By Rachel Phillips
Yoga Mandali, a 14-year-old yoga studio located at 454 Broadway in Saratoga Springs, has recently come under new ownership.
Located on the second floor of the Downtown Marketplace, the facility has two large yoga studios, as well as a smaller meditation space, including a lounge area and office with small retail area for yoga mats and books.
The studio is open seven days a week, with instructors offering vinyasa flow, yin, gentle restorative, kripalu and other types of classes five or six times a day. Yoga Mandali has also been doing yoga teacher training for 10 years.
Kristen Zorda (RYT 500), Yoga Mandali’s new studio owner, purchased the facility from former owner Karen Score in April. She has been practicing the art for two decades and has been practicing at the studio for six years. Four years ago, she completed the studio’s yoga teacher training for her 200-level certification, going on to receive her 500-level certification in India in 2017.
Zorda said she enjoys yoga because of how it complements the dynamic nature of everyday life.
“Yoga is always a changing practice for me personally—some days and times of the year are different than others. Yoga creates a safe space for you to move, breath and connect with yourself and explore those things we go through as humans,” she said.
Regarding her reasoning for purchasing the studio, Zorda said, “I want to keep the tradition of Yoga Mandali going. Karen created a wonderful space that many people rely on and come to each day for different reasons. I want to help make yoga accessible to the community.”
Zorda’s ambitions correlate with Yoga Mandali’s tagline, “it’s for EVERY body”—a slogan which reflects the studio’s ideology that yoga isn’t about flexibility or having a certain body shape.
“We pride ourselves on our service … We very rarely find that a student will leave a class dissatisfied,” Zorda said. “Everyone who is working at YM, including the front desk, have the most wonderful and caring attitudes and the students/clients can really feel that with their experience.”
As a means of continuing Yoga Mandali’s traditions, Zorda has been offering more free yoga classes to the community, as well as a by-donation class every Sunday. Though she continues to market her services to the wider community, overall she hopes to simply continue on the path that her predecessor started, with few changes. Zorda said her methods have been successful so far, and that the transition has been smooth.
Currently, Yoga Mandali is offering first lessons for free to all local residents. They’re also providing training for those interested in being yoga instructors, with 200- and 300-level certifications, as well as yin and restorative teacher trainings accredited through Yoga Alliance.
For more information on Yoga Mandali, visit yogamandali.com.