But unfortunately I doubt I'll be going back to that studio. Turns out it's on the verge of closing. The owner and founding teacher (a junior intermediate III level according to the website) doesn't even teach there anymore. I had known about this studio for about 2 years now, but had never gotten there before this morning. Too bad I had waited that long.

Anyhow, it was a beginner level class, which was the only class that worked with my schedule to attend. Which was fine, because even with the other yoga experience I have, I figured I couldn't go wrong trying things out from the bottom up. But I don't know, something just didn't gel there for me. Maybe it was the fact that the teacher never asked if I had any injuries or previous conditions. He did ask if I had yoga experience, which I said I did, though didn't give any details about until after the class was over. Is that not something that's done in Iyengar classes (asking about conditions, etc.)? I figured if anywhere, there would be the place that would be the most mindful of my issues. Maybe I expected too much. It's possible.

As for the practice itself, it really was beginner and quite basic, and that was fine. Tadasana, Virabhadrasa I, Trikonasana, Parsvakonasana, Prasarita Padottanasana, Sirsasana with blocks, Halasana with feet on the wall, Salamba Sarvangasana on three blankets but feet in the air, Setu Bandhasana on a block, Savasana on blocks as well. I think that's it. It was only an hour. So my question to all who know, is this typical of a beginner's class? There were two others in the class who seemed to be regulars, and then only me.

Interesting, my hips felt like they needed opening after the class, now that I think about it. I guess pigeon pose or any other sort of hip-opener is not part of the beginner curriculum? I don't know, I just felt I needed that to level me out. Maybe I will go back, try it again, but with a different teacher if I can get the schedule to work out. We'll see.

That's my viewpoint as well, which is why I had been holding off going to this studio in the first place. While I believe it's good to experience many different styles, for me, I'd prefer to be very clear and well-versed with one style of yoga before going to investigate another.

I had been practicing at my first teacher's studio for at least two years before I had ever ventured out to another studio. That was an Integral studio, my teacher's original background, so that made sense to me, to see where she had come from. I took a couple of asana classes there, as well as spent some time in the presence of the guru there for lectures during my training last year.

And now that I've been practicing at the Anusara studio for about nine months, I decided to sample a bit of Iyengar, just to see the origins of that style. There are about a half a dozen other studios in my area, all different styles (ashtanga, heated vinyasa, bikram, you name it). I'd much prefer to continue in that investigation, but as I said, the original teacher of this Iyengar studio doesn't teach there anymore. The teacher I took class with, I get the feeling he isn't a certified teacher of Iyengar, in spite of his 20+ years of experience. I'm sure I'll give it at least one more shot, and hopefully in a different level class. Maybe I'll even track that original teacher down, since she was the one I had first gotten recommendations for.