Yoga by Audio – Raising Funds for Audible Yoga – New Kickstarter Project
Two Frustrated Yogis Enhance the Practice of Yoga by Taking it to Audio
Started by two founders who have struggled to fit yoga into their busy work and family schedules, Audible Yoga seeks to answer a common problem: how to do yoga more often.
Audible Yoga’s goal is to help yogis who want to unplug from televisions and computer screens to practice yoga. It allows students to follow a teacher’s voice and practice wherever and whenever they can. It also helps those who do not have access to regular yoga teachers or cannot get to scheduled classes. Essentially, anyone who struggles to fit yoga into their schedule will benefit from yoga by AUDIO through Audible Yoga.
Audible Yoga is a Kickstarter project – project ends March 22nd (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1349751609/audible-yoga-practice-yoga-by-listening). This project seeks funding to record yoga classes and build the website to support teachers and students. The founders of Audible Yoga are putting their own skills and experience into the project. They believe that Kickstarter is the best way to reach those interested in contributing class recordings and doing yoga by audio. It’s also the best way to test the concept. The Audible Yoga Kickstarter Project hopes to raise just $10,000 in just 33 days and is offering pledge rewards that include:
– 1-, 2-, and 5- year subscriptions for yogis (in singles and multiples for gifting)
– A yoga teacher special for early loading of MP3 files and a training party
– A startup entrepreneur special for those who want to get the inside scoop as well as a website design, logo, and copy for their website
According to a joint study by Yoga Journal and Sports Marketing Surveys in 2012 (Yoga in America 2012), almost 40% of the more than 20 million Americans who practice yoga consider themselves to be experienced at yoga. Nearly half of all yoga participants want to practice at home rather than in a classroom setting. Audible Yoga’s own survey found the desire to practice yoga outside the classroom setting was over 67% with 23% of those responding saying they would be willing to try yoga by audio (without video).
“Audible Yoga makes it possible to take classes that you’re comfortable with no matter where you are – on vacation, at business meetings, etc. It gives you the opportunity to try out different classes and different styles of yoga without having to travel to the teacher. Even if your favorite teacher is in a different part of the country, you have access to their classes. With Audible Yoga, you’ll be able to do yoga anywhere and have that trusted guidance of a teacher,” said Ashley Wilson, a photographer and yogi.
The top motivations for starting a yoga practice are to improve flexibility, followed closely by general conditioning, and stress relief. The physical benefits reported by yogis who practice regularly include greater flexibility, reduced back pain, improvements in strength and physical fitness as well as weight loss and better sleep. The mental benefits of yoga cannot be underestimated either with nearly 70% of yogis reporting reductions in anxiety, depression, and insomnia as a direct result of practicing yoga.
Audible Yoga seeks to connect yoga teachers and students in a way that is not currently met through other avenues for practicing yoga, specifically yoga by video. In fact, most yogis who use yoga videos report they only listen, they don’t watch. The technological overhead and requirement for a live Internet connection for most yoga videos is a burden that costs yoga students the ability to practice more often and limits where they can practice. By disconnecting the yoga practice from the display screen, yoga teachers around the world will be able to deliver their unique classes to far more students without the expense or burden of video camera equipment.
“Audible Yoga makes sense for teachers in addition to students because the first thing I think of when my students are out of town, and they’re used to my cues, my voice, is that they can now continue their practice with my class recordings. It will give yoga teachers the opportunity to connect with many more students – all of whom are seeking the ability to do yoga anywhere. As a yoga teacher and a yogi, yoga isn’t about going to a studio to practice. It’s about living your life and sharing the freedom and experience of yoga wherever you are,” said Pixie Kastrup of PixieYogaFlow.
Audible Yoga will have features to support both yoga students and teachers. Yoga students will be able to search for new classes and teachers. Yoga teachers will earn royalties from their classes and from the members who sign up..
About Audible Yoga
Audible Yoga was recently designed by two founders who wanted to deliver a product that would make a difference to an engaged market. A yoga retreat and a simple question sparked the inspiration for Audible Yoga and the research quickly made it clear that the idea was sound. You can read more about how Audible Yoga got started on the Audible Yoga website (http://www.audibleyoga.com).