| rev:text
| - Arrichion was my first exposure to hot yoga- so I have to thank the studio for that. I'm now a die hard hot yoga student- just not at Arrichion. I went to Arrichion for 3 months first starting out with their 20 classes for $20 deal- which is a great on-going introductory deal. (See their website) After that, I joined for the $100 for the first two months and the $89 per month after that.
Many of the other reviewers did a great job of summarizing the classes and the studio itself so I won't go through that. I'll just summarize at some points that I experienced while I was a member. I am no longer a member and my main reasoning falls on two points. First, lousy customer service and second the downright unprofessionalism of one of the owners. $89 is just not cheap enough for me to deal with either of these things.
1. Hot: Yes, it's hot. It's definitely hotter than any of the other studios that I've tried out- to a fault, in my opinion. I found myself getting out of poses or needing a rest more because of the heat than my muscle fatigue which cuts down on my overall workout. The temperature is also all over the place though depending on the teacher. Some make it extremely hot, others not as hot, some open the door at the end of class to cool the room off, some don't. For a cookie cutter studio this is the one area that there are differences in the classes. Plenty of people enjoy the heat though- I prefer the 95-100 degrees I practice at.
2. No variety in the yoga classes: A few of the other reviewers have mentioned this and I very much agree as a point of annoyance. There are several hot yoga classes that offer different experiences for different levels of skill. However, those classes are the same, each time. Topaz is the same regardless of the time, day or instructor, the same with the rest of the yoga classes. And by the same, I mean the instructors say the EXACT same thing EVERY class. They are holding an instructor training and I can't help but think that all that it is is memorizing each script. At first, it was okay, I knew what to expect. However- after three months of going 2-3 times a day being able to recite the script in my head with the appropriate inflections in the right place along with the instructor was driving me crazy. "Flex your toes back toward your face engage your right leg, inhallleee, lifffttt, exhalllleee, lowwweeerrr." It's like the gym version of Ground Hog Day. Obviously, I practice a lot, so it will take someone going once a day to a few times a week longer to get to the insane asylum point, but you'll get there.
3. "This is not yoga" A few reviewers have said this and while on one hand, I understand where they are coming from, there are some points to be made. If you're familiar with yoga- this is vinyasa flow using Bikram poses- which are different from poses in other yoga disciplines. So yes, "Triangle" at Arrichion is "Side Angle Pose" at the studio I go to now. It doesn't mean that they aren't using the proper terms for the poses- it's just Bikram style and the poses are different. However- there is very little emphasis on connection with breath to movement or form outside of the occasional Topaz class that has adjustments- much different than yoga at any other studio. There is no emphasis on any of the other benefits or principles of yoga other than the poses- which could be good for some. If you're looking to get into a hot room and exercise using yoga poses- this is the gym for you. Reviewers and staff insist that what they practice is "athletic yoga" which I can only assume to be their way of dismissing any of the other aspects of yoga. In my opinion going to any of the Ashtanga or Baptiste (the only other ones I've tried) yoga studios- you'll get just as good- if not better and certainly a more complete workout.
4. The Groupon: Also something that other reviewers have touched on. The groupon was really what kicked off my growing annoyance with this studio. Many studios offer groupons as a way to attract new clients. This studio needs a lesson in diminishing returns. By the time the groupon was offered, I was a member paying $89/month. Word went around the studio that the groupon was oversold- 1600 were sold and this studio is TINY! Suddenly I needed to leave my house 40 minutes early (I'm approximately 15 minutes away) just to get a spot in the class. Who has time for that? There is no online sign up. If you're a member running a bit late to leave you stand in line (outside by the way) behind everyone who paid $20 for what you paid $89 for and you may or may not get in. Plenty of people are okay with this and will leave their houses extra early to ensure their spot in a class of which they are a member- not my style.
Speaking poorly of students and the endless, name calling tirades about the competition- in the open- also got old. (Chicken Legs? Grow up.) I want a yoga studio- not a clique. Thanks for the intro to yoga but I've moved on.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)
![[cxml]](/fct/images/cxml_doc.png)
![[csv]](/fct/images/csv_doc.png)
![[text]](/fct/images/ntriples_doc.png)
![[turtle]](/fct/images/n3turtle_doc.png)
![[ld+json]](/fct/images/jsonld_doc.png)
![[rdf+json]](/fct/images/json_doc.png)
![[rdf+xml]](/fct/images/xml_doc.png)
![[atom+xml]](/fct/images/atom_doc.png)
![[html]](/fct/images/html_doc.png)