This month, Hippie Yoga turns 12. When we opened our doors, the goal was pretty simple: create a place where people could practice yoga without feeling like they had to already be good at yoga. Twelve years later, that part hasn't changed. We've changed plenty along the way. We've added classes. Tried things that worked. Tried some things that definitely did not. We've welcomed new teachers, new students and watched a whole lot of Hippies become stronger, steadier and more c

September's Pose of the Month is Reclined Figure Four, and if your hips are feeling a little cranky, this one's worth getting to know. You’ll start on your back, cross one ankle over the opposite thigh, and draw the legs toward you. Looks simple. Your hips may have opinions. Figure Four works into the outer hips and glutes, and throughout September we're going to explore different ways to practice it. Because you know how we feel about poses around here. Your job isn't to m

Nobody feels like going every time. Not to yoga. Not for the walk. Not to do the thing we know usually makes us feel better. We tend to think motivation is supposed to come first. Like one day we're going to wake up and think, Hell yes, I cannot wait to make good choices for myself today. Cute idea. But motivation often works the other way around. We start first. The good feelings follow. Movement can help activate the brain's reward system, including dopamine, which is invol

Last week we talked about WHY we love Supported Bridge. This week, let's talk about making it work for YOUR body. Because, as you probably know by now, at Hippie we are big fans of options. And props. Lots and lots of props. Want more comfort? Grab a folded blanket, bolster or ball instead of a block. Maybe you want less height. Maybe you want something softer underneath you. Maybe today your body is saying, “Absolutely not” to that block. Listen to it. Want to explore a litt

Supported Bridge doesn't look like much. You lie down. You put a prop under your hips. And then... you pretty much do nothing. Which is exactly why we love it. We spend a LOT of time asking our bodies to do things. Sit at a desk. Drive the car. Stare at a screen. Carry the groceries. Pick up the dog. Work out. Get shit done. And through all of it, your spine and hips are just along for the ride. Supported Bridge is a chance to give them a little love. The prop does the work o

Table Pose asks a lot of your body. Hands on the floor. Knees on the floor. Weight through your wrists. Hips, shoulders, core all working together. For some people, that's no big deal. For others, it's the exact reason they've convinced themselves yoga just isn't for them. Maybe your knees have been complaining for years. Maybe your wrists have other plans. Maybe you've had surgery. Maybe getting up and down from the floor simply isn't an option anymore. That doesn't mean yog

Self-care gets marketed as bubble baths, candles, and somehow magically finding two quiet hours to yourself. Real life? It's usually a lot messier than that. Here's what I see happen all the time when people start making themselves a priority. At first, the good stuff starts showing up. You sleep a little better. Your body doesn't ache quite as much. You have more energy. You notice you're handling stress a little differently instead of feeling like you're one inconvenience a

It’s my birthday month. And the longer I run this studio, the more I think the best part of this practice has never been the poses. It’s the people next to you doing them. Yoga gets framed as something solo, something personal, something you do alone on a mat. And it is that. But the version of it that actually sticks, the version that turns into a habit instead of a phase, almost always has someone else attached to it. A friend who comes with you. A familiar face who notices

Last week we talked about why Table Pose deserves more credit than it gets. This week, let’s make sure it’s actually working for your body instead of against it. If your knees or wrists tend to complain in this pose, that’s not a sign you’re doing something wrong. It’s a sign the pose needs adjusting to fit you. Knees: Fold a blanket or your mat double under your knees or use a bolster under your knees. The extra cushion takes the pressure off without changing what the pose i

For most of us, Table Pose is a stop on the way to somewhere else. Cat-Cow, Downward Dog, or a Child’s Pose that barely pauses there long enough to notice it. This month we’re pausing. Table Pose isn’t just a transition. It’s a foundation. It teaches your body how to distribute weight evenly across your hands and knees, how to stabilize your shoulders, how to brace your core without gripping. Almost every pose that asks you to bear weight on your hands borrows something from

Every few months we shine a light on the teachers and humans who make Hippie Yoga what it is. This month we're doing something a little different. This month's spotlight belongs to someone who has been here through every class, every training, every Gong immersion, and every holiday since January 2022. Someone whose dedication to this practice is honestly unmatched. Someone who fully believes that Peace Frog was named in her honor. Meet Janice Hopkins. Our frog. Our mascot.

