Drexel Square

This summer, Drexel Square, a 1.3-acre community park that opened near 30th Street Station in 2019 as part of the Schuylkill Yards development project, is hosting a wide variety of free activities, open to the community. “Summer at the Square” series events range from free fitness classes, live music, meditation, art classes, food trucks and pop-ups, and more.

See the full list of happenings at Drexel Square here: https://schuylkillyards.com/whats-happening.

Schuylkill Yards is a $3.5 billion project, a partnership between Drexel University and Brandywine Trust, which will include eight high rises connected by green public spaces and retail when completed. More info is available here.

EveryBody studio space at 4305 Locust St. (Photo by Sahar Coston-Hardy)

A new movement and wellness studio, EveryBody Movement and Wellness, is officially opening next week at 4305 Locust Street, a space across from CVS.

Starting Monday, Oct. 7, EveryBody Movement and Wellness will offer a wide range of small group movement classes including Pilates, suspension training, high-intensity interval training, yoga, kettlebells, Barre, dance, and more. People of all sizes, ages, genders, and abilities are welcome. In addition to group classes in the main studio space, there is also a private Pilates room and a wellness room that is being used for a variety of mind-body modalities (massage, reiki, therapy, etc). Some classes will be offered on a sliding scale.  Continue Reading

Clark Park Thursday Farmers’ Market resumes today at 43rd and Baltimore, along with a new program that offers yoga classes at farmers’ markets throughout the city. Yoga at the Market kicks off tonight in Clark Park and will continue weekly through the month of September. Classes are from 6 – 7 p.m. and are suitable for all levels, ages and abilities.

Yoga at the Market is donation-based and has no set fee. The program is entirely supported by the students, and cash donation is greatly accepted to support the teachers, insurance costs, and the administration of the program. You can show up with your mat or practice on the grass! Beginners and families are most welcome.

This is a joint program of Yoga on the Banks, The Food Trust, Farm to City, and the parks’ Friends groups.

A West Philly yoga instructor, Erin Gautsche, will be teaching the class.

“I’ve lived in West Philly for 12 years, and am excited to bring donation-based, outdoor  yoga to the neighborhood!” she wrote us in an email.

Clark Park Thursday Farmers’ Market will be open from 3 – 7 p.m. every Thursday until Thanksgiving.

Delaila Aryee (left) and Lyndsay Brown (right) with former Philadelphia mayor Michael Nutter.

A new fitness and physical therapy private practice with a focus on affordable physical therapy and rehab, fitness classes and open gym options, has recently opened at 5008 Baltimore Avenue. Vital Step Physical Therapy and Fitness co-owners Delaila Aryee and Lyndsay Brown, both Doctors of Physical Therapy, are young entrepreneurs who were featured on A Woman’s Nation in September 2015. Their dream then was to open their own, compassionate practice that would serve their community.

“We are very passionate about making an impact in our local community because we have spent many years here as clinicians, residents and graduates from the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia (also located in West Philly),” Aryee and Brown told A Woman’s Nation.

Thanks to the women’s passion and a little help from KIVA Zip, which provided a microloan allowing to renovate the space and to purchase necessary equipment and supplies, Vital Step opened its doors in November.

At Vital Step, you can get physical therapy services for various neurological conditions, including stroke, brain/spinal injury, Parkinson’s disorder, Multiple Sclerosis and more; orthopedic conditions, including joint replacement therapy, arthritis/joint pain, lower back/neck pain, sports injuries and more. The facility also offers balance and fall prevention programs, CHF and COPD management, postpartum therapy, diabetes and high blood pressure management, and other services.

Rehabbing an ankle injury at Vital Step.

As concerns fitness and health education, Vital Step offers general and specialized fitness programs, including yoga, low impact aerobics and Zumba/dance, and nutrition education.

Vital Step Physical Therapy & Fitness is located at 5008 Baltimore Ave., on the 2nd floor of the Mercy wellness center (it is not affiliated with Mercy).

For more information, visit: http://www.vitalsteppt.com/. You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

(Photos from Vital Step’s Facebook page).

Bikram Yoga West Philly opens this weekend at 42nd and Chestnut.

The Bikram Yoga studio at 4145 Chestnut St. is reopening this weekend after being closed for remodeling since late September. A full schedule of 26 hot yoga classes a week is starting this weekend, according to studio co-owner Bob Casey, with the first class being held at 9 a.m. this Saturday.

As was reported last month, the studio has a new management team and changed its name from Bikram Yoga University City to Bikram Yoga West Philly. Here’s what Casey, the only person who is still there from the original team (Bikram Yoga University City opened in 2012), says about the new team and their decision to change the name of the studio:

“Bikram West Philly is not just under new management but also new ownership. Leo Eisenstein, new co-director, is a Philadelphia native (his father graduated from West Catholic High); he lives in Philly… and he is thrilled to be part of owning and operating a business in West Philadelphia… not just University City but all of West Philly.”

Casey says that his new partner feels that the studio can be more than just a yoga “studio”; it can be a yoga community center for all of West Philly. Eisenstein is excited about the partnerships they can form with civic associations as well as businesses.

Speaking of similarities and differences between Bikram University City and Bikram West Philly, Casey adds that Bikram West Philly will be a yoga studio in the same way Bikram Yoga University City was when it first opened, but Bikram will be the only style of yoga that will be offered there. “Other than that I would say that almost everything will be different.”

For information about the grand opening weekend class schedule, visit the Bikram Yoga West Philly Facebook page.
 

Bob Casey (left) and Leo Eisenstein (photo from Bikram Yoga West Philly Facebook page)

The Bikram Yoga studio, which opened at 42nd and Chestnut in 2012, has a new management team and has changed its name from Bikram Yoga University City to Bikram Yoga West Philly, according to information posted on their Facebook page. The studio has been closed for renovation, which includes repainting and remodeling, since September 22, and is expected to reopen in early November.

The management changes include Leo Eisenstein, a yoga instructor from Bikram Yoga Philadelphia (and a veteran bartender!), joining the team as studio director. Bob Casey from the original management team will continue his work at the studio. We’ll keep you posted about the grand opening of Bikram Yoga West Philly. Also, visit their Facebook page for updates.