Fancy Pants: LuluLemon Arrives in NYC

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At last, the wildly popular Canadian yoga-clothing company, Lululemon Athletica, brings its innovative and high-quality gear to New York.

Already in L.A. and Chicago, the company’s designers use fabrics such as Silverescent (which draws on the anti-bacterial qualities of silver) and Luon (which wicks away moisture), to create sexy clothes for yogis and non-yogis alike. Lululemon also has a soul: In 2005 its stores gave $300,000 back to local communities through their Charitable Giving Program. Look good, do good: sounds good.

1928 Broadway at 64th St (212-496-1546, lululemon.com)

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Goal Mate: Yoga for Running, Golfing, Dating, Public Speaking

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Photo: Alexander Milligan

Whether to improve your game or give you game, these inventive classes use yoga to enhance other pursuits.

For Going the Distance (running, golfing, cycling)

Pros on the Nets, the Mets and the Giants have all done yoga. Now savvy amateur athletes can benefit from asana guidance, too. This winter, Yoga Works (212-769-9642, yogaworks.com) offers a variety of two-hour yoga workshops that help runners, cyclists, skiers, golfers, dancers and marathoners train smart and stay focused.

Eschewing the smorgasbord approach, the Running Center (therunningcenter.com, 212-362-3779) holds ongoing yoga classes specifically for runners’ needs—knee and leg health, breath control, and mental endurance.

Yogi J.Brown (917-446-8871, yogijbrown.com) works with golfers on precision and flexibility to improve their swings and their scores.

And come January, Marissa Spano (917-734-7301), a recent transplant from Hawaii, will offer group classes for cyclists, using the techniques of pranayama (breath work) and asana to strengthen knees, ankles, wrists and shoulders and to develop balance on the bike. Ask her about her work with divers and surfers, too.

For Getting Some (dating, sexuality, fertility)

“First comes love, then comes marriage…” and now comes yoga for all stages of coupling. Start with Y-Date?!, an annual event at Noodle Yoga, in Dumbo, Brooklyn (718-624-5525, noodleyoga.com), where owner Nadia Block holds an open-level class followed by a singles soiree (the next Y-Date?! is scheduled for Spring ’07).

Once you’ve met the One, prepare yourself for consummation at a Yogic Ecstasy workshop with Marisa Sullivan (347-563-1404, yogicecstasy@yahoo.com) in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Sullivan helps women (and soon men) to expand their orgasmic potential through kegels, breathing exercises, vocalization and guided imagery.

And keep those nethers supple and toned at the ongoing Let’s Stay Juicy class at the Breathing Project (212-979-9642, breathingproject.org). If your next stop is babyland, boost your fertility in a Receptive Nest workshop led by Barrie Raffel and Karen Safire (212-898-0414), which focuses on restorative poses and calming the nervous system.

For the Call-back, the Calling and Speaking Up (writing, singing, public speaking)

Liz Caplan of Yoga for Singers (212-645-9369, lizcaplan.com) works with Broadway performers, while Suzanne Jackson of Yogasing (610-444-4135, yogasing.com) works with opera singers and public speakers—both offer yoga workshops, coaching and DVDs to help open up the muscles used to breathe, and to help calm performance jitters.

To get the creative juices flowing, award-winning TV commercial producer Barbara Benedict offers Yoga for Writers, Artists and Other Creative Souls at Levitate Yoga (212-974-2288, levitateyoga.com), a vinyasa class that incorporates artistic assignments (bring a sketchbook or journal).

Yoga for Public Speaking is also a part of Yoga Effects’ comprehensive 8-Part Beginner’s Series (212-754-5600, yogaeffects.com). Director Liz Mandarano says yoga helped her become a better speaker and lawyer—and motivated her to quit the corporate life. Who says creative leaps are limited to artists?

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Class Menagerie: the IntenSati Workout at Equinox

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Three city gyms have launched new workout series to entice you into their ranks.

