Prana Yoga Center

Dona Piza left her life as a New York stockbroker behind when she turned to yoga to rehab herself from a terrible car accident. On the first of the new millennium, she opened Prana Yoga in Miami, eager to impart the healing powers of the art to an area where yoga studios were a rare species. She says that the most fulfilling aspect of her job is observing how yoga transforms students mentally and physically, as was the case with a dear friend with cerebral palsy who?through regular practice of yoga?gained the ability to walk.

At her studio, she schedules more than 70 90-minute yoga classes per week for students of all skill levels, whether they are working through injuries or honing their practice. Inside the four spacious rooms, drenched in soft lavender hues, she and her experienced instructors lead a variety of yoga styles, mainly based in the Iyengar tradition, which focuses on achieving proper body alignment with the aid of props. They also lead serenity-enhancing meditation classes, vigorous core yoga, and relaxing candlelit sessions, which help students melt away the stresses of the day. During kids' classes, instructors teach yogis aged 4?9 basic poses using animal imagery and sounds, giving parents time to attend their own yoga classes or to secretly eat dessert before even making dinner.