Local

Published Monday Jul 13, 2020 by Sara Lesher

What the Heck is VibeFlow Yoga? All Our Questions, Answered

Fitness

Mindbody Community

Yoga

One of the best things about Mindbody, is it allows you to find some super cool and unique wellness experiences you otherwise might not have known about. In fact, it’s through Mindbody, that our San Diego employees found out about VibeFlow Yoga.

Just a few miles up the road from the Mindbody SD office, this unique Del Mar studio is centrally located and easy to access (literally right off the 5 and close enough to the ocean you can smell it). And when we heard about their vibrating yoga plates, we just had to ask.

So, what the heck is VibeFlow yoga? We synced up with VibeFlow’s Operations Manager, Lori Cavallo, to get some answers.

Let’s start at the front: What is VibeFlow Yoga for those that may not know?

VibeFlow Yoga is a revolutionary yoga studio located in Del Mar, CA. It incorporates whole-body vibration technology and an audio immersion experience into the traditional yoga practice.

What is a VibeFlow yoga class, and why should someone consider taking this class?

VibeFlow Yoga offers 3 different classes: VibeFlow Foundations, VibeFlow Vinyasa, and VibeFlow Power. All of the classes are 55 minutes in length. The vibration plate is turned on for 20-25 minutes of the class. No matter what your level of yoga experience is, we have a class that is suitable for you. Someone should consider taking a VibeFlow yoga class because not only will they experience the many benefits of practicing yoga, but they will also have the luxury of reaping the benefits of whole-body vibration technology. Some of these benefits include increasing strength & balance, improving flexibility and circulation, improving bone mineral density, aids against osteoporosis, improving joint & back pain, reducing the stress hormone cortisol, and improving mental focus & clarity.

What changes have you made since reopening after closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic? How are you keeping your clients safe and comfortable?

We opened back up on June 17th, and our website’s FAQ page details all the new policies and procedures we’ve implemented. We’ve gone above and beyond with our in-studio cleaning protocols, including having the Microshield 360 process done.

We are starting outdoor classes this coming Saturday 7/11 and our livestream classes will be back on the schedule starting 7/13. The students that have come back to the studio have been amazing—we all missed the benefits that the vibration plates provide. We have been very flexible with our members and understand that some are not yet ready to exercise indoors. We are looking forward to the outdoor and virtual options for them but can’t wait for the day when we can have full classes again in the studio.

How would you describe wellness to someone who has no idea what “wellness” means?

Wellness is not just the absence of illness. Wellness includes being whole and in your right mind. Being mentally alert and aware, physically active and able to perform daily tasks, and spiritually grounded. Wellness could also include having healthy, meaningful and impactful relationships.

What is your wellness philosophy?

Our wellness philosophy is to meet people where they’re at and help them on their own personal journey towards health and wellness, through the practice of VibeFlow Yoga.

If someone were to be nervous about visiting VibeFlow Yoga for the first time, what would you say the studio does well to ease their nerves?

We would first find out why they are nervous…is it the yoga or the vibration technology that has them feeling uncomfortable? We would let them know in either case, that there is no need to be nervous about coming to VibeFlow Yoga. We take great care in getting to know our students and understanding what their individual goals and needs are. We spend time with them before their first class introducing them to the vibration plate, getting them set up with their headset, and also introducing them to their instructor. Our instructors pay attention to any injuries or limitations they may have and offer options to provide the best experience possible. We have an extremely welcoming and friendly staff who strive to make every guest comfortable and at ease.

If someone were to be taking their first VibeFlow Yoga class, what are 5 things you would tell them to expect/prepare for before coming?

• Get ready for an amazing experience!

• Wear comfortable yoga clothing

• Pre-register and arrive 15-20 minutes prior to class

• Bring your yoga mat, water bottle, and small towel

• Bring a friend!

How should one recover from a VibeFlow Yoga class? What’s the ideal meal/drink/etc. for recovery?

The main thing that we tell our students is to drink a lot of water or a hydration drink with electrolytes throughout the day/night after class. The vibration has a detoxifying effect as it helps to drain the lymphatic system, so it is important to hydrate after. An interesting side note is that the vibration technology also aids in recovery, so VibeFlow Yoga is a great place to come when you are doing other fitness activities that cause a lot of soreness. A VibeFlow Yoga class will assist in your recovery and alleviate that pain quicker.

How do you personally practice wellness? (taking time for yourself, etc.)

I begin every day by spending between 20-30 minutes doing a devotional and praying. I workout at Orangetheory Fitness or the gym four to five days a week, and I do VibeFlow Yoga four to five days a week, typically after my workouts. I like to surf and train martial arts (schedule permitting). I belong to a business peer group, journal, and read.

