Ashtanga Yoga Centre of Toronto

Tried out the studio for fun as one of my favourite yoga instructor Robina had always told me to go. Finally got off my butt and went :) It was conveniently located to one of the exits at Lawrence station (walk towards Ranleigh Ave. exit).
I’ve never tried the mysore practice as it wasn’t always easy to remember the set sequence especially for those who might be new to the practice. The studio is clean and the practice room was super hot due to the body heat from everyone who’d practiced before. I prefer a non heated room for a personal practice, however the heat allowed us to go deeper into the postures (just be mindful).
Loved it and will be back. The staff are all very friendly. I met Doug at the front desk and he introduced to David Robson and his assistant Elysie. They were extremely helpful and I learned to refine my practice some more. Practicing at AYCT also allows you to challenge yourself. I can see why people keep coming back.
There is parking on the side streets (one hour only) or paid parking on Yonge. No lockers so don’t leave any valuables in the change room.

I m on tour with bands selling merchandise so when I have some time I try to visit ashtanga yoga schools to get more motivation for the hotel room yoga that happens a lot on the road.
This one is pretty good, unfortunately I never had a class with the owners but I dropped in to 3 Mysore classes and I did like them.
I have to say that I m mostly impressed by the schedule, Mysore from 5.30am till 12.30 or depending on the day till 1.30 pm and then more Mysore in the afternoon or led classes, that’s really outstanding in the community I would say!
The first time on my drop in I had two teachers assisting, the second time 3 that’s nice too!
The teachers are watching your progress in what you do carefully and help you dropping back or other things.
I have to admit that I found the assists mostly more on the careful side and that is ok although I have to say that I don’t want a teacher to ask me If I would like to get assisted right now, I think it should be a teachers decision not mine. I also had the feeling that a lot of people would have a better practice if they would get assisted or worked with more, let them repeat things try different versions …
Lots of people are doing second series although I didn’t see anybody in 3 rd.
Right now the original place gets renovated, I ve been there only once and already found it pretty nice with showers and a hair dryer.
The prices are more then fair, $ 40 for a month unlimited, well that for sure makes it easy to establish an ashtanga practice .
The yellow subway train goes there get out at Lawrence and take a right it’s close!
I would come back!

I really loved the MySore classes here. Would have liked to continue, but hard for me to get here. Easy if you’re along a TTC line though. Walking distance from TTC station, Lawrence I think. The studio is well cared for and the staff is really nice and helpful. Even the other students are nice. Since I was a newbie, some of the others talked to me afterward and said stuff like how hard it was for them in the beginning too. One of the few Ashtanga places in GTA.

This is the real deal. Authentic Ashtanga vinyasa yoga as taught by Sri K Pattabhi Jois.
The studio is very nice and clean (cleaned daily with natural products).
The practice room is always super hot, sometimes from heaters, sometimes just from body heat, and is always very busy usually. Get ready to share space with your neighbours, and potentially some flying sweat droplets too.
The teachers are all very well trained and caring. Save for one or two who I won’t mention, but are not a reason for not going there.
Prepare to work very hard but feel very good.
Beginners could do the led classes, or just drop right into Mysore style and start learning the sequence of postures from the teachers one-​on-​one.
You should commit to coming here for a long time to reap the benefits, not just once in a while.

I’ve been in search of a yoga school like AYCT for about a year now. As the name indicates, AYCT dishes up the specific style of Ashtanga always practiced in a non-​heated room*. The teaching style fondly reminds me of puritanical classes I attended in India.
No trendy modifications, no accessories. Just yoga.
My beginner class with Oliver was fantastic, though I’m not sure if it’s a good shot for those who’ve never done yoga before. For those not familiar with the Ashtanga style, it follows the Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutations) format. In this class, the focus is on strengthening and flexibility. Though the schedule brought about a tight-​packed class, –it never felt too cramped. AYCT also offers Mysore and restorative classes.
The studio is located right by the Lawrence station and around plenty of street parking.
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*With how much I was sweating, it may as well have been heated.