Africa Yoga Project
Shine Centre, Diamond Plaza
Now celebrating its 10thyear, the Africa Yoga Project is the organisation that has single-handedly changed the face of yoga in Kenya. AYP’s mission to increase wellbeing and expand the employability of Africa’s youth through yoga has been achieved to the nthdegree.
An academy of yoga, AYP offers yoga teacher trainings. Its scholarship programme ensures the young men and women who show an aptitude to yoga are able to attend the programme. The graduates of the scholarship programme ‘give back’, offering free classes and promoting wellness in their communities and further afield. In February alone, AYP teachers taught 1,582 free yoga classes – that’s 21,334 savanasas.
AYP teaches power yoga in the tradition of Baron Baptiste. As well as yoga teacher training courses, the Shine Centre offers a selection of Baptiste power yoga classes, classes for beginners, private sessions and workshops, as well as longer yoga retreats, cross cultural exchanges and courses from visiting international yoga teachers. Their huge team of teachers offers over 50 classes a week at the centre, as well as delivering private classes in homes, offices and public spaces around Nairobi and outreach classes all over Kenya. They’re renowned for their daily community classes that run on a donation basis, especially their hugely popular Saturday morning community class that can attract over 100 people. Expect to get sweaty!
Acacia Studios
Viking House, Westlands
Established in 2013, Acacia Studios aim was to professionalise the yoga industry in Nairobi. Founder Ashley says she opened it for selfish reasons – she was tired of doing yoga in cold empty rooms with florescent lights. ‘There were great teachers but no space. I wanted to create a space for all these amazing teachers and build their capacity as professionals.’
AYP had started creating awareness and education about yoga in the local market: what it is, how it works, and that it doesn’t challenge your religion. Most of the yoga in Nairobi was power yoga, and so Acacia started by offering that, but has gradually introduced vinyasa flow, ashtanga, yin, meditation and more.
There are now 15 yoga teachers offering a variety of styles in two yoga studios. Their doors open at 5.40am and close at 9pm, and there are over 50 classes a week on the schedule. They also provide a space for people who are fund-raising for related causes, recently helping Joanne, teacher of yoga dance flow, to collect money for Kenyan dancers to compete in Jamaica.
Bikram Nairobi
Lavington Green
Nairobi’s Bikram studio opened in 2012. Bikram yoga was initiated by Bikram Choudhury, and consists of a sequence of 26 poses done in a 90-minute session in a hot room. The room is kept at 40°C and 40% humidity, and can accommodate 50 people. ‘The studio is a safe space for people to practise yoga for their own reasons,’ says Grace, receptionist. ‘They might want to lose weight, relax, detox, heal, meditate. It’s a personal practise with so many benefits.’
The centre has a superfood juice bar, and a comfy seating area adorned with dream catchers. There’s a team of five local teachers, and international teachers come through regularly. Classes take place five times a day on weekdays and four times a day at the weekend; the most popular class is the 8am Saturday class. Community classes are offered every second Saturday. Every February, the studio offers the 20-hour challenge (five classes a week) and the 30-hour challenge (a class every day for the month). On average, 50 people come through the studio per day.
Yoga Heart Kenya
Kenrail Towers, Westlands
New kids on the block, Yoga Heart Kenya is already recognised as a yoga centre of note. Six yoga teachers, all AYP-trained, had been discussing the idea for two years when, in 2018, they took the plunge and opened their studio. ‘We’re doing everything,’ says Jennifer, co-founder. ‘The six of us are teaching, and cleaning, and running reception, and doing marketing. A lot of learning has happened. We’re not business people and we knew we were getting into something that we needed to learn to manage.’
They believe in staying true and clear to what they know, and see community as an inspiration for people to come together and heal. The power of being in a community is mind-blowing. ‘Our intention is to start courageously,’ says Walter, co-founder. ‘We want our students to fulfil their highest intentions, whether they’re physical, emotional or phycological.’
Since most of the yoga in Nairobi is power yoga they started by offering that, but also have two restorative classes a week, with slower, deeper stretches and hip openers, and two beginner classes that incorporate a lot more teaching and demonstrating.
Power Yoga Palace
Prestige Plaza, Hurlingham
What started in 2015 as an AYP pop-up has transformed into an exciting little yoga centre. Catherine and Patrick, both AYP-trained, took on the management of Power Yoga Palace in 2016. They saw a need to expand Nairobi’s yoga scene into Ngong Road, and to create a long-term yoga community in that part of town. Since Nairobi is a power yoga hub, they’ve started with this, but would like to introduce classes in other styles such as ashtanga. They particularly want to offer classes to people recovering from addiction, and to send their teachers out to rehabilitation centres.
The classes take place in Prestige Plaza’s conference centre. There are two studios, the larger of which can hold up to 100 students. There are currently five classes a week: two on Monday, two on Wednesday and one on Thursday, plus a yoga aroma class incorporating essential oils every third Thursday of the month.
Event Haven
Karen
This outdoor events and co-working space started offering yoga as an AYP pop-up. The space is a tented platform open to the garden.
In 2017, David took over management of the space. David, originally an acrobat and dancer, trained in ashtanga yoga with the highly respected Sharon Moon and is certified in Baptiste power yoga, restorative yoga and hands on assisting by AYP. His classes combine the flows of these various practises and he also incorporates requests from students into his classes. ‘I believe life is about freedom,’ David says. ‘In my classes, I offer poses, variations and modifications and my students have the freedom to choose.’
Classes take place at 9.30am on Mondays and Saturdays, and at 5.30pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. David also teaches at the British High Commission, offers private classes in houses and offices, and gives several community outreach classes.
Creative Nest Studio
Karen
The Creative Nest is a multidisciplinary studio that offers dance, yoga, Pilates and more. The space is open on one side onto a spacious garden.
Founder Natasha has a BA in Fine Arts majoring in dance from Miami’s New World School of the Arts. For many years a professional dancer with the National Dance Theatre of Jamaica, Natasha now teaches dance, Pilates, barre-mat fusion, and classes using hammocks and a reformer. ‘Work on the hammock uses balancing and stretching, and strengthens the upper body,’ says Natasha. ‘Hanging upside-down is humbling for people at first, but it has amazing traction for the back.’
Christel teaches yoga in a number of styles – Kundalini, Hatha, Vinyasa Flow and more – and gives yoga classes that fuse these various styles. The centre also hosts workshops in a range of related subjects including Feldenkrais, Thai yoga massage and injury prevention in yoga.
Tamara Britten, 05 October 2020
Published also in: Nomad Guides
Nairobi is a thriving, cosmopolitan hub of government offices, embassies, businesses, banks, churches, mosques, temples, shops, restaurants and markets. Attractions include the National Museum, Railway Museum, National Archives, Karen Blixen Museum and Bomas of Kenya. Nairobi is the world’s only capital city to boast a national park within its boundaries.
Read more about Nairobi