacher observes as we complete 10 vigorous sun salutations – a flowing series of forward bends, planks, ‘chatarangas’ (slowly lowering your body to the floor, like the first phase of a press up), downward dogs and jumps. Throughout, we are offered handy corrections and suggestions, meaning we get more personal attention (and improve far quicker) than in a group class.
Next, the teacher demonstrates a sequence that starts with a forward bend, trying to hook your fingers on your toes (ouch!), progresses to a triangle (with open legs, reaching one arm to the floor and the other in the air to stretch the sides of the body), then a twisted triangle (where the opposite arm stretches to the front leg), then an overhead reach with the front leg bent. Again the instructor gently corrects our form and shows us how to flow each movement to the next using our breath.
Practising this sequence feels rather like learning a dance routine, so you become far more aware of your movements than you would be in a guided class. You’re also forced to be a lot more honest with yourself – am I in the correct form? Am I spending enough time here rather than rushing through? Am I working hard enough? All these decisions are suddenly left to you. It’s liberating and humbling all at once.
Getting the hang of it
Next, the teacher adds a combination of forward bends, each with the legs wide apart and with the arms in different positions. The rest of the class is spent trying to put the whole lot together – and by the end it looks almost like we know what we’re doing. The sense of pride and achievement is immense.
Although we barely scratched the surface of the ashtanga series, just dipping our toe in self-practice has made Women’s Fitness eager for more. While total beginners will struggle (and we did, at first!), as Indaba Yoga’s Ellen says, ‘Mysore is ideal for students that are wishing to take there practice deeper. Exploring limitations in flexibility and capability in a very intimate space is incredibly beneficial, for everyone from beginner to advanced!’
World Yoga Network Review by Inna Costantini
Indaba Yoga is one of the latest offerings in the world of urban yoga studios in London. After many months of waiting, anticipating and wondering, numerous facebook launches, I finally get to see the impressive and much awaited 5000sq ft Indaba in Marelybone. I had heard a lot about the studio through friends, teachers, online and in the media, reading catch phrases such as ‘Real Yoga for real people’, ‘gorgeous airy studios’ and so on, so I had a vague picture in mind, but I didn’t quite expect what I found.
Set in a quiet street off Marylebone station, the building initially had no resemblance to other yoga studios I had visited so far (for some reason many seem to have white walls, a smell of incense reaching the street, a crowd of slim, smart yoga clad bunnies lurking outside drinking green juice). Not that Indaba lacks any of these, but at first glance I just see a neat red brick building. As I walk up the stairs, the décor really kicks in. So this is a stylish, sleek and smart place, that does smell of incense, but doesn’t feel pretentious in any way. I am greeted with a smile, take my shoes off and peek into Stewart Gilchrist’s ‘Yogasana’ class in the hot room. Looks hot indeed. Upstairs, there is another spacious, bright and airy studio with a proper Iyengar set up (wall ropes, belts, blankets and blocks). One more floor to the massage loft studio and I am blown away – to set up a huge space like this in central London is a feat. I would call it an inner-city yoga bubble.
Indaba may be very new on the market (hence the fresh feel and shiny floors), but they have managed to gather some hugely experienced teachers, a wide range of yoga styles and a full schedule.
So what about the yoga in all that? The teacher line-up is impressive enough – Stewart Gilchrist, Mark Khan, Norman Blair to name but a few- and classes include Mysore self pactice, Asthanga, Dharma Mittra, Jivamukti, Iyengar, Power Yoga and Slow Flow. The list is long, but they do cater for all styles, ages, abilities, so it is very much a ‘gathering’ space – the actual meaning of ‘Indaba’.
However, it is a tough time to open a yoga studio in London: summer holidays, recession, competition (this is the 3rd new studio opening – coming after Life Center Islington and Triyoga Chelsea) and it is independently run. Time will tell how long it may take to gather a steady student following and make it to the ranks of Triyoga, but I hear word is spreading fast and calls keep coming in.
Later on, I have a quick look online, I notice the website faqs… Precise, concise as they should be, covering every single question that might arise, but I especially enjoyed reading these two:
“ Q: What happens if I smile? A: You will be reprimanded and made to scrub the communal mats down, alternatively you will receive a smile back, this is dependent on the moon.
Q: What if I don’t like it? A: Then you’re a fool”
All in all Indaba is a friendly, fun, and welcoming place to practice, relax and explore new possibilities. One for the little black book.
