Astanga Yoga London

Students at the Astanga Yoga London studio practice Mysore style yoga, exclusively. For those of you who don’t know what this is, it’s a self-​practice. There will be no one parroting off asana instructions with an entire room of people moving in synchronization. Instead, after you find the completely unmarked building with frosted windows and enter with trepidation for fear you’re in the wrong place, you’ll enter the studio and be struck by how quiet the place is, punctuated only by rather loud ujjayi breathing. If you’re not used to this style of yoga or this style of studio, you might find yourself quite intimidated. There is no front desk, no receptionist. If one of the yogis takes pity on you, (s)he will direct you to Hamish, the studio’s guru. Once you’ve had a conversation with him, you’ll feel much more welcome. Even if you’re entirely new to astanga yoga and the primary series, Hamish will guide you through your first practice with interest and sensitivity.
If you look around you, you’ll see yogis in various asanas, all exhibiting various levels of mastery. Students only learn one asana at a time, following the astanga primary series, although Hamish is certified by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois to teach the intermediate series as well. The studio has a large room for practice and a smaller enclave for students performing the finishing series and savasana. The adjustments, when you get them, are excellent. And I suspect that you actually get more adjustments in this style of yoga than you would in a general yoga class.
Now for my actual experience.
I used to attend this studio five days a week for about five months. Initially, I genuinely enjoyed it. I improved my asana more under Hamish than I have under any other teacher, and I really appreciated this studio for that. But after all this time, seeing the same students day in and day out, the only person I had any sort of rapport with was Hamish himself. I began to feel a bit uncomfortable, as it seemed as if a lot of the students were friends with each other but I seemed to be the weird kid that smells like cat food who everyone avoids.
Except I don’t smell like cat food. I swear.
But this wasn’t even the thing about the studio that eventually turned me off to it. I can accept my fate as the hypothetical cat-​food kid. The thing that made me stop going was the unnecessary intensity of the practice. Although everyone wants to improve, I got the impression that students were pushed into improving for improvement’s sake rather than being encouraged to listen to their bodies, which includes their bodies’ limitations. I started to feel worn down. I started to feel as if I was beating my body into submission every morning instead of practising yoga. Perhaps this was my fault for not speaking up.
So, everything considered, I’d say that Astanga Yoga London’s forte is its instructor, Hamish. But, at the end of the day, the facility itself is just a small empty space with no amenities and a not-​so-​welcoming clientèle. And if you don’t speak up for yourself and engage Hamish and the students who assist him in postural corrections freely, you might end up hurting yourself. Furthermore, even though I was getting a student’s concession for the monthly cost for membership, it was still quite steep for my budget.
P. S. Don’t bother calling the number listed here on Unilocal.The studio’s only phone never rings, and it’s taped to the wall. If you want to get more information, you should email Hamish directly. His email address is listed on the studio’s website.
P. P. S. I’m not sure why ashtanga is spelled astanga since everywhere in English-​speaking countries it’s spelled with an ‘H’. (SEO, like whoa).

I visited Astanga Yoga with a group of my friends who follow the routine religiously. Situated in a prime site location near Euston Station the centre was founded by Hamish Hendryn in 2004 after he spent some time training extensively under his mentor in Mysore India. All the yoga practised here is based on the Mysore style and students are encouraged to make this type of discipline more geared towards attaining a lifestyle. The facilities are a bit basic and the classes don’t have more than 17 students at a time, but despite all this negativity the teaching is really genuine and the commitment to the discipline never feels like a chore.