How do you professionally practice wellness? (promoting VibeFlow values to your employees, work correspondences, etc.)

I professionally practice wellness by living what I do. I take time to pour into my employees, especially my leadership teams. We’ll do group outings, and I spend one-on-one time with each member of our leadership team. Each year my team and I will go through a book together, and we will discuss takeaways from each chapter, and how to apply them to our lives/career.

What is the most popular class VibeFlow Yoga offers?

We always recommend that students start with VibeFlow Foundations. No matter what their level of yoga experience is, this will be their first time incorporating it with whole-body vibration. Because a majority of our members are new to yoga, and because we have been open just 6 months, the VibeFlow Foundations classes have been our most attended so far.

What are some classes you offer that people may have questions about/wouldn’t try without a little coaxing?

People have questions about all of our classes mainly because we are introducing something to them that they have never seen so there is always that curiosity and possible doubt. The minute we turn the vibe plate on during the onboarding process, these questions turn into excitement and they can’t wait to experience it in class. The feeling that the vibration gives to you is difficult to describe with words only, so we just encourage people to give it a try and the overwhelming majority love it!

What is the goal for a person that visits the space? How do you ideally want them feeling when they arrive, during the class, and as they leave?

Arrive – feeling welcomed, at ease, greeted with a smile, and impressed with the cleanliness and beauty of the studio

During – leaving all distractions behind, immersed in the music and the beautiful space that the studio provides, feeling the vibrations go through their body and recognizing the differences in how they feel at that moment compared to when they came in, and how present they are during class.

Leaving – knowing that they just had a great experience and that they want to implement VibeFlowYoga into their weekly routine. We want them to be excited to sign up for their next class.

What trends and evolutions in the wellness space should we be aware of?

At VibeFlow Yoga we know to be successful we must do three things very well:

1. Provide the best customer service

2. Provide the best member experience

3. Create a culture community that makes them want to come back

What’s next for VibeFlow Yoga?

What’s next for VibeFlow Yoga is to bring it to the LA and OC markets, and open our second studio in San Diego.

Anything else you’d like us to know about wellness, you, VibeFlow Yoga?

Wellness – requires action, and intentionality, that’s driven by a purpose to live out the rest of your life so that it can be the best of your life.

Myself – I’m committed to having a positive impact on the lives of as many people as I can, who are willing to try something new and innovative in pursuit of feeling, looking, and performing their best.

VibeFlow Yoga – To open as many studios as I can to make VibeFlow Yoga available to as many people as possible to receive all of the life-changing benefits that VibeFlow Yoga has to offer. To become part of our amazing community, the VibeTribe!

So, if you read all that and you’re still not ready to sign up for a class quite yet, don’t worry. We tried it first, and we’re here to tell you how it went. Already sold? Great. Book a class on Mindbody now!

Written by

Sara Lesher

Marketing Content Associate

About the author

Spoiled by the San Diego sunshine, Sara’s hobbies include beaching, hiking, concert-going, and brewery-hopping. As Mindbody’s marketing content associate, she naturally loves reading and writing… so if you have any book recommendations, let her know. And just between us: she’s committed to health and wellness but loves a good taco (shoutout TJ Tacos in Escondido).

Wellness

Published Thursday Apr 01, 2021 by Denise Prichard

Your Guide to Releasing Stress and Finding Peace

Expert Advice

Wellness

Self-care

Since 1992, April has been recognized as Stress Awareness Month. It was established to help shed light on the issues behind stress, teach us how to fight it, and create methods to overcome it. While this initiative has existed just shy of three decades, this year it seems particularly important.

With a year under our belts in pandemic mode—a lot of us had to get creative when it came to keeping our cool. On top of that, everyday stresses didn’t just magically disappear during this time either. Just think about it—have you ever been in a situation that was overwhelming? Maybe you’ve had a looming deadline or a to-do list that seems, well...totally un-doable? If you’ve ever felt you were in over your head, please know you’re not alone—you never are. At one time or another, we’ve all been affected by stress—although each person may manifest it differently. Me? I'm definitely a frequent rider on the "hot mess stress express."

There are many ways to help combat stress—some of us seek out support from friends and family, while others find solace in taking up meditation or unwinding with a relaxing yoga class. Whatever helps you find peace, just keep doing you. But also know we have some resources to help you overcome stress whenever the need arises.

Here are some blog posts that are always available to you when you feel a little stressed out:

1. Foundational Steps to Cultivating a Daily Self-love Practice

When in doubt, breathwork expert and sound healer, Shanila Sattar, always has tips to help ground yourself—especially in times of need. In this blog post, she gives you the recipe for incorporating self-love into your daily routine by encouraging us to ask ourselves these questions: How do we treat ourselves? How do we talk to ourselves? What foods are we putting into our bodies? How are we thinking about our overall well-being when practicing self-love? As we all know, self-love defines and redefines itself for everyone over the years, here are a few foundational tips to think about when easing into your self-love journey.

