We are changing our name!

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Here we are stuck in this strange phase where time seems to be flying by so fast but at the same time dragging on so slowly. It was more than a year ago that I had announced I was busy with a rebrand and name change for the yoga school. We had enjoyed 14 successful years and it was time to embrace a name that could carry us forward for the next chapter.

It is important to me that the name reflect who we are and what we value; to be a place that people are proud to call their yoga school. We are a safe and welcoming yoga school that provides no nonsense quality instructions and fosters empowerment and transformation. We envision a community of people inspired by their personal development through their regular practice.

We are MyYoga; One Word, Two Y’s. This name reflects that it is the person that practices the yoga that is important, YOU. We, as teachers, are here to guide and inspire, but it is you, my yoga friend, who is on the path of transformation. We look forward to many more years of success where the bikram series remains the core magic of what we teach and offer.

 

 

Many of you (including me) might be saying “what took you so long?” I had the idea of the re-brand in 2018, the name picked out late 2019 and even the logo finished in March 2020. So what on earth could the hold up be? I learned that when “Fear of Failure” is paired up with his best friend “Paralysis of Perfection” it is the best way to kill motivation and achievement and when all thrown into the background of the pandemic, it was going nowhere in a hurry.

So here I go: let’s get it done and change the name! How can it fail if I put my heart into it the same way I have and all the teachers have for the past 15 years? And that nasty thought of perfection… I just let it go. I will figure it out along the way.

I am reminded of my own story; of how I got here, why this yoga changed my life and why I continue to be excited by the idea of helping others find it too. Click on the photo below to see the movie clip of my story.

 

 

Part of our campaign in changing the name to MyYoga is that everyone has a ‘MyStory’; how did you get here and what keeps you coming back for more? And to those that have not yet found their story, transformation or benefits from a regular bikram practice; we are excited to guide you along the way.

So in the next few months you will notice a morphing of our old name going away and the new one coming in. I hope you are as excited about this new chapter as I am. I am grateful for all the people that have made up this community for the last 15 years and look forward to a bright future!

 

 

Next crucial step is the website makeover – so I will get back to work with my Chief Technical Officer, 😺Angel. Now if I could only get a group of people together for some nice new photography for the website during this lock down? But somethings will have to wait.

 

 

Thank you for your continued patience, motivation and support.

With love, light & gratitude,

Lydia
Owner, Founder & Fearless Leader (forever in training)
Bikram Yoga Den Haag
and as of today officially
MyYoga

P.S. If you want to read my statement concerning the man Bikram Choudhury and how it relates to this evolution. Click here

 

Teaching team updates

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July 30, 2021 Newsletter

I hope this emails find you happy, healthy and enjoying summer weather somewhere… As we navigate the ebb and flow of life and the huge changes that we have all experienced in the last 15 months there have also been some changes at our yoga school. Yes, of course the big one as you know was our rebrand and name change from Bikram Yoga Den Haag to MyYoga. We still love to do bikram yoga and it is the core focus of what we are offering now and will offer in the future.

Other changes during this time has been that COVID has forced some of us in a direction to make changes that we had not foreseen. This change is in our teaching team. There has never been a full quit or sudden stop of a teacher on our team but a gradual shift. I would like to take the time to share a little information with you about our team and the shifts.

Yoeroeke has made the decision to focus here career in a different direction and no longer teach on a regular basis as she has done for 14 years. Her decision was not an easy one as she is still very passionate about teaching bikram yoga and being part of our community. The decision to take another career helps her in managing her time with her 2 small kids and putting her family as a priority. This is not a good-bye for her but a step down from teaching a regular schedule of classes each week. As she gets her feet on the ground in her new job she will evaluate if there is time or space to pick up classes here and there… and of course join us for classes.


Mark, who was teaching for more than 8 years made the decision last year to look for work that kept him sharp in his original career of IT and also gave him a more regular schedule to work with. Not many realize how demanding a full time yoga teacher career can be. You are always working when other people are free and you are mostly free when other people are working. So he took a new job doing full time IT work in November 2020. His intention at the time was to start teaching 1 day per week, then the 2nd lockdown came. As we are open again he did some soul searching and decided he would rather stop teaching all together and very much look forward to coming back and practicing as a student. This is great to see because after all it is our love of practicing the yoga that took us down this path in the 1st place.

Just in case you are wondering, Mark is still doing his daily wall-walks (back-bends). On July 21st he did 367 consecutive days. Since February 15th 2019 he has only skipped 14 days! 🤩🤩🤩

Jeane, who had been teaching with us on and off over the past 10 years was with us in March 2020 when the pandemic hit. She is still living in The Hague and a part of our team, when the time is right, hopefully we will see her back in our beloved HOT room giving her very well known passionate and enthusiastic classes.

