Sheraton hotels worldwide: Even the bigger brands are wellness-conscious. Sheraton has partnered with Core Performance and by the end of the year will roll out 360-degree training and nutrition programs across all its properties.

This includes healthy minibars, kilojoule-controlled dining, sleep-enhancement programs and state-of-the-art fitness centres. Also on the agenda are in-room fitness kits, on-demand wellness videos and workout DVDs that come with massage sticks, workout cards and mats, stretch ropes and foam rollers.

For sleep-deprived guests there are therapy programs and, after checkout, a customised 365-day online training program enables you to continue a healthy lifestyle. www.sheraton.com.

Novotel hotels, Australia: While there’s no organic bedding (yet), this four-star branding has plenty of healthy and green initiatives to shout about. In-room rejuvenation, for instance, includes a 24-hour yoga channel and complimentary yoga mats with personal trainers on call. In Balance Fitness Menus showcase healthy choices such as all-organic fruit compote, banana bread and muesli.

Each hotel offers meals analysed by Good Health Solutions and designed with the right proportions, good oils and proper nutrients in mind.

Novotel recently signed with the leading Australian international accreditation program Green Globe to achieve certification of its 400 hotels worldwide. www.novotel.com.au.

Tangula luxury trains, China: Wellness-themed accommodation is not limited to hotels. The soon-to-launch Tangula luxury trains — from Beijing to Lhasa through the vast Qinghai province and over the Tibetan Plateau or from Beijing to Lijiang through Yunnan province — will feature compartments fitted with natural bed linen, healthy minibars, organic toiletries in biodegradable bottles and ensuite showers supplied with AquVita pure water. www.tangulaluxurytrains.com.

The Metropolitan Bangkok: Years ago, Christina Ong, creator of the Como accommodation group, which includes the Metropolitan, introduced the concept of in-room yoga mats and complimentary yoga classes. Today, wellness-themed guestrooms fitted out with natural materials also feature meditation chairs, healthy in-room dining menu and minibars stocked with organic options. The aromatherapy-based bathroom amenities are all natural.

Glow, the hotel’s organic cafe on the second floor, offers energising wheatgrass shots, sugar-free desserts and organic wines; naturally, the Metropolitan’s spa has lush facilities and holistic treatments. www.metropolitan.como.bz.

iSawan at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok: Guests who check into one of the six so-called spa cottages on the fifth floor are treated to a universe of wellness. Each of the cottages is located near a juice bar, gym and spa with all the wellness equipment needed to keep guests rejuvenated. Call ahead and your minibar and in-room dining menu will be customised with organic and herbal options. Order personal meditation and yoga instructors; yoga mats and well-being DVDs are provided.

Guests are encouraged to co-design bespoke detox meals with the head chef and also available is colon cleansing for a complete detox. Each cottage boasts its own spa treatment area; the benefit of taking a Thai massage in your room is that once you’ve been stretched, pulled and pummelled, you don’t have far to go to fall into bed. www.isawan.hyatt.com.

The Plateau at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong: Guests who check into the 11th-floor Plateau at this Hong Kong Island property have direct access to a full range of wellness facilities, including fitness and exercise studios, sauna and treatment rooms. The 14 residential suites encompass a world dedicated to guests’ wellbeing, including an oversized tub with complimentary mineral bath on request and luxurious futon treatment area. There’s a healthy room-service menu and Aesop bath amenities; even better, late check-in guests can order in-room massages, reflexology and shiatsu massage up to 11pm. www.hongkong.grand.hyatt.com.

The Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong: A hotel suite with your own spa treatment area, steam room and oversized tub with hydrotherapy jets overlooking Hong Kong Harbour … guests who check into this freshly refurbished hotel’s Mandarin Suite are treated like celebrities. Gone are the days of cheap shampoos and soaps; enter designer amenities brand Aromatherapy Associates. The signature Time Rituals treatment service allows guests to book customised treatments or, for a serious check-up, the Mandarin Oriental has aligned with one of the best traditional Chinese herbal medicine centres in Hong Kong. www.mandarinoriental.com.

