Your comments about focus

"focus teachers are knowledgable and extremely helpful with facilitating each students's practice, no matter the diversity of participants."

Patricia, N. Kingstown

" I love the no-pressure, non-competitive feeling that is so different from health clubs and huge yoga classes. focus is very friendly. "

"Your classes suit my needs for wellness. . .I get the spiritual as well

as the physical challenge I have been looking for." Mimi, East Greenwich

"The space is cozy and allows for connection. . . .it's not overwhelming."

Lisa, Warwick

"I feel like I have my own personal trainer in classes at focus."

Deb, Warwick

"Focus has an outstanding yoga program, my wife and I are benefitting both physically and spiritually."

Kal, Warwick

please share your comments with us. info@focusyoga.com

The Buzz...
Articles, comments, and things heard about focus

The East Greenwich Pendulum 12/07/2006
Focus Yoga studio: Spreading the Ahh...Factor
By: Hillary Gibbs

Ahhhh... the ahh factor is what each of us wants to relieve stress, aches and pain. The ahh factor is what lifts us up and makes everything seem better. Think about it. We look for the ahh factor in every ingestible form be it pill, drink or food. We reach for it through exercise or spa treatments. Therapy and faith are other avenues in which we search for the ahh factor. It is the holy grail and unbenounced to ourselves, we spend almost all of our time and much of our money trying to acquire it.

My new role in life, and my most important, is that of Mommy to my 10 month old son, Nathan. He has 2 speeds, on and off. Until recently, my ahh factor came in the form of being horizontal with a pillow over my head. If I was lucky, I’d get 6 hours of slumber, uninterrupted. But, sleep doesn’t count because it is a necessity. So, what did I do to get my true ahh factor replenished? I decided to go back to basics.

Balance is key to a happy and healthy existence. For the past 20 years, I have studied nutrition and practiced bodywork and there seems to be 3 consistent rules to achieving the ahh factor. One, if you can’t pronounce it, do not ingest it. Two, regarding recreation, after 2 major injuries, change activity. Finally, life is a physics thing but it has metaphysical/spiritual implications (or vice versa).

Where does this bring me? Into focus, specifically into Focus Studio. Last May, it opened its doors and welcomed everyone to experience a tried and true ahh factor. Focus offers a plethora of classes designed to appeal to anyone ready to "Feel Alive Now", Focus’ motto. It is what Katherine Conte, the director of the studio and native Rhode Islander, describes as a ‘boutique studio’. It boasts an incredible lineup of instructors that bring variety into the weekly schedule. Katherine has handpicked teachers who have a similar philosophy to that of the studio’s and unique gifts of instruction in yoga, tai chi and movement. Teachers specialize in personal attention for everyone seeking to take small steps towards doing something good for themselves. Focus is a community dedicated to supporting individuals on their path to health and wellness in the body/mind arts.

What makes Focus studio different from other studios? Focus has a palpable feeling of welcome. Immediately upon entering the room, there is a sense of being home, as if someone has been expecting you to join them.
“I liked the room. It’s inviting and cozy. Yet, that doesn’t matter. Katherine makes you feel welcome. I’d go anywhere she did”, claims long time student of Katherine’s, Deborah Gerstenblatt.
She adds, “Katherine Conte is an expert at her craft. She combines physical, spiritual and mindfulness into her class. She empathizes with her students, makes necessary changes and knows her art. For Katherine, I think this is a way of life, I think she really practices what she teaches.”
And isn’t that what we are searching for? A way of life that has a built in ahh factor? Ask the questions, why am I stressed, why does my back (fill in the blank) hurt, why am I unhappy? If you are unsatisfied with any of the answers you have ingested, beat into your body or mind, why not try to Focus.
“You walk out of her class and feel like you’ve just left the spa” Gerstenblatt claimed after class. I agreed. My first class at Focus was YogaRoots, an all level yoga class. Within 10 minutes I thought to myself, “Ahhh”. Only to hear someone else in the room echo my sentiments out loud. After all day lifting, carrying and chasing after my little boy, I thought I’d just want to remain horizontal on my mat. Yet, there is something about working for your ahh factor that gives it a sustaining quality and that is priceless. Bottles of nectar, plates of ambrosia, the latest fitness craze that left you stiffer than a board and the newest Rx that has more side effects than effects, are momentary lapses into unconsciousness that mask whatever it is we are trying to cover up. Do something really good for yourself, something that will put a lasting smile on your face and drop into Focus for a class. It may be your first small step toward your own holy grail.