A calm environment, accomplished instructors, affordable classes and massage therapy are just some of the things m.BODY, the new yoga studio in San Luis Obispo, offers students looking to take a break from their studies. The studio will be offering free classes till the end of the month in order to create a customer base.
The new center will compete with yoga studios such as Smiling Dog and Bikram Yoga San Luis Obispo, located downtown. Owner and instructor Tawny Sterios said the skill level of Peter Sterios, the other owner and instructor, will set their studio apart and help establish it in the community. Peter Sterios is returning to San Luis Obispo after being the first person to open a yoga studio in town 18 years ago and has taught for over 20 years.
For architect and yogi Peter Sterios, and Cal Poly nutrition graduate and yogi Tawny Sterios, there was much excitement in coming back to the city after two years of teaching in Santa Monica.
“The inspiration to move back to (San Luis Obispo) was more about feeling complete with what we set out to accomplish in (Los Angeles) and missing the Central Coast,” Tawny Sterios said.
To create m.BODY they transformed the warehouse for Manduka, an eco-yoga products company owned by Peter Sterios, by putting down cork floors and planting a garden in the back so classes can be practiced indoors and outdoors.
The studio, which has jasmine flowing in the air, natural lighting, flowers and leafy plants in every room, is something you would never expect given the surrounding location. A detailed mural commissioned by a local graffiti artist includes Ganesha, a hindu deity with an elephant head and four arms and is known as the remover of all obstacles, covers the right wall you see entering the space that later opens to a small garden in the back. Despite being a small area, a kitchen about 3 feet by 6 feet to make tea placed adjacent from the massage room where a colorful Indian tapestry is draped on the ceiling adds to the atmosphere.
Energy generated from the environment and instructor are important factors for yogis in the community said earth science junior Anna Zeppelin who has practiced yoga for two years.
“I look for a welcoming environment and encouragement from instructors,” she said. “It is important for teachers to speak to you in a way that you can click into the mind set of positive energy and how to do yoga correctly, it’s a ‘glad that you’re here’ type of setting.”
The center offers a variety of classes to appeal to all of their customer’s needs, including hatha, a form of yoga focused on breathing, and vinyasa a technique of “connecting poses.”
An introductory class for those looking to try yoga for the first time is offered every Monday from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. along with a dynamic class meant for experienced students looking to challenge themselves at 6:30 to 8:30 a.m. every Tuesday and Thursday.
While yoga may be a helpful stress relief on campus, for most students with limited budgets and looking to join a class, price can be factor.
“Sadly yoga isn’t one of the most affordable things especially on a student budget,” Zeppelin said.
As a way to still appeal to those with limited resources, on Sundays the center offers one class at half price as a “gesture of community goodwill,” according to the Web site. Classes are normally $10 each.
Peter Sterios who leads several of the classes has practiced yoga for over 30 years in the U.S. and India, and continues to teach at conferences and workshops throughout the country. He first began yoga when he took a class at Cal Poly’s Recreation Center when he was 18 to help the injuries he acquired as a semi pro rugby player.
Tawny Sterios took her first yoga class as a way to combat the stress of competitive sports when she was only 14-years-old. Then after seeing an ad on the Rec Center board to teach yoga she felt she had a calling, she said. Sterios is also a certified teacher in kundalini yoga, a unique practice which incorporates breath and movement.
“After seven years now of teaching I feel very grateful that I listened to that call and feel ready to open our center to a broader community,” she said.
m.BODY is hidden between small houses and sheltered from the busy traffic of Broad Street. While the location may make the studio difficult to find, the staff feel that its just one of the things that makes the studio unique.
“It’s like our little gem just hidden amongst the residential and industrial areas,” Karen Bullock, massage therapist and close friend of the Sterios, said. “From the outside you wouldn’t expect it to be a calming environment but it’s almost like yoga that once you make the connection can transport you to somewhere else.”
Space is limited for classes so attendees are encouraged to come early and bring their own mats.