Henry Abuda was first introduced to the world of yoga in 2004, after a friend talked him into taking a class with him.
He didn’t know much about yoga at the time and assumed it was nothing more than meditating.
Two breathing exercises and 26 yoga poses in an 104-degree room later, it changed him. He was hooked and found it to be a physical challenge that he wanted to get better at.
Today, Abuda is the founder and owner of Xplore Yoga, an independent business that offers a variety of yoga classes in Newark.
After his first classes, Abuda started learning a variety of styles of yoga. The more he learned about it, the more passionate he felt for it. Last year, he spent a month in Costa Rica at a 200-hour training course of hot yoga. He went on to become a teacher in 2008 taught at local yoga studios in the area.
While teaching, he added opening his own studio to his bucket list. And it became a reality when he signed a contract to establish the studio last June.
“The reason that I wanted to pursue it was because the journey and the benefit of the yoga that I’ve experienced, I want others to be able to experience it so hopefully they’ll be able to get the same benefits that I got [from] my yoga journey,” he said.
Xplore Yoga opened in Newark in late October 2011 and is the only yoga studio in Newark. The yoga studio offers an array of yoga classes; from beginners to advanced and offers classes focused on Bikram yoga and Vinyasa yoga.
All classes are held in a well-heated room. Abuda said hot yoga takes the practice to a whole different level, because heat promotes better blood circulation and makes muscles warm, making it easier to use them and increases an individual’s metabolism.
Abuda said Xplore Yoga students have expressed gratitude in the studio’s opening
“They’re happy to know that there is a hot yoga studio here in Newark because it’s the first one of its kind [in Newark],” Abuda said. “We’ve been embraced by a lot of the diversity of Newark. For them to be able to say ‘hey, we have a yoga studio here,’ they’re excited about that.”
Abuda said his goals are to promote yoga to the community and share the physical benefits of yoga. He said he also hopes to partner with the schools and local government and give back to thank the community for what they do.
Abuda said he is glad that yoga has become popular in the Western community and expressed enthusiasm that medical professions are also seeing yoga in a positive light.
“The medical community has now embraced it to the point that they are recommending it to their patients; people with medical conditions, people who are stressed… so there are a lot of benefits that yoga provides,” he said. “I’m excited how Western medicine is now awakening and embracing the benefits of yoga.”
For more information regarding the classes and the studio, check out www.xploreyoga.com for more details.
Xplore Yoga is located at 5572 Newpark Mall Rd., across from near TJ Maxx.