Annemarie, who has taught with us in the past starting in 2013 will be back on the lesson schedule. Since December 2019, she made the choice to focus her teaching efforts at YogaGround in Rotterdam (formerly Bikram Yoga Rotterdam) as it fit better into her schedule. This also allowed her the time needed to focus on her career that is very much complimentary to her teaching career; becoming a certified yoga therapist. We are happy to see her back, not only taking classes with us but teaching too.

Pien, who is a bikram yogi and teacher originally from the schools in Amsterdam, has also been a part of our team here and there will be rejoining our team too. You may have noticed her mostly taking classes with us over the past few years. She has an inspiring practice, admirable focus and is known for making just about anyone enthusiastic about this amazing yoga series that we teach. Pien has been a bikram teacher since 2006 and taught in The Netherlands, Germany and Spain.

Clara, who is a yogi from Bucharest joins our team. Over the years she joins us in the summer to take classes for a few weeks. Sadly, due to COVID she was forced to close her yoga school of 3 years back home in Bucharest. However, true to the saying “when one door closes, another one opens” she now joins our team. From the closing of her school she and her boyfriend decided to relocate to Den Haag. So we happily welcome her with open arms and look forward to her sharing her knowledge and passion with us.

If you have any kind words, yoga memories or wishes that you would like me to pass on to Yoeroeke, Mark and Jeane please reply to this email and I will be sure they receive them.

Yoeroeke will be teaching her last regularly scheduled class this Sunday at 9:00, we hope to see those of there that have managed to reserve a spot for class.
With love, light & gratitude,

Lydia
Owner, Founder & Fearless Leader (forever in training)

P.S. If you missed the big announcement from March about our name change, click here.

P.P.S. To read more about all COVID-19 related topics and how we are handling them, read here.

Understanding our booking system

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We always have a limited number of spots in our yoga room. With a little bit of planning and understanding, you can book and attend the classes you desire. Please keep in mind ALL of these ‘rules’ are in place to help us manage the bookings and make it possible for everyone who wishes to attend class that they can.

Booking window

You can book classes up to 10 days in advance. Yes, this requires you to plan ahead but in the end we have seen the effect that it makes people more accountable for their yoga practice and you can see it and feel it in the focus that is present in each class.

How to book classes

  • The best way to book is to download our MyYoga app (for iPhone) click here.
  • Book your classes via our website, click here.
  • We have updated the functionality of our website for ease of booking & cancelling classes and viewing your waitlist position.
  • To see a small video on ‘how’ the website works click here.

Schedule Terminology

  • Note on the schedule there are VIRTUAL & LIVESTREAM classes as well as the in studio classes. Be sure you are booking for in studio (HOT BIKRAM YOGA) and NOT VIRTUAL, otherwise you will be asked for to pay (unless of course you have a virtual membership).
  • BOOK – this means there are still spots available to book. Click the BOOK button and if you have a valid pricing option it will then show as BOOKED.
  • BOOKED – you have successfully booked this class, check your email for the confirmation. Check your junk mail or spam too, if you don’t see it. * (See note on email confirmations)
  • WAITLIST – this means the class is full and you can add yourself to the waitlist. It will then show as
  • WAITLISTED. (unfortunately due to software limitations, you do not receive an email when adding yourself to the waitlist).
  • WAITLISTED – you have successfully added yourself to the waitlist. The number between ( ) shows your position on the waitlist.
  • FULL – this means both the waitlist and the class are full. However, check back frequently as this changes constantly.
  • CALL – this is beyond the 10 day booking window and not available for booking yet.

Note when using the MyYoga iPhone app you can easily select to see only in studio classes. Click here to see a short video showing you how.

Confirmation Emails

You must have your communications preferences set to receive emails from us. Please check all 3 boxes under MY DATA when logged into your profile on our website or select ‘Profile’ when using our MyYoga iPhone app. Check your SPAM for the emails if you do not see them. Regardless of your communication settings or emails landing in your SPAM; our strict late cancel policy still applies.

Click on “Profile” when using the MyYoga app

Understanding Waitlists

  • Only add yourself to a waitlist if you fully plan on taking that class.
  • The moment you know you will not/cannot take the class REMOVE yourself from the waitlist.
  • There is a waitlist of 10 people per class.
  • When someone EARLY cancels (MORE THAN 4 HOURS before the lessons starts) our system will automatically add the 1st person from the waitlist.
  • When this is done a confirmation email is sent “You’re in, you’ve been added from the waitlist to the date / time class”.
  • If you are using the MyYoga iPhone app, you can set push notifications to be notified when you are added from the waitlist.
  • If you do not use the iPhone app; you must make a mental to note to check your email around 4 hours before the start of the class.
  • You can also easily see your waitlist position when logged into our website or the iPhone app.
  • The 4 hour cancel window means you have to be aware for waitlisting weekend 09:00 classes & weekday 09:30 classes:You can receive the auto-add email that you are in as late as 05:00 (for 09:00 class) and 05:30 (for 09:30 class).
  • In this instance, set your alarm to check your email in the morning, if there is no email, go back to sleep💤😴.
  • When someone LATE cancels (LESS THAN 4 HOURS before the lesson starts) the teacher will have to manually fill the spot by contacting via phone or SMS to see if you can make it.
  • In this 4 hour period before class we will not add you without contacting you first. Please answer anoniem phone calls as it might be the teacher contacting you from their mobile.
  • 👆👆TOP TIP 👆👆: Check the schedule in the 4 hour window before the class; if there is a late cancel and a teacher is not busy manually filling it, it will show that you can BOOK.

