Inner stillness vs. Outer Space

By S.L. Jordan

I believe your atmosphere and your surroundings create a mind state for you - Theophilus London

Lately, I have noticed a shift in the yoga industry. Or maybe it's just my algorithms, but I have noticed a shift in two ways: more boutique studios popping up with a clean minimal or modern aesthetic vs. alternate locations/environments: outside, non-traditional environments, art installations, gyms, you name it. That's not even touching on the variations: Goat, Puppy, Trap, Smoke & Flow, etc.

So, let's talk about it.

Does the space in which you practice really matter? Do you need for the aesthetics to be IG worthy? Does it feel less like yoga when you are in a non-traditional space, like a gym or a shared collective/community space?

As I continue my yogic journey, questions like this - that bring up the sincerity or genuineness of one's practice- has been on the forefront of my mind lately. What makes yoga, YOGA for you?

Because here's the thing, yoga is SO many things to many people. Yoga has saved many lives and can be viewed through the lens of a very spiritual and healing practice for people. There are those yogi's who view it through the lens of body movement - meaning they primarily use yoga has a physical practice. I've met practitioners that have been on their yogic journey for so long that they have transitioned past the physical practice and focus on weaving the other limbs of yoga into their daily lives. There are many stages you can transition to and fro' in your practice.

I find myself in one of those transitional periods and wondering what my practice will look like in the future. I still love the physical asana of the practice, but I am moving towards a different type of flow. Softer. Alignment based. Pranayama based. I'm not sure yet. I started practicing and was trained in a Baptiste-Inspired flow that was coined "Power Yoga", which contained three pillars: Asana, Dhyana, and Niyama. Now, depending on the studio that class can be defined differently. At my former yoga studio home, which was at one point substantially influenced by Baron Baptiste, it was defined as a heat-based practice linking breath with movement designed to reconnect you back to your body. There was also a fair amount of self-reflection in workshops and classes. VERY intentional dharma talks before class. Just real HEAVY on the Svadhyaya.

It was the combination of mental reflection and the physical challenge that made me fall in love.

I've also always felt a way about WHERE I practiced. Before I got serious about yoga, I would sporadically attend the free classes studios would host around the city. That meant being outdoors majority of the time, and if I am being honest [Satya], nothing about being outdoors FELT like Yoga to me. AT that time. It was more like, "I'm just out here doing this trendy thing with friends". There was no enlightenment and connect with my body. No spark basically.

I have since grown out of that mindset, but I am still very much partial to practicing in community - with others. Regardless of the space.

My last post, I shared how I have been practicing Svadhyaya intentionally for the last 18 months or so. In that vein, I have intentionally sought out places outside of my norm to practice yoga. A personal litmus test if you will.

Here are a few of the non-traditional places I have been practicing.

Black Swan x Post x Art Club

Yoga at night surrounded by art AND led by Candice Q 🫶🏿🫶🏿

I spent some time being Artsy after class

Black Swan Yoga x POST HTX x Art Club.

This space was very surreal. I arrived early to meet my friend, and we had a chance to walk through the rooms, there were like 15, before the class. The installations were HUGE - light, sound, and movement. Actually, it was trippy AF and if I had known .... I would've came prepared for a different experience. If you want to check out the exhibits, click here.

They are having another series of Yoga x POST HTX x Art Club next Wednesday, July 23rd!!! A Separate Reality by Daniel Anguilu and Taylor Knapps with Black Swan Yoga instructed by Nicole Peralta.

Dates: 7/23, 8/27, 9/24, 10/22 and 11/19

Maybe, I'll Meet You on the Ma'at at one of those dates!

I teach Puppy Yoga inside of a Dance Studio on the weekends

Puppy Yoga Corporate event

I started teaching Puppy Yoga right after my dog of 15 years passed away. It's been a therapeutic experience, and I enjoy gradually introducing people to yoga in a safe and fun environment. Majority of the people come for the puppies, but leave having moved their bodies. There is a different breed every weekend, and the puppies are available for sale - NOT ADOPTION. [Important to note because the $$ associated with each word is different, if you get what I'm saying.]

Come flow with me and the puppies one weekend at Puppies & Yoga Houston. They have locations all over, so check your city!

Candlelight Touch & Restore

A fellow teacher at my home studio offers a 90-minute Touch and Restore class. I have been to two of them - the last one I SWEAR my spirit left my body and returned numerous times. It was transcendental AF.

Yoga Home is a Power Yoga Studio that offers 60 Minute Power Classes, 60 Minute YIN Classes, and Power & Surrender Class that blends YIN & YANG together, A Foundation & Flow [Alignment based] Class, and a variety of workshops and community events. Come BACK Home with us, located in Second Ward.

Donation based yoga outside led by my dear friend Gayatri

Gee. The teacher that taught me HOW to teach the things I learned in my YTT offered a series of donation-based classes this spring outdoors - ya know, before Houston got TOO HUMID. Because of my current practice, being outside feels nothing like it did before I became the yogi I am now. There is nothing like looking up at a clear blue sky while in Savasana.

I went to her class one Sunday morning, it was located downtown by Buffalo Bayou offices, and we practiced in front of the Bayou. A family of ducks came by to visit us. The last time I practiced outside it was while the World started to open back up after COVID. Then it felt like a punishment, the only option we had to practice in community. This time it was my choice.

Yoga - from the comfort of your own house

I'm STILL trying to get into an online/home practice. I think it has to do with my space inside my home. If I had a space purely dedicated to that - and possibly without dog hair scattered about - I could connect more. IDK. Sounds like an and excuse and not a reason though.

Chair Yoga at the Richard M. Schulz Family Foundation Hope Lodge

Funny enough, when I got my Chair Yoga certification, I could FEEL the dismissal from other yogi's and yoga teachers. It was TOO soft and not traditional.

I'm happy I did it anyway. The first Friday and the third Monday of the month I teach a 30-minute Chair Yoga session at The Hope Lodge for patients and caregivers. Because of my family's history with Cancer it is an honor for me to offer this practice to THAT community.

Personally, I will always enjoy practicing in community because it is how I fill my cup, but I remember what I said when I became a yoga teacher. I wanted to make yoga accessible to my community, and when I said it, I was thinking of price, location, time - but now, I want to make it accessible and palatable. I can see that won't always happen in a traditional yoga studio.

And that's okay.

Yoga CAN be done anywhere:

Your body and a Ma'at/Ground/Chair

Your Breath & You

With a blanket, block, bolster, or strap

Meet Me on the Ma'at