The Yoga Room — Local services in Minneapolis

I was a student with One Yoga, which was a non-profit yoga studio with a focus on bringing yoga to BIPOC communities. Unfortunately, One Yoga closed their doors last month and I had to find a new studio to practice at. I happened across The Yoga Room after doing a search for Minneapolis Yoga studios that taught Ashtanga classes. This review is actually going to be centered around my first experience with The Yoga Room, which happened to be their evening slow flow by candlelight class. The class was led by Nei huynh who is this extremely helpful upbeat woman radiating with good vibrations. I walked into The Yoga Room and she immediately greeted me and she could tell it was my very first time practicing at their studio. She gave me the grand tour, made me feel very much at home, and was just a glowing fountain of positivity. I shut my phone off and tucked it with my car keys in one of the cubbies the studio provides for personal belongings that don't need to be on the floor and found a nice spot in the room to set up my mat. The fellow yogis around me were all high frequency vibing people and I could tell the energy was going to be awesome. The room is humble and modest with a good energy to it. There were small LED candles placed around the room to help enhance the moon energy for the class. Nei began by slowly bringing us all into the sequence we were going to be doing. She led us through the moon salutations sequence by breaking each of the Asanas down where all the students were able to gently be led into it before we got really into the flow. I enjoyed the initial pace because for anyone who might be brand spanking new to yoga, the way Nei broke out each Asana individually before tying everything together would be very very helpful. Then after we went through the intro, Nei brought us into the flow where we all went through the sequence again, but this time in pace with our breathe. Moon salutations are supposed to be easier than sun salutations but I sure was sweaty by the time we got through the sequence. After Nei took us through it all, our bodies using up that last energy of the day, Nei brought us into the restorative portion of the class. I always joke about how restorative yoga is essentially making pillow forts on your yoga mat, but after a couple of rounds of moon salutations I welcomed the yoga bolsters (pillows). She had us relax our bodies in a few restorative poses before bringing us into savasana (corpse pose). After class, us yogis cleaned up, sprayed down any equipment we used, payed gratitude to Nei for her lesson, and went home for some much welcomed sleep.

I look forward to morning Ashtanga on Friday. Sat Nam Waheguru Ji!...

I love The Yoga Room! It's so nice to have a studio in my neighborhood, and the classes are affordable. I love how much it feels like a community. You see the same people week after week and get to know each other. I also love how diverse the clientele is in age, ethnicity, body size, gender, anything you can think of. The instructors and community are welcoming and accepting of everyone. It doesn't feel like a place where you have to look cool or be "the best" at yoga. You can just be who you are. There are lots of different teachers, each with their own styles, so there's something for everyone when it comes to class types. They also run fun workshops like restorative yoga + massage, or sound baths. All in all, I'm so happy to have The Yoga Room in my neighborhood, and see myself coming here for years...

I can't say enough positive things about the yoga room: small and intimate, community-centered, neighborhood feel, excellent teachers, and so inclusive and welcoming. It is clear the owner has a background in mental health-- she has created such a safe and centering space. I appreciate the variety of classes--things like self-compassion workshops, yoga for large bodies series, outdoor yoga, Thai bodywork, etc. Not what you find at your typical studio. I don't think I could have gotten into yoga if it wasn't for this studio-- the teachers and community made yoga feel approachable. I feel so fortunate that The Yoga Room is in my neighborhood, but I would absolutely drive across the city to go there too! I love...