The Halkin, London: Kick-start your day on smoothies at this Belgravia bolthole, a member of the Como group. Guestrooms are fitted with minibars stocked with herbal tonics and organic dried fruit as well as aromatherapy candles, eye pillows, bath salts and scrubs. What’s new is the hotel’s holistic gym, featuring state-of-the-art equipment by Life Fitness.

But if you don’t want to venture out, call a Como Shambhala spa therapist for an in-room treatment. Guests can also practise yoga in their rooms via two complimentary 24-hour yoga channels; mats are provided and personal training, yoga and pilates instruction are available. www.halkin.como.bz.

Chi Edsa Shangri-La Manila: The Chi Premiere rooms are retreat-like, with comforts such as posture-sensitive chairs, yoga mat, healthy dining menu plus an open concept bath and shower with natural amenities and Kashwere bathrobes.

New at this Manila property is the so-called Clean menu designed by nutritionists for frequent business travellers, conference delegates and health-conscious holidaymakers. Since the Chi Premiere rooms are connected to the spa, yoga studio, library and relaxation lounge, the entire experience here is wellness oriented. www.shangri-la.com.

The Adelphi Melbourne: This mod lifestyle hotel has all the eco-chic facilities that aware travellers expect. Most materials used through the hotel are recycled, there’s energy-saving power and lighting systems, the food is organic, local, chemical-free and low GI. In-room massages are offered to guests, who are also granted private access to the new spa on the 9th floor, which has a hammam-style Turkish steam bath. www.adelphi.com.au.

The Lyall Hotel & Spa Melbourne: Top-notch wellness facilities are in place at this hotel in Melbourne’s cosmopolitan fashion district. In-room offerings include tannin-free teas, 24-hour spa cuisine menu and all-natural sulphate-free shampoos and soaps. Even the cleaning fluids used here are low in chemicals. Spacious and sleek describes the spa, which offers natural Elemis treatments to boost energy, slim and purify.

Says founder Rowina Thomas: “We called upon a feng shui master to ensure positive energy flow throughout.” She says the Lyall will continue to add more holistic features. www.thelyall.com.

The Mandarin Oriental Miami: Expect green tea and organic snacks when checking into one of this hotel’s Spa Lifestyle guestrooms. Setting a new benchmark in stress-free style, rooms are fitted with special bed linen and air-purification systems and are certified allergy-friendly.

Rooms also include a workout space with wellness balls, dumb-bell racks, eco-yoga mats and blocks. A fitness-themed TV channel offers 24-hour classes for different levels and includes guided relaxation sessions to help guests sleep more soundly.

The spa cuisine is streamlined throughout the hotel and can be taken in-room as well as by the pool. A step up from concierge service, each room is also assigned a personal lifestyle consultant who will customise a program to further enhance guest wellbeing. www.mandarinoriental.com.

The Miami Standard: Nutrition is now an essential element of four and five-star hotels and at Miami’s hottest boutique hotel the menu is bursting with organic, biodynamic and locally grown foods with plenty of vegetarian options. Rejuvenate, for example, on green spirulina juice or wheatgrass and ginger shots.

In a bold move, creators have revived the communal aspect of the spa, including an optional-clothing mud bath (dial the concierge and order tubs of organic coloured clays to slather on self and others).

With lectures on health, spirituality and sexuality, and daily yoga classes, the wellness vibe flows throughout this hotel. www.standardhotels.com.

The Urbn Shanghai: Shanghai’s first eco-chic hotel is also the region’s only carbon-neutral urban hotel. Each of the 26 eco-sensitive rooms has been built from local reclaimed timbers,with low-VOC paints and feature energy-saving lighting, solar shades, low-wattage lighting, water-based and energy-efficient airconditioning, eco-bedding and organic amenities.

There are in-room fitness kits, yoga and tai chi classes and customised minibars. The hotel uses environmentally safe cleaning products; order herbal bath soaks, acupuncture sessions and traditional healers to your room. www.urbnhotels.com.