Your self-love practice awaits

2. I Tried Virtual Meditation...Here’s What I Learned

Yoga Nidra, or “yogic sleep,” is a practice that has been around for thousands of years and it aims to restore the mind, body, and soul through deep, guided meditation. The way it works is like the way a power nap helps one feel refreshed during a particularly exhausting day, except you aren’t technically sleeping. I describe it as a long-form of savasana—anywhere from 30 minutes to one hour. (Real talk: savasana is one of the best parts of practicing yoga, am I right?)

TLDR: I learned that I could conquer stress in a matter of minutes with Yoga Nidra.

De-stress with a virtual meditation class

3. Accessible Yoga Poses for Emotional Balance and Release

Are we safe in saying this last year brought up a ton of emotions the likes of which we did not plan for? The good, the bad, the “unprecedented”—our hearts and minds have been taken on a wild rollercoaster ride, and for many of us, our mental health is suffering. With our minds running in thousands of directions, it’s hard to notice our own needs. Yes, our attention to the goings-on of last year is vital but caring for ourselves is as important as ever. Here are some tips from our favorite yoga instructor, Dani Schenone.

Find balance with these yoga poses

4. Top Breathing Exercises for Anxiety and Depression and The New Normal

Have you been feeling it? The big emotion floating around the last year is the Big Anxiety. Coupled with the stress of what the COVID-19 pandemic has bought for millions of people, disturbed wellness routines, and worry, we have a recipe to create massive damage to ourselves. Adjusting to the new normal, with social distancing practices in place and adapting to precautions and routines, may be the root of even more anxiousness for many as we’re navigating uncharted territories.

Inhale positivity, exhale negativity

5. The "Staying Grounded" Guide to Stress and Anxiety Pre- and Post-COVID-19

If you've got those familiar feelings of stress and anxiety coursing through your body right now, you're definitely not alone. We get it. Times are uncertain, our mental health is taxed, we're doing what we can to reduce stress and anxiety in general, and relaxation has taken a back seat. It’s no secret that stress is proven to weaken our immunity, so now more than ever, it's important to relax, deal with what's happening, and find the coping mechanisms to help you reclaim your mental health and reduce your involvement in stressed moments. Let's deal with stress and anxiety together and see what we can do to reduce them.

Get tips to ground yourself

6. How to Meditate: A Beginner's Guide

Meditation will change your life if you let it. The pace of our modern life is at least ten times what it was just 10 years ago. Technology improved our lives but also created a more frenetic and stressful pace. If we decided to stop, breathe, and become more mindful, we would reduce stress and experience much more enjoyment in each moment of our everyday lives.

Find peace with meditation

7. Cultivate Your Calm with These 7 Yoga Poses

There’s always something to worry about. Whether it’s our career, relationships, dating, or trauma, we go through moments that bombard us with negative thoughts that can make us feel anxious and stressed. Our worries may often define our choices, our view of the world, or ourselves. This doesn’t mean they are faults, flaws, or downfalls—we just need to practice managing them in a healthy way, placing deserved value on self-care. Yoga is only one connection. Check out these seven yoga poses that can help your mind and body when you’re experiencing anxiety, depression, or overall stress.

Keep calm with yoga

8. Mindfulness Tips to Stay Intentional, Focused, and Aligned in 2021

We’re all guilty of our routines and habits running our lives at one point or another. We’re all guilty of being attached to our schedules and our to-do list. We’re all guilty of running on a loop every now and then. As the energies of 2021 continue to shift, we get to ask ourselves the intentions of why and how we are participating in the places we are participating in, the thoughts we are thinking, the habits we are cultivating, and the communities that we are a part of. This intention and mindfulness process can not only shift our own experiences but of those around us as well.

Stay focused in 2021

9. Why It's Time to Try a Healing Virtual Sound Bath

If you have found meditation to be useful in trying times, right now is an incredible time to also try virtual sound baths to receive the deep sound healing benefits. As many of us are processing a variety of emotions as a collective—stress, worry, fear, anxiety, uncertainty—we can start to cause long-term damage to our bodies, especially to our immune and nervous systems. Giving ourselves self-care in a way that is easy, non-intrusive, and simple, can be the perfect way to help your body restore.

Banish stress with a sound bath

These resources aren’t the only thing we have to help you deal with stress—they’re just the tip of the iceberg. In fact, there are tons of classes available to you on the Mindbody app and through Mindbody Flex to help you reignite your calm whenever you’re feeling overwhelmed. And always remember, at the end of the day, your best is always good enough.