When Rachel Roberts opened The Yoga Bar in 2010, she wanted to offer a studio that was focused on unity, community, and equanimity.
“After returning to the region from Mysore, India, I wanted to give back to my hometown so I opened the studio to create a community center that was focused on mindfulness and movement,” she says.
Roberts’ involvement in the wellness community stretches far and wide. She has previously been a featured presenter at conferences, festivals, and educational forums. She’s also served as a mentor and judge for various business and artistic incubator programs and is a Kentucky State Representative for District 67.
Roberts says that her greatest talent, though, is her ability to offer ancient philosophies in a way that is approachable and applicable to our modern-day trials. “Whether it’s in one-on-one or in a room with 1,000, I can help you move into your true, powerful nature and to develop a supportive culture around you,” she adds.
Classes currently available at The Yoga Bar are traditional, accessible yoga classes. They are offered from gentle like Yin and restorative, to fiery like Vinyasa and Ashtanga.
“If folks get can up and down from the ground on their own, we can make our group classes accessible to you,” she says. “We also offer private and therapeutic classes as well as corporate and special event plans.”
The main focus at The Yoga Bar is being a philanthropic and community-focused hub in the region.
“We hold regular fundraisers for local charities ranging from family services to LGBTQ causes to arts organizations and have partnerships to offer mindfulness to groups for thousands through NamasDEY with the Bengals, and yoga for PTSD with local fire departments,” adds Roberts.
As we look for a return to normal in a post-COVID world, Roberts says the studio is beginning to ramp back up after being entirely virtual for most of 2020. In-person classes just resumed again in April and she plans to continue taking things slowly and cautiously, as your wellness practice shouldn’t risk your health.
She plans to hold outdoor classes again when the weather warms up and will expand the in-studio class schedule. “Our sweet studio is embedded in a quiet, historic neighborhood, so we throw the doors opens it feels like you are practicing outdoors, inside our practice space,” she says.
In addition to the services Roberts and The Yoga Bar can offer here in Cincinnati, she is looking forward to expanding her horizons through Bija Retreats. The Yoga Bar regularly hosts 6-7 retreats a year as close to home as Hocking Hills in June and October and as far away as Bali in Spring 022. “I just got back from Sayulita, Mexico, where we were scouting for a new retreat location,” says Roberts. “We will be finalizing an offering there in the coming months.”
When The Yoga Bar first opened its doors, they were in downtown Cincinnati before moving to the Newport location in 2013. In 2017 The Yoga Bar purchased the Newport building and in 2019 consolidated all operations to the location at 701 Park Avenue in Newport, Kentucky.
To learn more about The Yoga Bar, click here. The Yoga Bar is on Facebook and Instagram, and you can follow the hashtag #wherewillthepracticetakeyou. You can also keep up with Bija Retreats on Facebook and Instagram.