Understanding the late Cancellation Policy

We have a late cancel policy in place and online bookings are required for all classes. Having a late cancel policy ensures everyone who wants to take class gets the chance to do so. 

  • Early cancel is MORE than 4 hours before class starts. **

  • Late cancel is LESS than 4 hours before class starts. **

  • Late cancel fee is €5 for unlimited pricing options and lesson deducted from card for lesson card price options.

** If you are on a waitlist you can be automatically added into the class up to 4 hours before the class when others are making early cancellations. Please plan accordingly for these situations. 

We do not judge if reason for late cancel was a good reason or not. It is charged if it is less than 4 hours before class and it is not charged if it is more than 8 hours before class. If you do not want the risk of late cancels you can delay your booking but then you also don’t have the certainty that you have a spot in class in advance.  

Tips for Remembering

There are many tools in place to help you with your yoga schedule:

  • The BEST way to manage your schedule and waitlists is with our MyYoga iPhone app (click here to download) (not the MindBody app)
  • Then set up the PUSH notifications.
  • FYI the Android app is still in development.
  • You receive a confirmation email “You’re in” directly when you book a class.
  • All booking confirmation emails have an attachment which allows you to add the class activity to your agenda – set your agenda to remind you.
  • You receive a confirmation email (late or early) when you cancel a class.
  • You receive a class booking reminder email – sent at 14:00 the day before your booked class (only if you are confirmed before that time).
  • You can easily view your schedule from your profile when logged into our website

Viewing Your Booked & Waitlisted Classes

  • In the MyYoga iPhone app check under “ACTIVITY”
  • In the MyYoga website check within your profile under “MY SCHEDULE”

Statement concerning Bikram Choudhury

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When I (Lydia) opened my 1st yoga school, Bikram Yoga Den Haag in 2006 and my 2nd yoga school, Bikram Yoga Rotterdam in 2008 the idea was simple. Create a safe and welcoming space to teach and practice Bikram Yoga.

Since opening the 1st school, I have witnessed 1000’s of people give this yoga the dedication it requires (which is not easy) and experience profound life changing results. Bikram Yoga, in it’s simplicity of 26 postures, 2 breathing exercises done in a heated room for 90 minutes, was and still is the best tool I have found to have a healthy and profound impact on the lives of so many people, regardless of age, size, ability or health conditions.

Over the past few years there have been unpleasant revelations about Bikram Choudhury (BC), the man who introduced the 90 minute 26 posture series known as Bikram Yoga. Accusations include abuse of power, sexual misconduct and assault.

To be clear, I unequivocally condemn this behavior. I support the women and men that were victims of this abuse. I do not financially contribute to Bikram Choudhury in any way, nor have either one of my yoga schools ever been part of a franchise or sent Bikram Choudhury any money from the daily operations of either school. As for the names Bikram Yoga Den Haag and Rotterdam, there was no payment whatsoever.

In 2012 rumors about misconduct at a Teacher Training surfaced, though the details were murky. In 2013, Sarah Baugh went public with her story. I made the decision to inform students interested in Teacher Training about the accusations, and to no longer write the required recommendation letter for admission to Bikram’s teacher training.

Since opening my 1st school I followed the same strong procedure for new teachers that was started by my predecessors at Bikram Yoga Amsterdam. When yoga students showed interest in the teacher training, they all received the same criteria: practice for 2 years minimum, 5 classes per week. The reason for this was simple, to develop a team of strong, enduring and dedicated people to become teachers at my yoga schools.

The name of Bikram Yoga Den Haag refers to the practice that is taught there. I and all the other Bikram schools in the Netherlands have worked very hard and diligently to create a strong and positive reputation for the yoga series. ‘Hot Yoga’ has become an umbrella term for all yoga practiced in a heated environment. The name Bikram Yoga differentiates us from all the other ‘hot yoga’. What we do is a specific series with specific conditions that have fantastic results. At Bikram Yoga Den Haag, we only teach the Bikram Yoga series, hence the name Bikram Yoga Den Haag.

However, as moments are ever changing I would like to share my thoughts and feelings with you about the current publicity about the founder of Bikram Yoga. To be clear again; I condemn his behavior and I as a business owner and teacher distance myself from him.

I have decided to change the name but that doesn’t mean I am going to rush this, since I have already been working on a rebrand for a while. Therefore it will take a little longer before I can share my ambitions with the school and the name with you.