I consider myself a late bloomer hippie. I always wear my tie-dye T-shirts when I teach my yoga classes.
Yes, I see more people looking for yoga to help with their stressful lives. Some of them don't even have jobs because of the recession.
Not many corporate workers in my classes as before. Who told me, they have to work twice as hard now because their employer had to let go employees. Now they are doing workload jobs of 2-3 people, plus their own job.

People come to Yoga for different reasons and with different intentions and from all walks of life. But all of this is on the surface.

At the heart of our seeking is an understanding that something is missing in our lives; a feeling that something isn't quite right. From this arises our own desire, a simple yearning to know what it is that's missing. We look everywhere for it...in our jobs, in our relationships, in our possessions, and mostly in entertainment.

But as our awareness expands, and we experience the contrast between the dryness of these things, and more importantly, as we experience the true rasa, the juiciness, that arises from a sincere and sustained spiritual practice like Yoga, we begin to cast aside these differentiations and labels.

We begin to identify ourselves as something more than a yuppie, a hippie, or corporate yogi. We identify with something which is eternal, and pure, both beyond this world, and also a part of it. Then, and only then, does our life begin to take on real meaning, and the ordinary events of our lives are transformed into sacred duty.

Yoga is for everyone. Its dangerous for us as an industry and as teachers to pigeon hole and stereotype. It doesn't matter what you look like or how you act, yoga meets you where you are and soon, all of the layers of how we define ourselves begin to fall off. I identify myself as me, Andria, an individual who needs no dogma or image to tell me how to be--yoga gave me that gift--the gift of myself. Our job as teachers is to not judge or stereotype and bring that gift to others.

I'm one of these corp. yoginis the JBJ report was referring to. I don't think stress is the reason I show up every day at the class. Not even at the beginning. The article seems to reduce yoga to a stress management teaching while it's far more expansive than that. Superficial reports have to categorize in order to make the whole phenomena accessible for the general readers.

That said, as long as the reports generate positive interests in yoga, I say go for it. We can't expect every reporter to study the yoga sutra.

I don't fit any stereotypes. I was the guy in high school who moved quite comfortably in all circles. I was the jock whose debate partner was the brainiest geek in the school. The guitarist who was also in chess club.

While my primary interest is Yoga philosophy, I find I can relate to the full range of Yoga. In blog discussions I'm usually the one celebrating the wonderful diversity of Yoga in America, and think that all its different aspects enhance and support each other.

Bob Weisenberg
http://YogaDemystified.com

Me?
A corporate yuppie!

Ha! I'm a corporate hippie!

I didn't come to yoga for one reason but rather many. Perhaps the most important reason is I was seeking to fill an emptiness in my life and try to reduce the wobble of my days. To balance and steady myself. I hope that after years of practice I will gain the knowledge and confidence to eventually get certified as a yoga instructor. I see the application of yoga to hospitals, to school kids, to prisins, to homeless shelters, to senior homes very interesting and something that I personally would like to study and work with. Yoga isn't one thing but many.

i'm all of those things and more, depending on when in the cycle of life you catch me... and we're none of those labels, for no one can be reduced to a stereotype

i like to think what yoga does for us ~~ultimately~~ is free us from the limitations of an outer shell

keep at it, and at some point the experience opens the heart to the greatness within everyone... and then it doesn't really matter who is wearing the garments of yuppie, hippie or super yogini

Honestly, I cant classify myself in any of these categories. I'm a little of each. allowing myself to be me, and honor myself and I cant pass that kind of judgement upon myself to make the classification...I just enjoy yoga, and all that it has to offer. Namaste, Kris

it's not this or that , it's this AND that...ram dass

well, i'm definitely not a yuppie, but i wear lulu pants. i'm not a hippie but i love maharishi. i'm not corporate, but i came from there. i don't know what i am! i take that back... i know exactly what i am. i am that.