The Naumi Singapore: Creators of this new lifestyle hotel have dreamed up several concepts to rejuvenate guests. The hotel is fragrant with lime and ginger essential oils pumped through its ventilation system, and a yoga room is open 24 hours a day with a holistic music station catering to hard-core gurus who like to rise early to salute the sun.

Meals are described as energising: start the day well with low-kilojoule options, fresh juices and wholefoods. www.naumihotel.com.

“Somebody who would normally buy a yearlong pass is now buying (yoga mat) a three-month or a one-month pass,” said Suzy Green-Cindrich, one of the three owners of Three Trees.

In recent months, several yoga studios have been audited and told they owe several years worth of back taxes. The news is flying through the closely knit yoga community, and sparking anxious calls to accountants and advisers.

The situation is frustrating for the studios because it has been unclear to them — and, until recently, to some employees of the Department of Revenue —whether yoga classes are, in fact, supposed to be taxed at all.

The confusion stems from a question about what yoga classes are — physical fitness or instructional lessons. The first is defined as taxable, the second is not a yoga mat.

Finding a price hike in a down economy tough for students to swallow. Others are not collecting the tax, but are worried about getting audited themselves.

According to the Department of Revenue, they probably should be worried.

Currently, yoga classes given for the purpose of physical fitness are taxable, said DOR spokesman Mike Gowrylow. In general, yoga studios should be collecting the tax, he said.

But the department acknowledges that in the past some taxpayers have been given confusing and conflicting advice, he said. And the agency is trying to revise the rules to clarify what kinds of yoga classes are taxable, and is holding discussions with businesses in the industry. When that process is completed, Gowrylow said, the agency will publish a rule and hold formal hearings on it. The whole process could take several months.

Several yoga studios said they are indeed offering instruction rather than a simple exercise routine.

“We’re teaching an age-old science that has a physical component, but it’s about your mind,” said Anne Phyfe Palmer, with Capitol Hill-based 8 Limbs Yoga Center.

Meanwhile, studios like Three Trees are caught in the middle. About six months ago, Three Trees got a notice that it was being audited, and was told that it owed about three years of back sales tax, Green-Cindrich said.

The audit was particularly galling because Three Trees had been collecting tax when the studio opened three years ago. But a student familiar with tax issues told the partners they probably didn’t need to. When Three Trees contacted the department of revenue, they were given a refund.

The department can’t discuss the situations of individual taxpayers. But Gowrylow said he was aware of at least one instance in which a yoga studio was given a refund of sales tax it had collected.

However, he said, a refund could be based on the way a taxpayer described an activity, and an auditor might conclude that that description was not accurate.

Having to pony up the money for three years of back taxes would have been a major hardship, Green-Cindrich said. Obviously the studio couldn’t go back to students who had taken their classes and collect the tax from them.

“We weren’t going to close, but things were going to be really tight,” she said.

The Three Trees partners were skeptical about the auditor’s interpretation, so they called 11 regional DOR offices in Washington state. According to Green-Cindrich, two offices said the classes were taxable, eight said they were not taxable, and one couldn’t answer the question.

“When the tax specialist says they don’t know, you know you’re in trouble,” Green-Cindrich said.

Eventually, Green-Cindrich called the deputy director of the department, Leslie Cushman, who was extremely helpful.

“Within minutes we got a call from the Tacoma office saying we were not going to have to pay this three years’ back sales tax,” Green-Cindrich said.

Gowrylow said that in cases such as Three Trees, the agency would take conflicting instructions from the department into account.

“We can’t penalize somebody for receiving incorrect advice,” he said. “We will not make people pay back taxes, but we do give prospective instructions to tell people how to do it going forward.”

However, Gowrylow said, other studios must demonstrate that the DOR gave conflicting or incorrect advice to receive a similar waiver. A formal opinion from the department, yoga mat, called a letter ruling, would make that clear; a phone call to the department would be much more difficult to prove.

Gowrylow said that in March the department learned that some taxpayers were being given conflicting advice by DOR staff. The agency sent an e-mail to employees clarifying the issue on May 27.

But even that clarification seems to include a gray area. “Exercise classes such as yoga,” the e-mail said, “ … where someone leads a group through a physical fitness routine or regimen” are listed as taxable physical fitness activities; “Classes that are part of a program to achieve mastery of techniques and philosophy” are non-taxable instruction.

