Glow yoga craze reaches Portland, but EDM, glow sticks and uptempo tunes can't harsh the mellow.
Glow Yoga came to Portland on Wednesday. The craze puts a new spin on an old practice. Electronic dance music replaces the dreamy sitars, and yogis wear glow bracelets and body paint that shows up in ultra violet lights.
Om Yeah! Yoga at 2377 NW Westover Rd. became e first place in Portland to offer it.
Tickets sold out and 23 people squeezed into the modest space, while teacher April MacKay wove between them in her devils horns and neon bangles. Owner Kathy (pronounced Katty) Swanson moved to Portland from Arizona in May and joined her daughter who had opened the yoga studio in January. I wanted to do something fun and we thought about Halloween, spooky lights, but then April suggested this, Swanson said. So she bought her supplies on Amazon and opened her doors to a new clientele, almost all of whom had seen an ad on Facebook or received an invite from a Facebook friend.
Gian Salazar, one of just three men in attendance, came because a friend was going. I love anything that glows in the dark, and I love dance music, and I do yoga every day. He saw it as a way to combine his interests. He sells natural supplements for a living and the 7.30 pm start, just as it was getting dark, suited him.
This is an adventure, said teacher April by way of starting the class, explain that some clumsiness is acceptable. Yoga is about feeling awesome not making it to the front page of Instagram. The selfie ritual was saved until the end of the hour.
The music was not especially loud and didnt accelerate the standard vinyasa flow.
In one year Michelle Markoya has become a dedicated yogi, using it to boost her strength, balance, mental focus and relieve stress. I came to spend time with my girlfriends, said Markoya, a financial recruiter. I love the music too, and this is just healthy.
One of her friends said she appreciated the darkness because it meant that people were less focused on each other.
Markoya agreed. Its a new twist on something I love.
Swanson is originally from East Germany, and hopes to expand Om Yeah! in a very competitive yoga market. (She just missed out on the space next door when a vintage stamp collector took it.) Ultimately she wants to open an orphanage with an holistic school, Where they will do yoga and tai chi, learn natural medicine, to live off the land and to experience love. Until then, she plans to schedule more Glow Yoga, up to Halloween and well beyond.
jgallivan@pamplinmedia.com
