BODY ENLIGHTENING AT EXHALE
980 Madison Ave.
212-561-6400
150 Central Park So.
212-561-7400
This one-on-one session, which takes place in a small private studio, is somewhere between the post-workout stretch you’d get from a personal trainer and the world’s gentlest yoga class. As with massage, your role here is largely passive. The instructor or instructors—there’s a “four-handed” option—literally pull and push your limbs into familiar asanas. While you concentrate on your breath, they’ll coax you (and your hamstrings) into positions you weren’t sure you were capable of. Anyone rehabbing an injury will especially appreciate the assisted stretching, since it’s hard to know when to persevere through unaccustomed tightness and when to back off. The net effect is similar to meditation but without the stiffness that can come from sitting too long in the lotus position.