Unfurl your body and mind for a bit of yoga

Yoga may be an ancient practice but it is reaching new levels of popularity in Taipei with a surge in the number of yoga centers.

"Nowadays people are feeling more pressure and yoga is a very good sport to balance the stress and problems of everyday life in the city," said Esther Hu (胡文芸), a yoga instructor and owner of the Cedar Yoga center.

Having studied yoga for more than 20 years, Hu said an increased interest in the art is not only a result of individuals looking for ways to slow down the pace of modern day life, but it is also becoming a popular alternative to cardiovascular classes such as aerobics.

"A lot of my younger students want to take power yoga classes [more strenuous positions aimed at enhancing body flexibility and muscle strength] because people sweat a lot in this class and most people feel it is comparable with aerobics."

Hu said those who take yoga classes can be put into one of two categories: those who want to study more traditional yoga such as Hatha, which places emphasis on breathing and reducing stress; and the new breed of practitioners who view yoga as an alternative to sports, as well as increasing flexibility.

In addition to centers opening around the city, yoga has also been added to the list of exercise classes offered at fitness centers. Large gyms such as California Fitness and Hollywood both offer a variety of daily yoga classes. However both fitness clubs require patrons to either become members and pay an annual fee or charge daily rates starting at NT$700.

While the appeal of yoga grows among young women, men continue to show little interest. Hu said although she has a few male students 90 percent of her classes are female.

"In yoga it is important to know your body. I think women are more body conscious than men, which is one reason why women might be more interested in studying yoga."

Hu said that from her experience as an instructor, women appear to be more flexible than men.

"Men seem to have difficulty with the exercises and after one or two classes most men will say they feel sore."

In order to appease the masses, yoga centers such as Cedar offer a variety of yoga disciplines, such as the traditional Ashtanga and Hatha yoga, in addition to more recently popular classes such as Pilates, which at one time was practiced by dancers, and focuses on core stability through strengthening the spine.

While not every center in Taipei offers classes in both traditional and contemporary yoga, most are geared to all levels, offering instruction for beginners to advanced students.

Prices at yoga centers vary with the cost per class averaging NT$200. Most centers sell coupons for classes with a minimum purchase of 10 coupons or charge monthly rates with unlimited classes.