Guests & Non-Member Drop-In Fee: $10
| Day | Time | Class | (Click on Instructor for Info) |
| Monday | 10:00-11:00 am | NEW! Tai Chi | Alex |
| 12:00-1:00 pm | Yoga Tune Up® | Tia | |
| 6:30-8:00 pm | Hatha Flow | Sheri | |
| Tuesday | 10:00-11:15 am | Vinyasa Flow | Molly |
| 4:30-5:45 pm | Vinyasa Flow | Molly | |
| 6:30-7:45 pm | Yoga Core and More | Tia | |
| Wednesday | 9:00-10:00 am | NEW! Qigong | Willow |
| 12:00-1:00 pm | Vinyasa Flow | Molly | |
| 6:00-7:00 pm | Abs Class | Chelsea | |
| 7:15-8:30 pm | Vinyasa Flow | Chelsea | |
| Thursday | 10:00-11:15 am | Vinyasa Flow | Molly |
| 4:30-5:45 pm | NEW! Hatha Level 1-3 | Joanna | |
| 7:00-8:15 pm | Vinyasa Flow | Lauren | |
| Friday | 9:00-10:00 am | NEW! Tai Chi | Alex |
| 12:00-1:00 pm | Vinyasa Flow | Molly | |
| Saturday | 10:00-11:00 am | Pilates Mat | Elena |
| Sunday | 9:30-10:30 am | NEW! Qigong | Willow |
| 5:00-6:15 pm | Mellow Vinyasa Flow | Cathyn |
Mondays 6:30 - 7:45 pm
This class will focus on body awareness, proper alignment, and the use of the breath to hold poses and to flow between them. Students will develop increased flexibility, strength and energy. We will also practice relaxation techniques to reduce stress and center the mind. There are elements of Iyengar, Ashtanga and Shadow Yoga in this class. All levels of experience are welcome.
About Sheri :
Sheri has been studying, practicing and in love with yoga since 1991, and teaching in the Bay Area since 1994. In 1996 she studied with the Iyengars, in Pune, India. She graduated from the 2-year Advanced Studies/Teacher Training Program at the Yoga Room in Berkeley, directed by Donald Moyer, in 1997. Her teaching is based on Iyengar methodologies, incorporates a flowing style and is strongly influenced by her primary teacher, Natanaga Zhander, founder of Shadow and Nata Yoga.
Wednesdays 9:00 – 10:00 pm
The gentle yet powerful art of Qigong uses breath, movement, sound, and meditation to correct imbalances in the body and restore harmony. Qigong helps to reduce stress while building stamina and improving balance, posture, flexibility, and mobility. Learn ancient techniques to free yourself from tension, keep your body healthy, and sustain tranquility. Regardless of ability, age, belief system or life circumstances, Qigong can enrich your life by maintaining health, healing the body, calming the mind, and reconnecting with the spirit.
About Willow
Willow Lune, CMQ, is driven by her desire to teach people how to access their own internal healing powers. She is dedicated to bringing about joy, laughter, empowerment, and healing on your spiritual journey. A certified instructor and practitioner of Medical Qigong and Acutonics Sound Healing, Willow enjoys offering students a supportive environment where one can release stress and achieve a better sense of well being.
Fridays 9:00 – 10:00 am (Energizing)
Gentle Tai Chi classes on Monday are open to all levels of fitness and physical stamina. This class will teach the foundational aspects of Yang style Taichi movements, and then lead the class through the Ni family Yin formTaichi movements. This class will give you the fundamentals for other martial arts and practices such as “Rooted Posture” and “Moving from the Lower Dantian” and also lead you through a series of movements that are specially designed to tone the muscles, stretch the ligaments, improve lower body strength and posture, and benefit the 5 senses and heightening spiritual sensitivity.
Energizing Tai Chi classes on Friday mornings will follow the Chen family style of Taichi exercises. Chen style is touted as the oldest martial art, being practiced and taught for centuries within only the Chen family lineage. Chen Style Taichi is very energizing and invigorating and can give you a really good workout! Fundamentals of Chen style will be covered such as "Silk realing", "Hip spiralling", "Open stance" as well as
leading the class through the "New frame" form of Chen Taichi. This class really builds lower body strength and include punches, kicks, and other
dance choreography which will test your strength, balance, and mind/body connection.
About Alex
Alex Tuggle is a second generation taichi instructor and acupuncturist who began practicing Qigong and Taichi at the age of 7 in the park with his father’s class. Alex has had the good fortune of studying with many different Qigong instructors and Taichi masters, most notably Daoshing and Maoshing Ni who are the family lineage holders of the Qigong tradition Alex was brought up with. Alex Tuggle has studied many different forms such as Chen style and Harmony style Taichi, various sword forms, Crane style Qigong, Eight Treasures Qigong, Sacred Turtle Qigong, Yi Jin Jing Shaolin Qigong, Medical Qigong, and Taoist meditation practices which promote energy and spiritual cultivation in order to pacify emotions, strengthen the body, sharpen the mind and heighten awareness. Alex Tuggle L.Ac. has a private acupuncture practice with office locations in Berkeley and San Francisco with a specialization in environmental toxins, stress related illness, nutrition, and chronic pain conditions.