Patricia Moreno’s class at Equinox Gyms won’t just sculpt biceps and buttocks. It also aims to turn unhappiness into positive expectations. Moreno, a former kickboxing teacher, developed IntenSati by blending cardio, dance, yoga and aerobics with life coaching. Sati is the Buddhist concept of intention, so students repeat affirmations such as “Every day, in a very true way, I cocreate my reality,” while following Moreno through a butt-kicking workout. The class concludes with a meditation session, during which Moreno assures us that we can live the life we want and look great, too. We just need the right intention and enthusiasm—and a membership at Equinox. At four Equinox locations throughout the city. Call 212-774-6363, or visit www.intensati.com or www.equinoxfitness.com for information.

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For Total Posers: Four Book Reviews

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Unfurl your mat and meditate on this summer's best yoga books.

Yoga Beneath the Surface: An American Student and His Indian Teacher Discuss Yoga Philosophy and Practice

By Srivatsa Ramaswami and David Hurwitz. Marlowe and Company, $16 paperback.
Don’t have a personal guru? How about a portable one? In Yoga Beneath the Surface, Indian master Srivatsa Ramaswami elaborates on the finer points of yoga philosophy with California yogi David Hurwitz. A student of the renowned Sri T. Krishnamacharya (1888--1989), Ramaswami illuminates issues as varied as the nature of the self, the hidden benefits of poses and whether to jump back to chaturanga on an inhale, exhale or no breath at all. The conversational format is skimmable—making it handy for yogis commuting between classes—but the full experience may require the use of other reference books, notably Ramaswami’s The Complete Book of Vinyasa Yoga. And if you aren’t already comfortable with Sanskrit and the yoga sutras, this book will take some effort.

The Wisdom of Yoga: A Seeker’s Guide to Extraordinary Living

By Stephen Cope. Bantam Dell, $25.
All too often, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, that tome of yogic wisdom, gathers dust on earnest yogis’ bookshelves simply because it is so very esoteric. Enter senior Kripalu yoga teacher Stephen Cope, who provides much-needed Western context in The Wisdom of Yoga. Cope, also a psychotherapist, follows six people—from a hard-nosed litigator to a Berkshires gardener—in their psychological dramas. As each case study develops, Cope deftly explains how the sutras’ major terms and concepts—such as stilling the mind, building awareness and facing the false self—apply. Cope is well versed in Eastern and Western ideas and has a light touch with heavy concepts; you almost forget that this is theory. The book includes a handy English translation of the yoga sutras at the back.

Waking: A Memoir of Trauma and Transcendence

By Matthew Sanford. Rodale, $24.
Matthew Sanford vividly illustrates the power of mind-body connection in Waking: A Memoir of Trauma and Transcendence. At age 13, this Minnesota native became a paraplegic when a freak car accident sent his family off an icy highway, killing his father and sister. Although Sanford went on to lead a life that included college, marriage and a family, it was yoga that ultimately helped him recover. Working with an Iyengar-trained teacher, Sanford learned to experience his unresponsive body in powerful energetic connections. He’ll never walk, but that hasn’t stopped him from teaching yoga to students both walking and disabled. If you’ve ever questioned the healing power of yoga, this fast read is for you.

The Yin Yoga Kit: The Practice of Quiet Power

By Biff Mithoefer. Healing Arts Press; book, flash cards and audio CD, $25.
Yoga is healing, yet practitioners sometimes tear knee ligaments, pull hamstrings and strain rotator cuffs while pushing themselves to perform. According to Biff Mithoefer, Omega Institute instructor and author of The Yin Yoga Kit, the culprit is too much yang, or aggressive striving. He recommends more yin, or softness and receptivity. Yin Yogis allow connective tissue and joints—especially in the lower back and pelvis—to gently stretch by holding poses for five minutes or more. The peaceful practice follows the flow of chakras, energy centers and meridians to deeply balance the body. And since Mithoefer’s kit includes a book, a programmable CD and flash cards, you can organize that peaceful practice at home.

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