My Yoga outfit is cheap (Winners etc..), I work in corporate world and I am a fan of hippie culture. I just like Yoga.

i kind of resent those little boxes the article so neatly labeled yogis to fit into. i was reading the works of the maharishi mahesh yogi when i was 12, but i didn't come into a yoga practice until i was in my early 20s. now i'm a yogi/poet working for whole foods market (which mean i'm poor, but also corporate & not a yuppie) & i still spend my money on lululemon athletica because i find it extremely suitable to any hot yoga practice. quality yoga gear (however expensive) does not negate the desire for peace of mind that a strong yoga practice can bring.

Some great comments. Renee, I particularly like yours in regard to identifying with something larger than these three categories. Do these labels influence the meaning of yoga and the meaning of its practice? That is, do these three labels have different practices? Although I don't fit in either category, I like this article for its reminder of the accessibility and versatility yoga is creating among diverse populations and its ability in creating and maintaining communities where none previously existed through a new language - whatever you may call it. I feel like there is a similar movement in regards to an organic lifestyle that somehow people place you in boxes depending on what you buy, what you cook, what you eat and where you shop. Rather than labels, what do these activities - these practices, like yoga, living green, using products with ingredients I can pronounce, and going organic/local help you achieve? And what do they do for your community? For me, that is the strongest sense of identification, motivation and intention. And these are created from things other than where I am from, what I wear, what I call myself, and who I practice with...

I am happy to have people come to yoga for any reason at all.

If they want stress reduction: great!
If they want to be more flexible: hooray!
If they want to learn to put their feet behind their head: that fine with me.

In my experience, yoga will bring you what you need, so long as you get to the mat. That's why we are all here, right?

i think i'm a mix of the yuppie and hippie (a nice balance i think lol)

Although the notion of a yoga-mat toting CEO may be a norm to some yogis, no doubt it's still news to many of the readers of the countless publications that continue to do these stories. As both a yoga teacher and consultant in corporations, I interact with many corporate folks who express being "clandestine" about their yoga and meditation practices for fear of being judged unfairly or associated with the stereotypes the article debunked. "Coming out" as having a yoga practice in many environments is still an act of courage, so if highlighting yoga's practical relevance in corporate environments means greater acceptance by those organizations and the individuals that work in them, I'm all for it. Maybe such news coverage will help "corporate yogis" discover eachother and in doing so help them find new relevant ways to turn to their practices in navigating chaos rather than simply for the obvious counterbalance yoga provides. Fostering a new norm requires we cultivate specific dialogues with distinct populations, so whether covering yoga for street kids, yoga for new moms, yoga for addicts, etc., let's keep the dialogue going and keep using our intelligence and compassion to find language that helps underscore the relevance to each sub-groups needs no matter what they call themselves, or what we call ourselves.

I work in one of the most corporate places in the US- Target Corporation. I work in the Corporate offices. We actually have yoga classes at work every tuesday and thursday at 6PM. I usually go to the hot vinyasa Studio nearby as I clean every week there and so get free membership. The yoga classes there are an intense mind body workout and I am completely addicted. But I figured why not- may as well try a class at work- could be great! So one day I went. It was held in an empty conference/training room, chairs pushed aside. That was problem number one. One of the best parts of doing Yoga is the atmosphere. The smell of wood and perhaps a little incense or essentail oils...the calm lobby with the little bubbling fountain and the jewel-toned pillows...the smiling, stress free faces and the soft towels...We might not realise it, but this has a LOT to do with our experience of yoga. I couldn't even begin to concentrate on my practice in the class here at work, and I could tell that none of the other students could either. It was extremely challenging to get through the class and I had to go to another class at my regular studio afterwards to shake it off. I dont think we should sterotype yogis because as soon as you step into the studio you are all on equal footing and there should be an aura of respect, kindeness, and patience that you can't find anywhere else. I am sitting at my work computer typing this over lunch and OH MY GOODNESS it is making me want to go to yoga so badly....come on 5:30....