Mondays 12:00 - 1:00 pm
Core and More
Tuesdays 6:30 - 7:45 pm
Class description to come.
About Tia
Tia Ukpe has been a devoted student of yoga since 2001. She has found the yogic journey very eye-opening and tries to instill the lessons she has learned on the mat as well as through encounters and challenges in her life. Tia has focused on practicing and teaching Ashtanga Vinyasa, a style of yoga which she finds to continually challenge and humble her. Her distinguished teachers include David Williams, Tim Miller, David Swenson, Saul David Raye, Jill Miller, Judith Hanson Lasater and Alice Joanou. She received her 200 hour teacher certification from It’s Yoga in 2007, is a RYT through Yoga Alliance, and through other training is certified to teach kids’, pre-natal and postnatal yoga. Tia is also a Relax and Renew Restorative Yoga teacher and is certified to teach Yoga Tune Up®, an integrative form of yoga therapy created by Jill Miller. Tia is currently working towards her Master’s in Holistic Nutrition, has received her initial certification from Saul David Raye in Thai Yoga Therapy and continues to look for new ways that she can integrate holistic living in all aspects of life.
Tuesdays 10:00 – 11:15 am
Tuesdays 4:30 – 5:45 pm
Wednesdays 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Thursdays 10:00 – 11:15 am
Fridays 12:00 – 1:00 pm
An hour-long mindful vinyasa yoga class where poses are linked with fluid transitional movements and synchronized with the breath to generate internal heat. Postural organization and structural integrity will be emphasized to develop form and prevent injury. This class is designed for all levels to have fun and be challenged.
About Molly
Molly is an enthusiastic and joyful yoga instructor and massage therapist (visit her at www.vitalitybodywork.com). Through her practice she continues to be amazed and excited by the transformative power of yoga, both on and off the mat. Her introduction to yoga was in 1997, where she delighted in the strength, flexibility and discipline that she cultivated through the rigorous practice of hot yoga. With a background in dance and performance, Molly has explored a variety of yoga styles over the years and has gravitated to those with a foundation in Vinyasa and an attention to structural alignment, like Astanga, Vinyasa flow, and Anusara. She believes that asana practices that link movement to breath allow us to develop our bodies and lift our spirits in a safe and mindful way.
As an experienced massage therapist, she has witnessed the power of breath in healing our bodies and deepening the mind-body connection. She has completed the 200 hour yoga teacher training with David Lurey in Brazil, is a certified Thai Yoga Massage practitioner from the Sunshine School in Thailand, holds a 1000 hour diploma in Therapeutic Massage from the Brian Utting School of Massage in Seattle, WA, and has earned a BA in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Molly feels tremendous gratitude towards her yoga teachers, including Nancy Gilgoff, Troy Lucero, David Schlussel, Nicole Becker, and David Lurey for their guidance and inspiration.
Wednesdays 6:00 - 7:00 pm
Vinyasa Flow
Wednesdays 7:15 - 8:30 pm
This class is a vigorous vinyasa flow, designed to stimulate the mind as well as the body. There might be moments of challenge, but nothing that you can’t do. All the while, the breath will carry you through. The goal is simply to move your bones. You will find your body getting longer and stronger and you will walk out feeling refreshed and ready to go. This class is appropriate for all levels, so absolute beginners will find their way and established yogis will find theirs, as well. Every pose is merely a suggestion. Students are welcome to both push themselves and modify as needed.
About Chelsea
A yogini for over 12 years, Chelsea has practiced regularly with Rusty Wells, Bryan Kest, and Laura Camp and studied Acro Yoga. She has recently completed yoga teacher trainings with Rusty Wells. She co-leads the Balanced Rock Foundation’s Women of Color backpack trip, which features backpacking, yoga, and creative writing. It’s the only WOC backpacking trip in the country. Check out www.balancedrock.org for more info. Chelsea has been a climber for 15 years, doing everything from bouldering to big walls.
Designed for beginning and continuing yoga practitioners, this class is structured to bring health and energy to the mind and body. The class combines the outer benefits of a physical asana (postures) practice with the inner benefits of beginning breath awareness techniques of pranayama. The class invites students to explore how the yoga experience will take them on a journey to build strength, flexibility and balance, while cultivating an openness to a stronger sense of self.
About Joanna
Joanna started her yoga journey in the late 90s beginning with an active asana practice. She discovered that, beyond the physical benefits yoga brought forth awareness and mindfulness that supported her in her daily life. It was the love of yoga that led her to deepen her practice by completing Piedmont Yoga Studio’s Advanced Teacher Training Program, under the mentoring of Richard Rosen. She then went on to complete Yoga Mendocino’s Foundations Teacher Training Program under the insightful guidance of Mary Paffard and Maggie Norton, studying both asana and Vipassana meditation.
