3.5 months later and I am FINALLY kicking off this working my way through ClassPass project. If you have not idea what I am talking about, check out my previous posts Year of Health and My Fitness Journey. Let’s just say 2020 has been a journey that has lasted way longer then anticipated and I’m in this (hopefully relatable) cycle of extreme laziness where I know I’m feeling lethargic since I’m not moving around or wasting any energy but I have zero motivation or energy to go move around. This endless cycle has resulted in at least 2x a week where I just stare at the ceiling all night cause I’m not tired since I’ve spent all week sitting on my bum working from home which only enhances the cycle.
I’ve taken the summer off to get used to my new job and enjoy myself but gyms just opened in New York, fall is here and it’s time to try this again. This ClassPass review is nothing more than a little motivation and space where I can hold myself accountable to being active and taking priority in my physical and mental health since it’s so often so easy to forget.
Ramble over and time to dive into my first studio which is Yoga Agora! I truly applaud all gyms and studios for getting creative when it comes to staying in business and hosting classes during this whole pandemic and Yoga Agora has not only been doing classes in Astoria Park but they have donation based classes on 31st Ave which has been closed from traffic between 8am-8pm.
- Studio Name/Class: Yoga Agora 31st Ave Open Street
- Activity Type: Yoga
- Total Calories Burned: 407 calories (299 active)
- Average/Highest Heart rate (all measured through apple watch): 113bpm (162 high)
- Necessary Skill Level: Beginner
- Quick Thoughts: Before this apocalyptic universe we are currently living in, I would try to make it to a yoga class at least once every other week largely for stretching and mental health. In terms of calories burned, yoga will likely always be on the lower end so it would be completely unfair to compare it to higher intensity workouts and compared to other yoga classes I’ve taken as I’ve said 1000x I’m starting from level 0 so I’m naturally finding simple poses harder and struggling more with balance which elevates my heart rate so it would be an unfair comparison. All of that being said, this class is exactly what I needed. This particular screenshot was taken my second class back and within 1 class I could feel a difference in the muscle memory and the amount of stuff I was able to do (could also be the fact that I had stuffed my face before my first class back). The instructor started the class off giving us a disclaimer that, yes we are in the middle of a NYC street and this does attract people taking photos for instagram and there will be bikers, there is an outdoor train running behind us and we may even need to move for a parked car to exit the street (luckily this hasn’t happened) so lets be kind neighbors and practice patience. With that, obviously these are not ideal situations for a yoga class however there was a certain serenity with focusing when there is so much noise and chaos around you. The practice in and of itself was fairly basic which I appreciated given, once again we are in a public street and I don’t want my body to touch anything outside my mat. I’m assuming because of this, we stuck to very basic sequences and didn’t do much inversions or ground poses outside of back stretches, wheels, shavasana and pigeon pose. This definitely was not the most sophisticated yoga class but the beautiful thing about yoga is it truly is as challenging as you make it and given it’s a donation based class in the middle of a pandemic I thoroughly enjoyed it and returned home feeling much more centered and relaxed then I have felt in a long time. I would love to check them out under normal circumstances!