“I cannot tell you how many calls and e-mails I got about yoga studios” in the last six months, said Mark Hugh, a Bellevue-based CPA who specializes in state taxes. He said the pace has been picking up, and he’s now getting at least two or three calls a week from other CPAs.

Hugh said the impact could be quite significant. For example, a small studio with about $100,000 a year in revenue might find itself owing $9,000 per year in unpaid back sales taxes. Based on when the original rule was issued, that could mean a hit of about $27,000.

Source Yoga in Tacoma, which was audited in January and told it owed two and a half years of back taxes, is appealing that decision. A hearing is scheduled for Sept. 3. “It’s hard for us to wrap our head around being held accountable for this if there has been so much confusion even within the department,” said Erin Joose, one of the owners of Source yoga mat.

Green-Cindrich said Three Trees is now collecting the tax. A single class has gone from $14 to $15.26, while a one-month pass has gone from $104 to $113.36. On a full-year pass, the tax adds $90.

Especially popular courses include fine dining, selling on the Internet and yoga(yoga mat). “We have some that are just really big hits, but all of them are fairly …

The “special interest courses” begin at various dates over the first three weeks of September. They can be taken for one college credit or as a non-graded, non-credit course. The cost of each course is $89. Courses generally run one night a week for two-plus hours, for about six weeks.
“We initiated special-interest courses as a way of offering enrichment opportunities to people in the community, and to share the knowledge and resources of our faculty,” said Debi Swick-Cruse, program assistant in the communications department.  Swick-Cruse said courses are chosen for their appeal to as wide an audience as possible. Especially popular courses include fine dining, selling on the Internet and yoga.
“We have some that are just really big hits, but all of them are fairly popular,” she said.
Local businessman Gary Howell will conduct Introduction to Internet
Retailing, which “teaches individuals how to shop and sell items on-line and how to navigate sites like eBay and other internet retail sites.”
Chef Thomas Vieli will teach “Topics in Fine Dining,” which will focus on the preparation and presentation of gourmet foods, table presentation and serving procedures.
Local photographer Raymond Burner, renowned for his photographs of local sports action, many of which appear in the News-Tribune, will teach introductory Digital Photography, in which students will learn the basics of photo composition and lighting, use of Adobe Photoshop and the mechanics of digital cameras. The course includes a guided photo shoot.
Enjoying Poetry, taught by Jennifer Merrifield, will introduce students to four contemporary American masters: Irene McKinney, Billy Collins, Jo McDougall and Stephen Dunn — winner of the 2001 Pulitzer Prize in poetry who lives in Frostburg. Merrifield said the course seeks in part to dispel some myths about poetry.
  “Despite its bad reputation, poetry is an art meant to be enjoyed.  We don’t have to analyze the chord progressions of a song for it to be our favorite, and we don’t have to understand brush techniques or color theory to be moved by a painting,” Merrifield said. “By reading and listening to poems by these American masters, students will replace their fears and frustrations as they discover how to read poems for enjoyment.”
Other courses include Personal Finance, Yoga for Fitness, which introduces students to the fundamentals of classical hatha yoga, and Putting the Business in Business Meetings, which instructs students in Roberts Rules of Order.
In addition, Stepping into Grapes and Grains — limited to students 21 and over — will address the fundamentals of fermentation, the difference between lagers and ales, and the basic skills needed to establish home production.

When pressed, Sety wrote in subsequent emails that fortune telling is controversial because some people do not believe in such activities buy yoga with a right yoga mat. “We have decided that businesses that deal primarily with psychic phenomena are not an appropriate fit for a county program,” she wrote to Chauran.

Last year, when Alexandra Chauran sought to teach her students at Kent’s Phoenix Academy about the benefits of composting, she turned to the King County Solid Waste Division for help. Chauran ended up using the agency’s curriculum to help her students start a vegetable garden and donate the fruits—or in this case, veggies—of their labors to a local food bank.
After that experience, Chauran says, she wanted to get involved with KCSWD’s Waste Free Holiday program, which solicits small businesses to donate their services at a reduced rate to be passed on as gifts during the holidays—the hope being that grandmothers and other gift givers will replace ugly sweaters with experiences that generate less trash. Chauran, who left the Kent School District after last year, sought to donate her skills as a tarot-card reader, a crystal-ball diviner, and tea-leaf reader to the program. She was turned down.