Joanna has been blessed with opportunities to teach yoga to many different people - the young and the young at heart, young adults, seniors, people with disabilities, and those recovering from difficult and challenging life situations. Her understanding of anatomy enables Joanna to create classes that are accessible for beginning and experienced practitioners. Her goal is to provide students a foundation for building a deeper mind-body awareness, while cultivating an inner and an outer strength. Influenced by Iyengar’s yoga philosophy, Joanna balances building physical and emotional strength through physical alignment in the asana practice along with breath work in a pranayama practice. She believes her sense of humor and light-hearted, respectful approach will enable students to open their hearts and explore what yoga means to them both on and off the yoga mat.
Thursdays 6:30 - 7:45 pm
Through a focus on breath and alignment, this Hatha Flow class will build strength and increase flexibility while deepening your knowledge of classic yoga poses. Poses are linked together with breath, but held long enough to discover the deeper benefits of each posture. Suitable for all levels, modifications and individual adjustments will help you find your own yoga practice.
About Lauren:
Lauren took her first yoga class in 2002 while a student at the University of California, Santa Barbara and has been practicing ever since. Lauren has practiced Vinyasa and Iyengar styles of Hatha yoga and now practices and teaches in the YogaWorks style of flowing Hatha yoga. This style is a blend of Iyengar, Ashtanga, and Viniyoga. From Iyengar, this style and Lauren’s teaching focus on alignment, but like Ashtanga, link breath with movement. From Desikachar’s Viniyoga, YogaWorks takes the idea that poses must be modified for different bodies and situations. Lauren thanks her teachers Nikki Estrada, Erika Trice, Melanie Salvatore, and Christy Brown for guiding her through an amazing teacher training program and for all the knowledge and passion they have shared with her.
Lauren’s classes focus on teaching people to enjoy a safe, well-balanced yoga practice that enlivens, strengthens, and frees their physical, mental, and emotional selves, while also having a little fun. Lauren has also been climbing since 2007. In fall 2008 she fell in love with bouldering and is very excited to be teaching at Bridges!
Saturdays 10:00 - 11:00 am
Based on the teachings of Joseph H. Pilates this system involves full body participation. Students will work on developing the Pilates “vocabulary” of movement. Pilates fundamentals of breath, proper muscle firing, fluid movement and control are emphasized. Over the decades Pilates has evolved into a method for preventing and recovering from injuries by strengthening and stabilizing the core muscles of the body. This class combines stretching and warming moves with core strengthening exercises. The focus is on connecting with your core muscles, using the breath and maintaining the stability, as well as increasing the mobility, of the pelvis, spine and shoulders while engaging in a range of whole body movements. A variety of options are given that enable all levels of experience to both benefit from and be challenged by the class.
About Elena:
Elena is a true believer in the Pilates Method, it was her key to balance when she needed it the most. Elena first turned to Pilates while suffering from lower back pain during a period of rigorous professional dance training about 7 years ago. Pilates brought her strength, flexibility, energy and more efficient movement patterns. Most importantly however, the detail-focused practice of Pilates brought her heightened body awareness, self-understanding, and mental clarity that she wasn’t able to find elsewhere. She has watched this physical and mental knowledge empower many (including herself) to continue the tasks that are most important to them in their daily lives, from dance to circus arts to rock climbing to gardening. This has served to be the most important outcome, and Elena hopes to pass this and much, much more, onto to her students.
Elena is a Berkeley Native and returned to the Bay Area in 2007 to complete her Pilates Certification and continue her endeavors in modern dance. She holds a Certificate of Dance from the Alvin Ailey School of Dance and is also a Certified Yamuna Body Rolling Instructor. Elena joined Ascendance Project in February 2009, a Dance-Climb fusion company based in Oakland.
Sundays 5:00 - 6:15 pm
Wind down the weekend with a centering vinyasa yoga practice that explores movement and renews the mind and spirit. This basic yoga class is suitable for all levels and uses resistance props (bands and weights) to improve core strength and flexibility.
About Cathyn:
Cathyn brings a fresh perspective to her yoga teaching with her background in fitness and Pilates. She trained with YogaFit (Beth Shaw) for her 200-hour Yoga Alliance RYT and has taught at Bay Area YMCAs and rock climbing gyms. Uniting strength, stability, and stretching, Cathyn offers a safe space for discovering new movements.
SEE MONTHLY CALENDAR FOR DATES
All levels, all ages, all people are welcome to join the AcroYoga Community. This class provides a safe environment to explore trust, connection and playfulness, combining elements from Yoga, Acrobatics, and Thai Massage. The class can include: asana sequences, partner flow yoga, assisted inversions, basic partner acrobatics, flying and Thai massage. No yoga experience required, no partner needed. Come support and be supported.
About Donna:
Donna Carroll is a yogini, dancer, acrobat, designer, and co-founder of Ecstatic Dance in Oakland. Her classes embody complete presence through connection, movement, and play. She is a student of this game called life, and loves to skate on the edge of the comfortable boundaries, gently challenging students to open and play together. Good Times… Let’s Fly…
