West L.A. Smackdown
A Tale of Two Gurus: Steve vs. Vinnie
If you live in L.A., and you're into sweaty, flowing yoga with more emphasis on sculpting the body than the mind, there are really just two yogalebrities for you: Vinnie Marino of YogaWorks, and Steve Ross of Maha Yoga. Both run tight programs. Neither is for beginners or the very zen.
On weekdays, Steve and Vinnie each attract loyalists among the daytime Yummy Mummy crowd—think a big rock on that hand, attached to a perfectly sculpted left arm that easily lifts up to a side plank. On weekends, the Type A industry players show up, and you need to get there a good 15 minutes early to fight for a spot in the room, which will be way too close to your neighbor. (Related: Bring your Yoga Toes.) Some crazy people go to two classes in one day, and have the killer abs to prove it.
Both men blast happening music, far removed from Krishna Das. Vinnie tends to favor rock-and-roll ballads, and Steve likes music that's popular on The Hills. Other notable differences: Vinnie is gay; Steve is straight. Both seem flirty with people on their team. Steve has pretty much just consumed raw food for decades, and Vinnie used to be a drug addict. Both radiate ease as they throw down challenging sequences. They've done it all before, and they'll rarely slow down a class to demonstrate or sermonize. Just try to keep up, but don't expect much coaching or adjusting. There's always child's pose—if you're a pussy.
Note Bene:
- You will need a shower after class if you plan on interacting with others. There is no shower at Maha in Brentwood, but it's dangerously close to City Bakery, so just get take out.
- Vinnie teaches at the Yogaworks on Main Street, and at the one on Montana Street, in Santa Monica. Only Main Street has a shower. The Montana Street studio is across the street from a small Whole Foods and above a Starbucks. The Main Street studio is less than a block away from Euphoria, a raw food café, and the Urth Café.
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