About Us

How we came into being: (see "Company Story" below)

The Cincinnati Yoga School and Bookstore, a Kripalu affiliate , opened in April 1999. Diane Schmidt Utaski is the sole owner. (Bio on directors page). Diane saw there was a need for more yoga classes in Cincinnati as she traveled around teaching at schools, hospitals, churches and various small rooms. Most of these places were not very ideal for the space and quietness necessary for yoga; times were also quite limited, people were looking for classes to fit their busy schedules and various yoga levels. Many had special conditions like cardiac rehab and MS or just needed to relax or start stretching stiff aging bodies.

A center in Blue Ash was founded to fill these needs. The yoga room is large and comfortable, with lots of props, soft lighting and music. The Bookstore is full of interesting yoga books, top selling videos, music CD's and audio-tapes for meditation and relaxation. The bookstore also carries hard to find props such as sticky mats, blocks, straps, wedges, neti narial nasal pots and zafus meditation cushions and blankets in stock.

The School has 20-25 classes a week, all taught by nationally certified yoga teachers and members of the Cincinnati Yoga Teacher's Association, a variety of hatha yoga styles are represented including Kripalu, ATMA, Integral, Ashtanga and Anusara. Students can start in New Beginners 4 pack (4 classes, 4 weeks for $48) if they have no yoga experience and want to learn lessons, from scratch with step by step instructions in breathing, fundamental postures, meditation and deep relaxation. Ongoing students can also choose from Basics, Mixed Levels, Ashtanga, Hot Yoga, Yoga Pilates, Pre-Natal, Baby and Mom, Partner Yoga, Meditation and Pranayama Workshops. Class times range from 9:30 am to 7:30pm evenings, Monday through Sunday. Most classes are 90 minutes, a few are 60 and 75 minutes. Off site classes and workshops are quoted on an individual basis. Call the School for a schedule of classes and workshops 513-247-YOGA

The Yoga School also has a full kitchen and offers workshops on nutrition. Previous workshops included Health Benefits of Green Tea, Cooking Light, and Kitchen Garden Sprouting. Future workshops include "Becoming a Vegetarian," Easy Vegetarian Cooking, and Everyday Indian Meals.

We offer Reiki with Marion Corbin-Mayer, Thai Yoga Massage Therapy with teacher Donna Covrett - see bio page , and Private Yoga Sessions.

CINCINNATI YOGA SCHOOL
COMPANY STORY
by Diane Utaski

         Yoga changed my life. After 23 lucrative years in corporate sales and marketing. I
took my first yoga class to help with stress and sciatic pain. It worked. I fell in love. I
found my purpose. I felt compelled to teach this to others. I quit my job, got training as a
holistic health teacher and certified yoga teacher. I wanted to teach it safely and expertly
for all levels.

      When I started subbing my first classes for my teacher, I would sit in front of the
room, strong and confident, and teach people how to feel better in their bodies, guide
them to quiet their bodies, guide them to quiet their minds, and create space for them to
listen to their spirits. Then something would happen that I never get tired of. They would
hug me. They would hug each other. They would thank me over and over for helping
them relax. They had no pressure to compete, just to go at their own pace, find their own
edge, and breathe a lot deeper. They were stiff, they hurt, but the sound of my voice gave
them courage and strength to not give up, and at the end of class, they felt better. They
would tell me how it was changing their lives.

        They would say the city needed more of this, in a perfect place made just for yoga.
Quiet, spacious, safe and comforting. For beginners of all ages, at all stages of life’s
journey. I found the place. I found other certified caring teachers. And students found
peace of body, mind, and spirit.

       Such as Pedro, a man whose first time in class said he came because his wife had
died three weeks earlier. He was in pain. So he breathed, he slowly stretched his chest and
heart open. He cried, we hugged him. He comes every week now, and brings homemade
Ave Maria CD’s to the school, grateful to feel strong and alive again. Then there is Mary
Ann, who had so much neck and jaw tension she could barely move her head. After three
weeks I asked her how she was feeling. She said, “ I can talk again.” We hugged. A
prenatal student was beginning to have a difficult labor. She asked the hospital staff and
her family in the room to help her chant “OM”, the sound of peace and strength. It turned
into “ Open Sesame.” The baby relaxed and was born immediately. One month later I got
to hug her baby.

     Every day is a new experience. People are searching for help and the yoga room
doors are open. Our arms are open. The caring teachers and staff help individuals enjoy
the best quality yoga experience, in a sacred space just for them. It’s fun, rewarding, and
best of all, huggable.

11130 Kenwood Rd. and Cornell, Blue Ash, Ohio 45242, USA
513-247-9642 Phone; 513-247-0078 Fax