Ashtanga Yoga Berkeley

I thought this place was great from the two times i went here. Vance is a cool guy – very friendly and unpretentious. Nice studio space. Definitely a great place to practice.

I came to Ashtanga Yoga Berkeley for a workshop with Peter Sanson. I loved the space, and the workshop was amazing! I emailed Vance a few times before the workshop, and he was super helpful and informative. I would definitely go back!

I travel frequently for work and often am not able to find a Ashtanga yoga school near my hotel. I had a meeting in Berkeley in the afternoon, giving me enough time to attend a led practice with Vance on a Friday morning. It was beautiful. I really enjoyed it and Vance had very compassionate and warm energy and was very helpful in poses that are typically difficult for me because of my super tight right hip and my habit of holding onto that tightness. I learned a lot about myself from just taking one led class by him. I come to the bay area frequently and am excited to take a class again next time I’m in town. Thanks again!

Vance Selover is an amazing instructor. I was looking for a more traditional approach to my yoga practice (have a background/​teacher training in Forrest Yoga). This definitely is the root. Vance gives you yoga postures as you progress in your practice. Ashtanga-​mysore is a physically rigorous and rewarding practice… bring a towel!
I really enjoy the personalized, transmission-​based style of teaching. The classes follow Sri Pattabhi Jois’ tradition to a T. You can see the meditative benefits of this practice immediately– calmed mind, increased awareness, as well as greater strength and breath capacity. I felt a surprising increase in flexibility.
I am very excited to resume classes here when I move back to the Bay.

After several years of yoga a-​la-​cart, I decided to give Mysore — and one teacher — a try. The first time I tried Ashtanga (led), I knew it was my practice, though I was still skeptical of Mysore — if I’m on my own, why not just do a home practice and save money? Any doubts vanished my first session with Vance. Without having to lead a class, the teacher has time to TEACH. I received a much greater amount of personalized attention in the Mysore setting compared to a led class. Vance is a wonderful instructor, kind and encouraging while still pushing me to my edge (but not over), and my practice improved more in the 1-​month beginner course I did with Vance than it has in the past year. As a busy graduate student, I also enjoy not having to stress about getting to a yoga class at an exact time. Since the class is not led, one is able to drop in anytime during a session and not worry about disrupting the class. The studio has a great vibe to it, and you can leave your mat upstairs and not have to carry it back and forth. Vance also tries to create a community space, and on Friday’s (the only led day), there’s community chanting and chai afterward.

After practicing Ashtanga vinyasa based flow sequences with great teachers in the Bay Area for nearly a decade, I was so pleased to go straight to the source and begin practicing in the traditional method with Vance Selover. His own practice and his respect and mastery of both Ashtanga Yoga and Buddhist meditation traditions is inspiring and shines through his teaching.
Mysore ashtanga is a personal practice done under the guidance of a teacher, meaning that you advance at your own pace without being forced into poses that you are not ready for, unlike many other yoga classes where teachers are encouraging students to do rigorous sequences of poses that might not be right for them. You also get a considerable amount more personal attention since the class is silent (except for Led Primary Series classes on Friday mornings at 7:00 AM) so you really get the attention you need.
Vance’s new studio at 933 Parker is a true gem full of light and space, and heated to just the right temperature (around 80 – 85 degrees) so you can sweat and beat the winter chills without getting drenched and risking heat stroke and kidney damage like in many heated classes these days! Vance is also developing a more encompassing program for the space with plans to host day long meditation sittings and other dharmic practices for the community benefit.
I highly recommend Ashtanga Yoga Berkeley to anyone seeking a deeper experience of traditional hatha yoga practice!

I discovered Vance’s class while on a short stint in San Francisco. Vance’s class is what I’ll miss the most about the Bay Area!
Vance is an excellent teacher… patient, methodical and gentle, yet he furthered my practice so much in just 3 months. I really like his teaching style. I think he has a remarkably innate sense of his students’ bodies and abilities.
I’ll definitely be back to practice when I visit the Bay Area again and am crossing my fingers that Vance will run a retreat or two this year.

I’ve been coming for Vance’s early morning, Mysore Style Ashtanga Yoga sessions for nearly a year and I couldn’t be more pleased.
The studio is light-​filled and spacious, with high ceilings. And Vance is extremely compassionate and gentle, while still motivating great progress in my practice.
If you haven’t done much yoga, Ashtanga is quite a workout, building whole-​body strength and flexibility in a fixed sequence. Mysore Style Ashtanga is great because, unlike led classes, you work at your own pace, with your own breath.
Don’t be scared and don’t put it off. Your body and mind will thank you for it.