We've all been there- you know that a daily yoga asana practice is essential to your physical and mental health. You've been upping the number of home practice days since your budget is tight but you're craving the community, the vibration of 20 other people ommmming with you, the teacher's adjustments, the way you can just let go and not think, the props, the music... you need a yoga class in your community that you can afford right now.
New Orleans has some of the most affordable yoga classes I've ever seen! The most affordable being at Life Yoga which offers $9 dropins, $6 student dropins, and even better packages. That's where you can find yours truly teaching :) However, the most expensive class you take in New Orleans will still only be under $20!! And these are really good classes with amazing teachers. I know, gotta love it.
Sometimes you find that you're eating ramen noodles ("at 4:30 in the morning, when we barely could survive, I was never more alive"...had to put that song quote in there, hehe) every night that week and can't scrape together $15 for a yoga class. So, I'm putting together a little list of the FREE and cheapest classes you can take in the city. Because yoga studios feel that it is only yogic :) to offer some sort of affordable class for the community you'll find one at almost every studio. I love this logic- it's in the mental health counselors' code that we have to offer some sort of free/discounted/affordable service and I love that yoga studios do it too.
Here's what I've come up with (in no particular order). Please comment and add anything that I'm missing. Nola has 22 studios, apparently, so I haven't mentioned even half of them!
$6 student drop in. $9 drop in (all others).
$5 community classes Saturday 9:30, Saturday 4pm, Sunday 4pm
$15 drop in
Free community class Sunday 10:00-11:30am and Tuesday 7:15-8:45pm
$15 drop in
Free community class Mondays 7:45-9:00pm
$15 drop in
Free (by donation) community class Wednesday 7:45-9:15pm
Also various $7 community classes- uptown has 3 a week.
A clothing store that has complimentary classes every week. Each month they showcase a different studio and free classes are on the weekends. The website currently talks about last week's free class in the park with their own staff and shanti teacher Lindsay so you may have to call and ask an educator.
I'm sure there are more free classes to find around our city- these are just the places I've been to. Here are a few more studios offering very affordable classes. Also, please note I live in the GD so I mostly looked uptown. Would love to know about other studios in the Marigny, Downtown, Met'ry, etc...
Yoga 108 (Bikram studio, 8229 Oak St, Uptown)
$18 drop in
Couldn't find any community classes here. All are Bikram and one is Silent Bikram. I have never practiced at this studio since I'm no the biggest Bikram fan but you could call and see if your first class is complimentary.
$15 drop in
No community/discounted classes but there is a by donation meditation 'class' Friday mornings 9-10:00am.
$14 drop in
No discounted or community classes but recently did a $20 for 20 class livingsocial.
$14 drop in
I had trouble locating a community class at the various swan river locations but you could call and ask. The first class here is free. I really like these studios and would totally Love a community class.
$12 hour, $15 90 minutes drop in
Sivananda classes are on a sliding scale from $5 to $13 and all other classes are as stated above. No community classes and I've never been here so I can't vouch for it.
$10 drop in (great!)
All Mysore Ashtanga classes, one led class and one intro class each week. No community or discounted classes.