Eat, Drink and Yoga When March Comes

A smell of fresh primer emanates from the walls within 1840 Echo Park Ave., permeating the air of rooms cluttered with tools and unused pieces of furniture probably destined for a fate outside of their original purposes.

But it’s here–when the clutter is gone and the chaos subsides–where Echo Park resident Samantha Jones hopes members of the community will eventually find peace. It is, after all, going to be her yoga studio.

“This isn’t about people who just eat, you know, bean sprouts,” she said. “This is for all people. It’s a way to be part of the community.”

Community is what fuels Jones’ concept behind Yogala Echo Park, which veers away from more traditional studios by focusing on the social aspects of meeting at one place for exercise and blending it into the day–as opposed to being seen as a place to solely escape from the world and aggressively purge the day from your body.

“It’s clear that people here in this neighborhood want to be part of the community,” said Jones, who moved back to Echo Park in October from New York with her husband, Nick Garrison, who was born and raised in the area. “This area needs a community center where kids are welcome and people can come together.”

And when they do, they will find a variety of options. Instead of offering classes focusing on one specific style of yoga (there are many), visitors will get a blend of traditional styles and classes designed around a particular part of the day.

“On Friday night, you need a different kind of class than, say, a Monday morning,” Jones said. “The classes work off the rhythms of the day.”

Some of them also work off concepts involving food. A glance at the page of the studio’s offerings features classes called “Rise and Shine--yoga for breakfast” as well as “Vinyasa and Vino”, which features an hour of yoga followed by wine and snacks.

There’s a method to this type of fusion, said Jones, and it’s not just to simply give off the appearance of multitasking.

“To me, the classes can be nourishing, and they can offer the same things meals do, in a way,” she said.

On a recent afternoon, both Samantha and Nick were getting their fill of work around the still-forming studio, which will feature multiple spaces for yoga as well as a lounge area where people can simply meet and enjoy company.

Nick, a screenwriter who jokingly referred to himself as Samantha’s “slave” for the day, said working on the space has been a different experience for him.

“I’m a screenwriter, so I live in a world of imaginary things,” he said. “So doing things like the painting and stripping things down … and the thing about starting a business is that you go on a big shopping spree. It’s a lot different than sitting in front of a computer. I also think I’m an observer in a lot of ways.”

Samantha said that the community has taken notice of what’s been going on at the space as well, and that the response has helped her push through a lot of the challenges that come with trying to build something new.

“One thing that’s been very special … they get that we’re working toward something here, and it doesn’t have to be a million-dollar place to get started,” she said. “I am hoping that people are understanding. There’s been a lot of elbow grease that’s gone in there.”

Yogala Echo Park is expected to open in early March.