-By Lauren Imparato, Founder of I.AM.YOU. Studio

Yoga shmoga.   There is so much yoga everywhere that it can be tough to discern what type to do, when, and above all, why.  At I.AM.YOU. we have a signature style, one based off vinyasa yoga, and laced it with an intense focus on anatomy, philosophy, and music.  Vinyasa yoga can be both a physical and mental addiction.  Here’s why:

1. Cardio.  Traditional yoga was not meant as a cardiovascular exercise.  In fact, most poses were meant to slow resting metabolic rate so as to prepare for meditation.  Vinyasa yoga, especially that of the I.AM.YOU. ilk, incorporates a series of sun salutes, the only cardio aspect of yoga, and a special “I.AM.YOU. Warm Up Flow,” which takes it up a notch from there.   

2. Sweat. Unlike hot yoga, vinyasa makes you really sweat, from the inside, out.  There is no fake external heat, so it is just your body creating its own.  This bodes well for the cardio and cleansing factors.

3.  Motion.  After a long day of sitting, which most of us do all day at work, movement is important.   Vinyasa is constant motion, one that serves to energize us, improve circulation, clear brain fog, and of course, get that cardio sweat. 

4.  Breath.  The breath is the single most important aspect of yoga.  In vinyasa yoga, especially I.AM.YOU., we link each inhale and exhale to a motion.  In that fashion, the class becomes an hour or hour and a half long breathing exercise, one that is likely an imperative reset in today’s stressful life.  

5. Moving Meditation.  If you struggle to sit still meditating for half an hour a day, do not worry.  Vinyasa is the epitome of a moving meditation.  Linking movement with breath, and then cloaking it all with the dedication we set at the beginning of class, turns your work out into an hour or hour and a half long meditation in motion.   This leaves you feeling centered, strong, and ready to take on whatever life throws you. 

Try this 15 minute intro to vinyasa video from home to whet your appetite before you next get to the studio. 

About Lauren Imparato

 

Lauren never anticipated that yoga would become part of her daily life.  In fact, she hated it.  A California girl raised on athletic fields, basketball courts, and in swimming pools, she travelled east for Princeton, and after graduating moved to New York for life as a young Wall Street Professional.  She turned to yoga only as an experimental diversification of her Manhattan treadmill workouts.  She soon realized that with regular practice, on and off the mat, yoga and its underlying lessons can change you from the inside out, as well as from the outside in.

Shortly after the Financial Crisis of 2008, Lauren launched I.AM.YOU., a lifestyle company and yoga studio in Manhattan based on Yoga, Nourishment, and Music.  Lauren has become revered as one of the globe’s top yoga and lifestyle experts, profiled on CNN, Bloomberg, Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar UK, The Financial Times, New York Magazine, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Jezebel, just to name a few.  Lauren unites the ancient Tibetan and Indian Hindu philosophies of yoga with modern day real life as the basis of her teachings and writings in yoga, self help, nutrition, and more.  Her realistic, straight up, modern approach has made her a cult favorite for urbanites in the know and she carries a little Cali, and a lot of NYC wherever she goes.  We await her first book, out with Penguin in 2015.