Yoga students doing a “Dancers Pose” during a class in the new studio. Photo courtesy of Alyson Pollard
<36hd>‘Warm, Welcoming – You’re Basically Doing Yoga with Friends’
<1b>By Bonnie Hobbs
<2b>The Connection
After six successful years in the Town of Clifton, WheelHouse Yoga – like many businesses – had to close during the pandemic. But it’s recently re-opened in a new location in the Colonnade at Union Mill Shopping Center – and its enthusiastic clientele has followed.
“I’ve been coming to WheelHouse since it opened in Clifton [in 2015],” said student Sam Nhan of Little Rocky Run. “I like the community, and I’ve gotten to meet a lot of wonderful people. They’re always warm and welcoming, and we all care about each other. It’s more personal than a lot of big gyms, and you’re basically doing yoga with friends.”
WheelHouse Yoga owner Alyson Pollard (center) is flanked by (from left) instructors Hillary Spruell and Amanda Duncan at the facility’s ribbon cutting.
Wheelhouse is now at 5716 Union Mill Road, between Manhattan Bagel and District Eatz. Although geographically in Centreville, it carries Clifton’s ZIP code; so, said owner Alyson Pollard, “It’s still Clifton and our community. But we’re open to so many more people in this location. We have a big area to draw from, so we can grow.”
The yoga studio is open seven days a week from 8 a.m.-7 p.m. It has 10 instructors and offers 27 classes throughout the week. (For more information, go to www.wheelhouseyoga.com).
“It’s for all ages and abilities of yoga students,” said Pollard. “We have everything from gentle and restorative classes all the way to powerful, sweaty, vinyasa yoga.”
Even during the pandemic, she kept the business going by offering online yoga instruction that students could do at home. And, said Pollard, “People who continued with their practice saw it become much more than just a workout. It was about camaraderie, compassion and emotional and mental support – individually and for each other.”
With a “really strong base of students that numbers in the hundreds,” Pollard said what sets WheelHouse apart from other yoga studios is that “we really try to go beyond just a physical workout. We also provide ‘sangha’ – which, in Sanskrit, translates to ‘like-minded community.’ Our purpose is to encourage people not to compare themselves to other students, but to be completely open to each other and to themselves.”
As for the new location, she said, “The other businesses here were excited to see us come in. And we have synergy with them – a rising tide lifts all ships.”
So how did she come up with the studio’s name? “When we opened in 2015 and talked about our offerings, we kept saying, ‘That’s in our wheelhouse,’” explained Pollard. “It’s also where a captain would stand to steer a ship, and the spot where a baseball batter wants to be pitched to. And it became this awesome, successful and powerful term.”
She said the move to the new space has been in the works since March 2021. And, she added, “For me, a lesson of the pandemic has been patience, and we’ve incorporated it into our teachings.” Still, after the ribbon cutting, Pollard said, “It feels so good to finally open, and the turnout tonight is wildly reassuring.”
From left, Jaely Turner and Alyson Pollard in the yoga studio’s lobby.
Among the 65 or so people attending was Rebecca Seyferth of Centreville’s Compton Village community. She began as a WheelHouse student in 2016. “I like the unbelievable sense of community,” she said. “Everyone was so friendly, welcoming and supportive – especially when I went through a very stressful time. I think Alyson knew what I needed before I did.”
“Yoga relaxes me, but also keeps me from getting wound up and reminds me to be grateful,” continued Seyferth. “Yoga meets you where you are; everyone has a different level of expertise. It’s not competitive, and whatever class you take is the right one for you. All the teachers adjust the classes for everybody.”
Jaely Turner takes classes there and has also been a yoga instructor at WheelHouse since 2018. “I tend to teach more of the gentle, yin, slow-flow type classes, plus postnatal yoga,” she said. “I guide the students through a set of poses, tune them into their own bodies and reduce the noise in their heads and bodies for them.
“It’s especially important for postnatal students to reconnect with their bodies. I help them be present, and I create community around it.”
Turner, too, likes the “strong, community aspect” of WheelHouse. “When I come here, even as a student, I feel drawn to stay and visit with the others,” she said.
Both she and Shelly Young, of the Hayden Village neighborhood, did their teacher training there. Young was a WheelHouse student for three years, becoming an instructor in 2019-20. “We’re all trained in fluid, yoga lineage from the same teachers,” she said. “So we have a consistent sequence of elements we follow. But we all incorporate our own style and tempo, so we’re able to get creative within the classes.”
Regarding the new location, Young said, “I love it. When I saw where this was, I thought, ‘I’m home.’ And the space is a calm and peaceful environment – the ideal condition for yoga mindfulness and meditation.”
Classes vary from one-on-one, private lessons to as many as 50 people, with an average of 25 per class. “And we offer some different types of classes you don’t find elsewhere,” said Young. “For example, Friday nights at 5:30, I teach a spa yoga class with hands-on assists, for an experience that awakens all the senses.”
Nhan also praised Pollard. “Alyson’s a wonderful person, business owner and friend and an amazing, gifted teacher,” she said. “Somehow, we always connect. And her lessons hit you right in the heart. In yoga, your mind is more open, and I’ve learned a lot from her.
“Coming to her classes makes me want to come to more. And for those of us who love yoga, it’s part of our lives and souls now. This is something I can do, and I still get a good workout and that same exercise high a runner would get – I love it.”