What is Warrior Rising?

Sarah Rubin and Anne Marie Costanzo, Co-creators of Warrior Rising

Hello and welcome!

We are…

Two Westchester women – moms, collaborators, fitness enthusiasts, lovers of life – who joined forces to create an experience that we had both been looking for: strength training and yoga in one class. We quickly realized how complimentary these two modalities are, especially when offered to women in a safe, supportive environment. This is our journey toward embracing our own inner warriors and we are thrilled to share this journey with YOU!

MORE ABOUT US:

• Anne Marie is a former accountant/graphic designer turned personal trainer; Sarah is a one-time theology student turned yoga teacher.
• When we set out to launch Warrior Rising in Jan 2011, all we knew is that we were excited to be teaching together. The responsibilities of creating, owning and growing a business kinda took us by surprise! At this point, we are warrior-ing ourselves into becoming entrepreneurs – and loving it!
• Our personal stories and bios can be found here.

WHAT WE BELIEVE:

• The warrior’s path is one of strength, focus, playfulness and vulnerability. Courage is an aspect, and so is openness, softness and presence.
  
• Every woman deserves the chance to embrace her inner warrior, at any age or stage of life.
• With the support of others in a safe environment, anything is possible.

WHY STRENGTH TRAINING AND YOGA?

• Strength training (through dynamic bodyweight exercises, sometimes using 2-3 lb weights) is so important for women, especially as we age. Benefits include increased metabolism, stronger bones, resistance to injury. Plus, with small, consistent effort, you’ll see changes in your body’s abilities and appearance.
• Yoga offers great benefit to the body: greater flexibility, balance, posture, strength. At the same time, the practice of yoga is an opportunity to explore your own inner resources of strength and balance, to be guided from within, to deeply connect to ALL that you are.
  
• By putting these two experiences together in one class, we get to PLAY and EXPERIMENT and truly BE in our bodies. We get to explore what it means to be WARRIORS, both in class and in our lives.

WHAT TO EXPECT:

• You will sweat in our classes, so please dress appropriately and bring a water bottle!
• Anne Marie leads the first 30 mins of strength training (warm-up, cardio, repeating series of dynamic bodyweight exercises).
• Sarah follows with a 30 min yoga practice (asana & pranayama, sometimes partner yoga) and ends with 10 min of deep relaxation (YAY!).
• IMPORTANT: Women of any fitness level are welcome! We always give options and modifications – please go at your own pace and pay attention to your body. If you are new to Warrior Rising, we especially encourage you to honor your starting place and take it slow.
  
• AGAIN: You don’t need to already be fit or flexible to participate. Come as you are! (We can’t say it enough.)

CLASS LOGISTICS:

• Bring to class: sneakers, a water bottle, a yoga mat if you have one (some mats are available at the space).
• A word about weights! Right now, we only have a few pair of weights (and not much storage space). Please, if you can, bring your own set of weights – 2 or 3 lbs is all you’ll need! If you’re not comfortable using weights right off the bat, that is absolutely fine. We can work up to it!
• Scheduling: We do our best to keep our classes going, even on minor holidays and school vacations (though we always close for major holidays). Our class schedule page is kept current. Check our Facebook page for last-minute, weather-related closings!

FAQ’s:

Do I need to register or reserve a spot in a class ahead of time?  It’s not necessary – walk-ins are always welcome. Registering or reserving in advance does help us to plan, however, so we always appreciate it! You can do that here.

How do your class packs work? We offer class packs of 5, 10, or 20 classes (prices are here). The bigger the pack, the lower the price per class. You have 6 months to use your classes, in any way you’d like! We gratefully accept cash, personal checks or credit cards (either in person or online).

Will you ever have an evening/late afternoon/etc class? Yes, hopefully! We plan to add more classes to our schedule over the next few months. In order to add a new timeslot, it’s very helpful for us to know how many people are interested. Please email info@warriorrising.com with your request!!

Will you ever offer “just yoga” or “just strength training” classes? Same answer as above! Let us know what you’re interested in, and as soon as we have a group of at least 5, we’ll do our best to add it!

Why are your classes only for women?  Great question! Partly because there are already so many fitness spaces that, even though they are open to both men and women, feel male-dominated. There’s something very special and empowering that happens in a women-only fitness space. We strive to create a very safe space for the exploration of body, mind and heart, where women can truly be themselves. That said, we are also envisioning a time in the future where we may have other offerings that would be open to all!

What’s this I hear about a running group?  Sarah has organized a very casual, beginner-friendly, free running group. We are running every Sunday morning this fall, in preparation for the Terry Ryan Memorial 5k race in Hastings on Nov 18th. Details (where, when, how long) are posted on our Facebook page on Thurs or Fri each week. If you’re not on FB, just shoot us an email at info@warriorrising.com and we’ll keep you in the loop!