searching for the right yoga class?

last week, i ran into BDB, my former partner in yoga/running crime (i say former because he's been sidelined recently by injuries and work responsibilities). we were both at the physical therapist's office late monday afternoon; he had just finished his shoulder rehab exercises and i was waiting to get treated for my back.

i asked him how his shoulder was feeling -- much better, he said -- and if he was interested in joining me afterwards in a yoga class later that evening.

you mean with tom? (as in morley at maha)

yeah, sure, i responded, knowing full well that he was was full of it. not only did he used to tease me about how i would never get a "tom adjustment" because i wasn't a young buxom blonde celebutante (and he's right -- i still haven't), but he wasn't physically ready for a level 2/3 hip-hop flow class anyway.

wait... let me find you a nice gentle restorative class, i offered. i pulled a stapled list out of my purse and started flipping through it. as he watched me scan through the four-page document, he peered over my shoulder. completely puzzled at this point, he asked me what i was looking at.

it's a list of all the yoga classes around here... the ones i can get to after work...

now totally amazed (but not surprised), he asked me to hand over the list. and as he looked down each page and noted the days, the times, the classes, the teachers, and the studios, he asked me if the list was posted on my blogsite.

well, no... it's my own personal list... these are the studios that are on my way home from the office...

but why not?, he asked. just think what a resource this could be for your readers!

and that got me thinking.

so after updating my list to include a few more studios in the area (which aren't convenient for me but may be for you) and to pick up recent schedule changes, here it is:

the accidental yogist's westside workday yoga schedule!

it includes the class schedules for all the yoga studios on the westside -- brentwood, culver city, marina del rey, pacific palisades, santa monica, venice -- sorted by day, time, and class style. since most of us are desk-bound from 9am to 5pm, the class list starts at 6pm and goes through the end of the day (notice that there are late-night classes every night except friday). i've also listed the studio phone numbers so you can call and check for last-minute cancellations or teacher substitutions. what i didn't include are the addresses; those won't change (at least in the near future). you can get those by accessing the studio links on my blogsite.

check it out and let me know what you think :)

anyway, going back to my earlier story, after all of that, BDB ended up passing on the yoga class. he needed to get back to the office to finish a project and couldn't wait the hour-or-so i needed to get through my own rehab routine. i'm sure it would have been different had i found the perfect class for him -- believe it or not, with a list of 30 or so to choose from that evening, not one was a gentle/restorative class!

and yes, tom's class is on that list. after all, i'm confident enough in my practice that i won't feel crushed if i don't get an approving nod nor a shoulder rub from him while i'm surrounded by the brentwood beauties...