| rev:text
| - In all fairness, I haven't been to Iam Yoga since Spring 2012.
While this studio is accessible for me, I didn't and won't make it a studio that I regularly attend. The main reason for this is that it is rather chaotic. I just did not find myself relaxed and chilled out here. I'm able to do that at other studios (that are also busy), really get in the zone. It's what I need.
The reception and lounge area look good. The sign-in "system" was not smooth - I won't get into it, but I hope they've fixed the whole process. The (women's) change room is large with lots of hooks and storage benches/cubbyholes for your stuff. (There were no lockers here when I attended.) As the studio was very busy, every hook and cubby was usually taken. I did bring a purse and a bag for my yoga gear, and I never experienced any theft. The studio and change room were clean.
I mainly went to the evening, post-workday classes (6:45 p.m. or so). There is only one practice room so you experience every class turnover - during the week, anyway. Weekends were different and overall my weekend experiences were better. I enjoyed some classes on Sunday, including some later afternoon ones. The studio was pretty calm then and that's when I enjoyed the environment the most. I also loved winding down my Sundays that way. I did look at the schedule in recent months, and have noticed they've reduced the schedule.
I generally enjoyed the classes that I attended. Linda (owner), Bruce and Charlotte all stood out. I don't believe the latter two are there anymore. I liked Bruce's calm demeanour. With minimal other talk, his instruction and cueing were very precise; some of the best I've ever experienced.
All classes are done in the heat. The room indeed gets very hot, actually too hot at times. Sensibly, some teachers will open the windows at the back. I'm practiced and took mostly flow classes, which were challenging. I will also say that although one might think a Hatha non-flow class is not too challenging, here it actually is when combined with the intense level of the heat.
The lounge/waiting room is right outside the door of the practice room, and it is extremely disruptive with the level of noise, activity, talking. This is bothersome when you are in the practice room, waiting (trying to meditate) for class to begin, or as your class ends, hearing all this as the next class' attendees arrive. Some people want to socialize, I get it, but there's no buffer here so it ruins the atmosphere. I appreciated that within the practice room itself, students respected the silence/no talking rule (and the sign on the practice room door reminded practitioners of this).
Classes do not end with everyone staying in Savasana: the teacher tells you to stay as long as you like and then leaves. Unfortunately, most people do not stay and instead stampede to leave. If you do stay longer you get the next class' students coming in right away (remember, no buffer time and one practice room). At other studios, the whole class stays together in the room and ends together, so you can truly enjoy Savasana; even if it's just a pared down 5 minute version, it's the quality that counts. Savasana is, after all, the most important pose.
There is one toilet/private WC, not very practical. There are 4 showers in a row with dividers and shower curtains. They were stocked with body wash, shampoo & conditioner. The showers were very busy and I always had to wait a fair bit following a weekday evening class. In the few month span that I went here, there was always something broken in the change rooms. Either a shower head (different ones at different times), a missing shower curtain, hooks broken off the wall. There was also a sink with a big crack in it. Overall lack of regular maintenance and repair really leaves a poor impression. It also wasn't unusual for there to be a bad smell with the shower plumbing.
I've noticed that the studio sells Groupon promos etc. on a pretty regular basis. These types of promos show me that there's a problem retaining students/clients, but presumably are needed to attract new business. FYI if you are going here when hundreds of promos have been sold, you will be packed in worse than sardines. While all the space I need is my yoga mat, it is pretty ridiculous when there are a mere couple of inches between each mat. There was no such thing as "at capacity" for these classes, they would continue to pack people in, including latecomers - another irritating thing here.
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