Summer has a way of making yoga feel optional. You're outside more. You're walking longer. The garden is calling. Maybe you've got a golf game or two on the calendar. You're moving, so it's easy to think the mat can wait. We get it. And we also want to make a case for why summer might actually be the best time to keep showing up. Not because you need to earn your rest. But because yoga isn't competing with your other activities. It's what keeps them feeling good. What's actua

Runner's lunge is one of those poses that shows up in almost every class. Warm-ups, flows, cool-downs, It's everywhere. And yet it's one of the poses we see people struggling through the most. Not because they're doing anything wrong. But because a few small setup choices make a surprisingly big difference in what the pose actually does for your body. This month we're fine tuning runner's lunge. What it's targeting, why it matters, and three adjustments that change the whole

Most people quit when things get uncomfortable. And honestly? Sometimes that's the right call. But sometimes what you're feeling isn't a reason to stop. It's a reason to pay attention. Here's the distinction that changes everything about how you practice. Fatigue is burning, shaking, heaviness, the strong desire to negotiate your way out of a pose. It's your body recruiting more muscle fibers to meet a demand. It's uncomfortable on purpose. It's how strength is built. When

There are teachers who instruct. And then there are teachers who see you. Sarah is the second kind. She's been part of the Hippie community long enough to know your name, your dog's name, and probably your nemesis pose. She teaches with warmth, precision, and the kind of honesty that makes you feel both challenged and completely at home. We asked her a few questions. Here's what she had to say. Right now she's obsessed with Warrior III. "I feel so strong, yet graceful, ground

You've heard of Vitamin D. You probably take it in the winter when Michigan decides the sun is optional. But Vitamin G? That's what we're prescribing this summer. Vitamin G -- as in grass under your feet, garden air in your lungs, and the specific kind of calm that only happens when you're outside and your nervous system finally remembers what quiet feels like. Science backs this up. Time outdoors lowers cortisol. Natural light regulates your mood and your sleep. Fresh air an

Warrior II looks easy. Wide legs. Arms out. Look forward. How hard can it be? Pretty hard, actually. And that's exactly why it's May's pose of the month. When Warrior II is working -- really working -- your front thigh is burning, your back foot is rooted, your arms are long and alive, and your breath is steady even though your body is loudly suggesting you stop. That's not suffering. That's the pose doing its job. But most of us are leaving a lot of benefit on the table. Her

Slowing down isn’t easy. We say we want it.We tell ourselves we need it.And then we fill our schedules, keep moving, and convince ourselves we’ll rest later. Sound familiar? Even in yoga, it’s easy to chase the classes that feel productive. The ones where you leave a little sweaty, a little accomplished, like you checked a box. But the slower work…The quieter classes…The ones where you’re asked to pause, breathe, and stay still for a bit longer than feels comfortable… Those c

It's Earth Day. And I want to take a moment to celebrate something that doesn't get said enough. You showed up. You kept coming back. You did the work on the mat — the slow mornings, the poses that humbled you, the classes you almost skipped but didn't. And because of that, you get to be out there more fully. The walk that feels good instead of hard. The garden you can actually spend time in without paying for it later. The grandkids you can get down on the floor with and get

There's a version of yoga that says: this is how it has always been done, so this is how it must be done. I am not interested in that version. We know more about the human body than we did 50 or even 5 years ago. We understand how joints work, how fascia responds to movement, what creates sustainable mobility and what causes injury. Yoga- good yoga should reflect that. The poses that used to be taught without props, without modifications, without ever asking 'how does thi