Steve Berkowitz, RYT
Hatha Yoga
Training & Background
- 14+ years of practice · 500 hours of teacher training
- Pranayama (breathing practices)
- Dharana and Dhyana (concentration and meditation)
- 10 Day Vipassana silent meditation course graduate
A Little About Steve
As a young person finding my place in the world, I connected more with martial arts and gymnastics than team sports. These disciplines grounded me in body awareness and intelligence from an early age. Throughout high school, I had a vague but potent sense that yoga and meditation would be important to me, that there was something deep to explore there; it was only a matter of time.
In college, I began teaching myself these practices with books I found at my university’s (SUNY New Paltz) campus library, studying along with Yoga Self Taught by André Van Lysebeth and A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle. These extracurricular practices quickly surpassed my academics in personal importance. I began to look for a kind of place where I could study these subjects instead as academia felt heady and disconnected.
I quickly came across the Sivananda Yoga Ranch in Woodbourne, NY, not far from my university. After visiting a few times as a guest, I was certain it was where I’d rather be. I paused my degree to live and study yoga and meditation full-time at this ashram (a dedicated place of spiritual study, often with a work-trade component). From 2012 to 2014 I lived, ate, slept, and breathed not just yoga but a ‘yogic lifestyle.’ That meant a highly regimented daily routine, diet, and lifestyle, revolving around many of the conventions, holidays, and observances of the traditional Hindu calendar year. While there, I also learned how to cook and garden, the latter eventually leading me to Washington state.
Steve’s Hatha Approach
Since graduating from my teacher training course in 2012, I’ve taught Hatha at the Yoga Ranch, gyms, yoga studios, and privately on both coasts. My classes are simple and posture-focused – not flowy or aerobic, except for maybe the Sun Salutations. Each class leaves time for breathing exercises and a few minutes of meditation/mindfulness as the cherry on top. In the Sivananda tradition, we favor a no-frills, almost anti-modern approach. Yogis and their chelas (students) have practiced this way for hundreds of years, without props or music – though I certainly won’t stop you from using a prop if you’d like. The idea is that it’s just you, me (your instructor) and your mind. I meet students where they are in their practice and flexibility. I believe that there are physical, mental/emotional, and spiritual benefits to be derived at every experience level!
Yoga asana (the postures we do on the mat) works well as a stand-alone practice for greater flexibility and feeling more comfortable in one’s body. It also prepares you for the deeper, more contemplative practices of concentration and meditation that become oh so much more easeful and enjoyable when loose and limber. Whatever your aim and experience level, I am honored to help you further yourself along the yogic path!
Classes with Steve
Hatha Yoga — slow, focused deep dives into a series of traditional, complementary postures, stretching the entire body and relaxing the mind. All levels welcome; no prior experience required.
- Thursdays at 4:30pm
- Drop-in $20 · 6-class package $100
New students, please arrive 10 minutes early.
Would you like to take a class with Steve at a different time? We are expanding our schedule as the teaching team and clients grow — email us at [email protected] or mention it at your next visit.
Serving Seattle neighborhoods including Queen Anne, Fremont, Wallingford, Ballard, Capitol Hill, and the greater Puget Sound area.