“Thank you for your application,” Megan Sety of the division’s Recycling and Environmental Services wrote to her Aug. 11. “However, we are not able to include offers of this type because of their controversial nature.”

“I do birthdays [and] bridal showers,” Chauran counters. “It’s not like I’m a pornographer.”
Furthermore, Chauran notes that program participants include yoga studios and wellness spas, among other types of business. As a teacher, Chauran says, she was not allowed to include yoga in her curriculum because some parents saw it as religion. So, she wonders, if yoga may be included in the county program, why not fortune telling?

“We try to limit it to something you would see on a wish list,” Sety explains.
While fortune telling may appear on someone’s wish list, Sety says the discipline is too controversial to include. “We could see a lot of reactions from the program and they could be very positive or they could be very negative,” Sety says. “We want the program to be successful, so we have to worry about how it is perceived in the public. It may be construed as an endorsement, although it is not.”

Sety explains that yoga isn’t as controversial as psychic phenomena, adding that program participants are divided into eight categories: dance, fitness, museum/visual arts, music, sports and recreation, rest and relaxation, restaurants, and theater. When the Waste Free program started 12 years ago, organizers had to seek out businesses to participate. Now, Sety says, solicitation is no longer necessary as the program gains popularity. But some businesses, such as financial planners and tutors, are turned away because they’ve been deemed inappropriate for the program.

Rhythms, A Center for the Movement Arts in conjunction with the Aspinwell Open Market, is pleased to announce that it will be hosting a day of dance, yoga and activities on Saturday, September 6 from 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. The day will include yoga and dance classes, chair massage and other spa services, activities for kids (face painting, clowns, games), a food and bake sale and Chinese Raffle. All proceeds from the event will benefit Charley’s Fund.

In addition to multiple local businesses, over 40 vendors from the Open Market have donated items for the Chinese Raffle that will take place.

Charley’s Fund is named for Charley Seckler, an active, athletic 7- year-old boy who lives in South Egremont, MA. Charley’s active lifestyle belies what is going on in his body. He has been diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a progressive muscle-wasting disease. Soon after Charley’s diagnosis, his parents incorporated Charley’s Fund, a public charity that funds medical research for a treatment or cure for DMD.

Rhythms, A Center for Movement Arts, is a dance, yoga and movement studio in the Aspinwell Shops, 55 Pittsfield Road, Lenox.

You’re just the person who should try it, said Arizona Power Yoga owner, Joseph Lauricella. According the owner of the new Arizona Power Yoga studio in Marana which wholesale yoga mats.

“It is what I call the ‘not so boring yoga’,” Lauricella said.

He teaches Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga. With this practice, the room temperature is about 90 degrees and the postures are more athletic.

“I have one girl in there that has lost 40 pounds in two to three months,” Lauricella said.

He is talking about Lauren Tolo, who has been attending Power Yoga classes and training at a gym.

“I love how he makes the room real hot and you sweat all the bad parts out of you and then it really calms you down at the end,” Tolo said.

 ”It is a blend of Eastern philosophy and the best of Western training techniques,” Lauricella said.

Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga is based on yoga from India, utilizing breathing sequences blended with core work, as in Pilates and dance.

“Most people don’t think yoga is exercise, they think it is just flopping around on the floor having fun, which it is, but it is really great exercise,” said Power Yoga participant, Joe warren.

This yoga is for everyone because there are ways to modify all the postures, Lauricella said. He calls it one stop shopping for the body, mind and soul.

If you have an itch for some yoga, it’s perfect timing, because Monday is a free day for yoga when using yoga mat, and classes are available all over town, including Lululemon and Bodhi Yoga in central Austin.

If  you’re into yoga, you might be interested in trying a different kind, called acro yoga.

