Poor yoga. Its status as the original trendy alt-exercise has taken a backseat recently to its sleeker cousin Pilates. As if Pilates is the pretty friend who gets all the friends at the bar and yoga just has to sit back, take another shot, and wallow in jealousy.

A yoga studio in Santa Monica is giving the discipline a new jolt of energy, merging pop music with traditional yoga stretches and poses. Yoga Hop on Montana Avenue draws from the fact that "certain songs can evoke a sense of optimism and excitement in the listener" and, obviously, just make for a good time. According to lead instructor Matthew Reyes' bio online, it was a specific mission assigned to him while out-of-body by Buddha and Marvin Gaye, tag-teaming it.

Pre-class, a room survey reveals mats surrounded by water bottles and towels. Is breaking a sweat expected in yoga class??

Guess so. Yoga Hop, with pumping music in the background, is the yoga class that proves it's a form of exercise that's way more than extended stretching. As soon as the opening medley of Michael Jackon's PYT started playing, it's clear this isn't the yoga of the bygone days.

A common misconception is that the class merges hip hop dancing with yoga. Sorry to disappoint (or relieve) but the class is still traditional yoga, full of downward and upward dogs, plank and warrior positions. It doesn't take long to realize that Rihanna in the background make you work harder, stretch further and hold it longer.

The soundtrack is a mix of current radio hits and older classics, including some fun remixes. Reyes keeps 150 playlists on the studio iPod and updates them periodically so that no yogi will hear the same tunes twice. The playlists are far from random shuffle - Reyes explains "it's a very conscious choice of musical rhythm working with the pose sensation." Sweating through poses and ab work (Reyes threw in "a little extra since it's becoming beach weather") the music makes it insanely easier to keep going and stay motivated. Imagine running without a soundtrack - crazy. Yoga Hop's mix is the same to the yoga game.

Songs are matched to the pose, strong and energetic when they need to be, soothing at other times. "When the poses are stretching and opening a student's body up, then the music is soft, tender and relaxing. I'll play lots of genres through class. There will be a collection of anything from the 70s, 80s, hip hop, rap, pop, R&B and folk guitar," says Reyes. He steers away from music that's too R-rated and current favorites include "4 Minutes" by Madonna and J Timbs.

The entire class moves along at their own pace, a no-pressure environment populated by the flexible show-off in the front row and the shirtless man closer to me. I'm sweating and beginning to worry that it was a bad idea to take class before meeting people for drinks. My hair feels damp and I've wiped my face so many times my mascara has smudged. Yet suddenly, it's time to cool down. The pace slows and as we lie on our stomachs, Matthew walks around and gives the lucky few quick back massages. Leona Lewis is singing and I realize I feel content, relaxed and less sweaty!

The music changes to the practical yoga class CD as we end class. Gone are Timbaland's beats, replaced by wind chimes and chanting monks. As everyone lies on their backs, reflecting, it's obvious that yoga is still yoga. Even when yoga takes its turn as the hot one. Namaste.

Yogahop.com
1612 Montana Ave., 2nd Floor
Santa Monica, CA 90403
310-829-5000