Review: Power Lunch at Harbor Yoga's New Space
Dublin's popular Harbor Yoga Studio recently uprooted its downtown dwelling and inhabited a brand new space at 4325 W. Dublin Granville Road.
"Downtown Dublin is lovely but parking is challenging," says co-owner Angie O'Brien. "We didn't have changing rooms. We had only one restroom. And we wanted to give clients what they're looking for."
The new space is 2,400 square feet-double what they had before. It boasts two changing rooms, two bathrooms and plenty of parking to be had in the lot it shares with The Shoppes at River Ridge. The studio itself is 1,200 square feet.
The class offerings are the same-Harbor, which O'Brien opened with co-ownerHeidi Bellin November of 2010, has everything from a Level 1 to a Power Lunch to a Kids Yoga Monthly Workshop. All classes are heated, excluding the Kids Workshop and Slow Flow (the class O'Brien recommends for first timers).
I popped into O'Brien's Power Lunch class on a recent Wednesday and was happy to see women and men of all ages ready to hit their mats.
There was plenty of room to be had, so I took my spot near the back. First thing I noticed: This heat wasn't just hot-it was heavy.
"For a lot of people, it's easier to go a little deeper into a pose," O'Brien says of the humidity's benefits.
Harbor has the moisture level set to around 60 percent in the 95-degree room. In my mad dash to get ready for work AND pack my workout clothes (too many tasks for 6 a.m., apparently), I forgot my towel. As we started our Vinyasa sequences, I found myself slipping and sliding on my mat like a fish out of water. Mortifying.
O'Brien took pity on me and brought me over one of the studio's Lululemon mats, which she says anybody can use when they come to a class. (She says these mats are so good, you'll eventually want to buy one yourself anyway.)
I felt bad about using their mat with no towel, so I stuck it out on my cheap-o Target find.
My mind soon let go of my slippery setback and focused itself on the movements. Being a Power Lunch, O'Brien inserted some push-ups, plank variations and a few other Pilates-esque moves that really had my muscles quaking. The music, an upbeat mix of hip hop and pop, kept me motivated, and that's just the idea.
"We have a lot of athletes come in, but they can't zone out," O'Brien says. "They say, 'I'm too bored.' The whole idea is we almost trick them into doing it. You're in there and you're moving around and the mix is playing, and all of a sudden you're lost in it."
The hour-long class flew by, and O'Brien was encouraging the whole time, walking slowly through the sequences once and then pushing us to pick up the speed as we repeated them.
By the end, I was beat and my water nearly gone. My arms had that rubbery, lifeless feeling, and I couldn't stop thinking about a Bruegger's bagel. (It's conveniently located across the lot from Harbor.)
"You may feel a bit sore. That's normal," O'Brien wrote in an email to me later that day. (Could she see me wincing as I walked up my stairs?) "The more yoga you do, the better your body will feel."
And you know what? I believe her. In fact, I'm going back this week. Wish me luck!
-Taylor Starek, @taylorstarek
Harbor Yoga Studio
- 4325 W. Dublin Granville Road
- Dublin, OH 43235
- Pricing: Single class, $15 (student rate, $10); 10 classes, $120; 20 classes, $200, monthly unlimited, $100; 14 days unlimited (first-time clients only), $25; Kids Yoga, $15
- Classes offered every day
Photos courtesy Harbor Yoga Studio