Acroyoga blends traditional yoga with Thai massage and the power of acrobatics.

“It’s all about support,” Ashley Gloor with Lululemon Athletica said. “You definatley build strength as you go, but a lot of it is being mindful of your body.”

Experience If you want to improve your fitness significantly and rid yourself of bad eating habits, this is the place to come. The day started and ended with yoga mat, led by Kate Harrell, who teaches at the über-fashionable Triyoga in Primrose Hill, North London. In the mornings there was either circuit-training or one of three hikes through the national park. The hikes were the big fitness challenge, not least because large sections were on sand (it soon became clear why we’d been asked to bring Compeed blister plasters). The first hike was a two-and-a-half hour trek to a lagoon with pink flamingos and a wild boar skittering about near by. Each guest also had a personal training session, which could be anything from deep stretching to ocean-swimming, and a session with a nutritionist, Kenny. The only grumbles were about the quality of the massage. The normal masseurs were unavailable, and while their replacements performed competent Swedish-style treatments, those wanting deep-tissue massage, which focused on particular problems, were disappointed.

Ambience A Kasbah-style hotel, sitting above an eight-mile stretch of deserted beach in the Souss-Massa national park, about an hour south of Agadir. Once inside, there were terraced gardens, with informal seating areas, leading up to a large, rather beautiful pool. Rooms were a mix of boutique hotel and traditional Moroccan, with walk-in showers and lots of lamps. Yoga classes were held on a roof terrace or in a simple room with sea views.

Products Local massage oils, with natural scents.

Food Wheat and dairy-free, with no red meat, the food was designed to provide a full detox. There was no caffeine and no alcohol, except for the final night when the champagne came out. Herbs and spices were used to create strong flavours in the absence of added salt and sugar. By the end of the week I’d lost an inch off my waist.

Wallet watch You pay for the staff, so if all you are looking for are a few massages and an occasional yoga class, this may not be the holiday for you. A week, including all activities, meals and transfers, was £1,895 per person, based on two people sharing a double room, or £2,450 for single occupancy. (Groups are no larger than 25 guests.) I flew with First Choice from Gatwick to Agadir for £175. Having gone on a retreat, you automatically become a member of in:spa club, which hosts activities and social events.

In-crowd An intelligent, eclectic group, including a diplomat, an advertising executive and two Mancunian businesswomen. Ages ranged from late twenties to fifties, with couples and singles. This is essentially a group holiday, with everyone sitting together for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Do you the new of the yoga one? This gives you a chance to learn proper technique without developing bad habits.here’s a way to modify the classic chair pose. Practice half-chair for a while before progressing to the more challenging full chair position.

Step 1 As you feel more competent and become comfortable doing the half chair, continue to squat deeper toward the floor. Straighten your arms overhead, pointing your fingertips toward the ceiling. Remember to relax your shoulders down. Sit as low as you can with your knees together and your heels on the floor. Hold for three to six full breaths.
Step 2 Stand with your feet together and with your hands by your sides. As you inhale, sweep your arms up and bend your knees. Sit back on your heels with your hips moving behind your heels. Grasp your forearms above your head. Drop your shoulders down and away from your ears and look forward. Make sure you keep your heels on the floor with your knees together and your abdominals pulled in. Take three to six slow full breaths. Come out of the pose by straightening your legs and lowering your arms.

Kaivalyadhama Yoga Institute, a national-level organisation funded by the union HRD ministry, will conduct the study on role of ‘yoga in stress management on train drivers’ if use the yoga mat , said officials. The institute began the course with detailed medical examination of 80 motormen on Friday. Railway officials said increasing number of suburban services had heightened the work pressure of motormen . In fact, new trains under MUTP had only added to their duty chart, said a motorman at CST. The Central Railway and Western Railway together run 2500 suburban services.

Subodh Tiwari, co-ordinator with the institute , said CR and WR have both nominated 40 motormen each for the three-month yoga course. “We conducted various biochemical tests like lipid profile, cortisol, protein reaction, polygraph, lung capacity, hand grip, sleep rating, spirometry , and reaction time on Friday before starting yoga,” he said.