Hot Yoga & Pilates Opens in Walpole

By Chuck Bingaman,

            SOME LIKE IT HOT LLC, managed by Putney resident/ entrepreneur Ellen Abraham is now offering yoga, Pilates and private training in a new studio at 52 Main Street, Walpole.

            Abraham, who also runs HOT YOGA SPIN & PILATES in Putney and SOME LIKE IT HOT SPIN in Brattleboro, is hoping that New Hampshirites will be attracted to her brand of fitness and also to her selection of exercise clothing, jewelry, skin care and other specialty products for sale at the new location.

            The lithe and wiry Abraham comes from a background of fitness and natural foods cooking which she trained extensively for in New York and Los Angeles.  She has also studied other healing arts such as aromatherapy and massage before gaining certifications in Pilates, yoga and indoor cycling, otherwise known as “spinning.”

            “Five years ago,” Abraham said, “my girlfriend and I were looking for a place to relocate.  We did a search on the computer, and typed in ‘organic foods’, “local foods”, ‘land’; and ‘yoga’ and out came Brattleboro/Putney!” 

“When we first moved to Putney, I started up my first company, “Simple Treats”, a vegan organic cookie company, and I was also teaching yoga at various locations.  It wasn’t soon after when I decided to open up my own studio, Hot Yoga of Putney in the center of Putney.”  Soon the immediate satisfactions of the yoga business exerted a stronger pull on her than the cookie business and Abraham had identified her true calling.

            “I got so excited when someone would buy a 5-class card.  It was when I started to see the same people coming back on a regular basis,” Abraham said, “Naturally I began offering products that were related and that I also had a love for.  It was diversifying that helped my business grow.  So I decided to expand in what I was offering, not only in classes but in merchandise!”

            “Then,” she says, the space below the Putney studio became available.  So I decided to take it and expand to also offer spinning.  I became Some Like It Hot Yoga & Spin.  I held trainings to recruit more teachers who could in turn be able to offer classes in more time slots, for more people than I could teach myself. The people who came stayed, including the teachers.”

            While building the new Putney studio, threw her back out.  “And that’s when I discovered Pilates!” she says.  “What it did for me I couldn’t even believe! I thought everybody should be doing this!  So I became a certified Pilates instructor and the business changed yet again to become Hot Yoga Spin & Pilates of Vermont!  The students that trusted me with yoga and spin now came with me into Pilates.  I continued to bring various trainings to the studios so that teachers could expend their education and what they were offering without having to go to New York or LA to do them.  The relationship I have with everyone who is a part of this studio is just amazing.  We are all friends.  It most definitely is a lifestyle community.”

            “But,” says Abraham, “I'm not the type of person to sit still! Now we have 10 -11 teachers and software that links all the three studios on our computer system. You can have a class card that lets you do yoga, spinning and Pilates at any of the three studios, plus private trainings and series classes wherever you would like to go—Brattleboro, Putney or Walpole. It’s seamless!”

            So what kind of training does Abraham teach in Walpole? She offers up privates classes, semi-privates, and small group classes in all that she does: Pilates, with or without the apparatus, various styles of yoga, and personal training, including her intensive boot camps and 28-day challenges.  She also has drop-in yoga and Pilates classes offered by other teachers on the schedule.

            So what will it be? Abraham says to try all the modalities she offers.  “You need them all.  You need to move in every way to have the body that will serve you best!” 

            Pilates, says Abraham, is all about our container, how our bodies work and how we can help them work better.  “It’s about putting your body through a series of ‘rote’ movements with 100% awareness.  It’s the smartest movement for our bodies, and it’s a great place to start.   It all functions from your core—from your shoulders down to your thighs.  It helps offset the memories our bodies develop that don’t serve us well like sitting so much, whether we work at a desk, sit and eat, or drive a car a lot.  Pilates re-educates simple ranges of motion.  You are re-educating paths of motion to become clear and concise.  It’s like math in the body: you do the work and you get the results! Your muscles get longer, you get taller, and you are safer in how you move.  You move with grace and mindfulness.”

            To see the full range of classes and tuition fees offered at 52 MAIN ST STUDIO & BOUTIQUE in Walpole, plus Hot Yoga Spin & Pilates and Some Like It Hot Spin, visit www.hotyogavt.com.  For more information, call Ellen Abraham in Walpole at 603-756-3660