Spotlight: Power Yoga of Cape Cod
Cape Cod Life / June 2021 / People & Businesses
Writer: Joe O'Shea
Spotlight: Power Yoga of Cape Cod
Cape Cod Life / June 2021 / People & Businesses
Writer: Joe O'Shea
“I knew how powerful yoga was, and I wanted to share it.”
Power Yoga of Cape Cod’s founder Jill Abraham, co-owner Leigh Alberti, staff and students all use the word “connection” repeatedly, whether it’s discussing the mind-body connection, connecting with others, or spiritually connecting while serving the Cape Cod community.
“Yoga means union, it means connection,” says Alberti, a 500-hour Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) who teaches Power Vinyasa and Restorative Yoga at both studios. “Yoga is about connecting with your inner self, but it also makes you aware of our interconnectedness with others and our communities.”
When Abraham, now a Tier 3, 1,200-hour Certified Baptiste Influencer and a 500-hour Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher, opened the flagship Harwich studio in 2009, most yoga on the Cape was taught in gyms, civic centers and dance studios.
“I moved back to the Cape and trusted it was time to open a studio,” says Abraham, who began teaching yoga in 2001. “At the time, there was a need for dedicated yoga studios on the Cape. I knew how powerful yoga was, and I wanted to share it.”
After a successful grand opening, word spread quickly and the students rolled out their mats in increasing numbers. By 2011, “We were mat to mat, hitting our capacity every day in the summer,” recalls Abraham.
Two years later, as demand grew, Abraham and Alberti opened the Dennisport studio, and it’s been onward and upward for the pair ever since. In the past decade, Power Yoga of Cape Cod has earned five-straight regional “best of” awards.
One of Abraham’s greatest success stories is that of Bill White, a former guidance counselor and multi-sport coach at Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School. When he hung up his whistle, his lifelong dietary habits and sedentary lifestyle led to heart trouble.
So White, at age 63, arrived at the doorstep of Abraham’s studio. He eased into the practice with gentle yoga, graduated from the Power Yoga of Cape Cod Teacher Training in 2012 and started teaching at both studios.
“I switched to a vegan diet,” says the 74-year-old White, who taught yoga for eight years before retiring last spring. “I lost more than 50 pounds and my cholesterol dropped 50 points. I felt so much better. Yoga transformed my life.”
Yoga, as Abraham will tell you, does change lives … on a regular basis. Whether people come to the studio to improve their health or calm their minds, yoga can truly be life changing and transformational.
“All yoga is therapeutic and healing,” says Abraham, who pivoted to offering livestream classes and video instruction when the pandemic struck. “In addition to reducing stress and anxiety, yoga also helps regulate all systems of the body.”
Although Abraham specializes in Power Vinyasa Yoga, an athletic form of yoga conducted in heated rooms, Power Yoga of Cape Cod offers all manner of hatha—or physical—yoga, including Restorative Yoga, Gentle Yoga and other power-yoga styles for all experience levels.
The studios current offerings are:
- Livestream classes
- Semi-private, in-studio classes
- Online and in-person workshops of varying topics and lengths
- On-demand videos (more than 100 classes in the archive)
- Powerful immersion programs
- In-person private and semi-private instruction
- Teacher training and certification
All in-person classes adhere to CDC safety guidelines.
At the Harwich studio’s boutique, one can find yoga mats, props, clothing, jewelry, essential oils, books, CDs and other accessories.
“The Cape Cod community is a huge part of our studio’s success,” says Abraham. “We’ve been fortunate to develop rich, lasting relationships with our students, co-workers and the communities that we serve.”
Poweryogaofcapecod.com • poweryogaofcapecod@gmail.com
Harwich Studio, 1 Auston Road / 774.237.2773 • Dennisport Studio, 675 Rte 28 / 508.619.3922