Namaste Y'all

6 Dallas-area fusion classes to breathe new life into your yoga practice

If your bridge pose is getting you nowhere and your bow is totally boring, it may be time to freshen up your yoga practice. Several Dallas-area studios and instructors have dreamed up some truly creative classes that will have you saying "om" with renewed purpose.

Aerial Yoga
Move with grace and style as you practice yoga supported by colorful aerial hammocks at Moving Canvas Dance Space in Arlington. This 60-minute class takes traditional yoga exercises, such as the warrior sequence, and uses the hammocks to enhance the exercises by allowing the body to be supported so stretches can be deeper, and oxygen and blood can flow more freely throughout the body.

There's a beginner class, as well as one for more advanced students, and benefits include increased flexibility, improved upper body strength and a stronger core. Moving Canvas owner and instructor Gypsy Ingram says aerial yoga can improve memory and have emotional benefit as well.

Les Mills Bodyflow
This yoga-based class combines simple yoga moves with elements of tai chi and Pilates to an inspired soundtrack for 30-, 45- or 55-minute workouts. You’ll improve flexibility and increase core strength while reducing stress while you move and stretch like a bendy straw. Bodyflow is taught at two Dallas Gold’s Gym locations: Preston Center at 8335 Westchester Dr. and Uptown at 2425 McKinney Ave.

Yoga Sculpt
A total body workout, yoga sculpt is a one-hour class with plyometrics ("jump training"), cardio, yoga and weight lifting at CorePower Yoga. The intense class can be modified for all fitness levels, but be prepared for squats, lunges, and bicep and tricep curls set to energizing music. The class is available at the Henderson, Mockingbird and Preston-Forest locations.

Flexin' Flow
Also known as "grit yoga," this is the signature power yoga class of Dallas fitness guru Brit Rettig. The 55-minute class combines vinyasa power yoga sequences, core stability exercises, leg toning circuits and intensity intervals with upbeat music.

Through the end of August, there's a free Flexin' Flow class at the W hotel in Victory Park every Saturday morning at 9 am, and it's regularly taught at the Dallas Grit Fitness studio at 3821 Ross Ave.

Yoga Spa Splash
This class begins poolside Wednesdays at 7 pm at The J (Aaron Family Jewish Community Center of Dallas) with 30 minutes of flow yoga accompanied by the sounds of “singing” crystal bowls. The peaceful intro is followed by 30 minutes of heart pumping, aqua-Pilates cardio in the pool. Non-members of The J can try a class for free through August 12 (no class on August 5) at 7900 Northaven Rd.

Wood Series
Develop strength and flexibility with a fusion of yoga, Pilates and resistance stretching with Sunstone Yoga’s Wood Series. Set in a 90-degree studio with 60 percent humidity, the one-hour class is designed to strengthen and balance weak areas in the body, deepening your active range of motion. You'll sweat like never before and find yourself bending into new poses with ease. The class is taught at multiple Sunstone locations throughout Dallas-Fort Worth.

The Yoga Spa Splash class at The J includes yoga with “singing” crystal bowls and aqua-Pilates cardio in a pool.

Photo courtesy of The J

The Yoga Spa Splash class at The J includes yoga with “singing” crystal bowls and aqua-Pilates cardio in a pool.

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Animal News

Latest animal to die at Dallas Zoo is young male gorilla named Zola

Dallas Zoo

Zola RIP

Another animal at the Dallas Zoo has died an untimely death: Zola, a young Western lowland gorilla, died on Wednesday, November 5, at age 23.

The zoo does not know why Zola died. A necropsy will be performed. According to their post, Zola was euthanized after showing symptoms of lethargy, reduced appetite, and signs of discomfort at the end of October.

"Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to begin breathing on his own afterward, despite the extraordinary efforts of our veterinary and animal care teams," their post says. "With his comfort as our priority, we made the difficult decision to let him go peacefully."

The zoo did not announce the death immediately, instead waiting two days until Friday afternoon at 3 pm. Politicians and government agencies prefer to choose Friday afternoons to post news that is negative or controversial, since fewer people, and definitely fewer journalists, are online on Friday afternoons. It's called the "Friday news dump."

The death is very inconvenient for the Dallas Zoo since they were just about to ship off their male gorillas, which also include Shana, Zola, and B’Wenzi, to the San Antonio Zoo. Animals are very dear to the zoo — until it's time to ship them off to another zoo. Other gorillas will be shipped in to replace them — although we do not know which gorillas and from where. True to form, the Association of Zoos & Aquariums only divulges that kind of intel on a "need to know" basis. Right now, you and I do not need to know.

The relocation of the other three male gorillas is "temporarily on hold" but the zoo says they will be moved "when the time is right."

Zola was born at the Bronx Zoo in 2002 and became internet famous as the "breakdancing gorilla" for splashing in pools and puddles. Some animal experts attributed his actions to frustration at being locked inside a zoo. He was relocated to the Calgary Zoo in 2009, but did not integrate well and was then moved to the Dallas Zoo in 2013. Shana is his "half-brother."

Death count
Zola's death is one more in a long-running series of deaths at the zoo in recent years, the most previous being Jata, a 7-year-old painted dog who died in June 2024. Jata also showed signs of lethargy and decreased appetite, reportedly due to kidney disease.

Zola the Western lowland gorilla joins this death march of animals at the Dallas Zoo:

Jata, one of the zoo's three African painted dogs, died in June 2024, at seven years old.
Ferrell, a 15-year-old giraffe, died in December, 2023, following "an unexpected fall in the barn" that injured the giraffe's jaw so badly, they were forced to euthanize him.
Ajabu, a 6-year-old African elephant who died on May 8, 2023, from the herpes virus.
Pin, a 35-year-old lappet-faced vulture, died on January 22, 2023, cause unknown.
Jesse, a 14-year-old giraffe, died on October 29, 2021, cause unknown.
Auggie, a 19-year-old giraffe, died in late October 2021 of liver failure.
Marekani, a 3-month-old baby giraffe, sustained a mysterious injury and was euthanized on October 3, 2021.
Kirk, a 31-year-old chimpanzee, died in August 2021 due to "surprise" heart disease.
Keeya, a 6-year-old Hartmann's mountain zebra, died in March 2021 due to a mysterious unexplained head injury.
Subira, a 24-year-old silverback gorilla, died suddenly in March 2020, due to a cough, or maybe cardiovascular disease. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Hope, a 23-year-old Western lowland gorilla, died suddenly in November 2019 after being at the zoo for only two years.
Ola, an 8-year-old female African painted dog, was killed in July 2019 by two other painted dogs, less than a month after she was transferred to the zoo.
Witten, a 1-year-old giraffe, died in June 2019 during a physical exam under anesthesia when he suddenly stopped breathing.
Adhama, a baby hippopotamus, mysteriously died in 2018.
Kipenzi, a baby giraffe, died in 2015 after running in her enclosure.
Kamau, a young cheetah, died of pneumonia in 2014.
Johari, a female lion, was killed in front of zoo spectators in 2013 by male lions with whom she shared an enclosure.

And in February 2021, they lost a crow called Onyx who was part of their "animal ambassador team," "participating in a training session" for a bird show. He was never found.

animals