In San Francisco, where marijuana is newly legal for recreational use, an increasingly popular yoga class invites students to light up before sliding into their Downward Dog.
Dee Dussault, a hatha yoga teacher with 22 years of experience and author of the upcoming book, "Ganja Yoga," thinks combining cannabis and the centuries-old workout helps students tune out their racing thoughts and pain points. They can become more mindful and free, she believes, to move in the unique ways their bodies need. The class got its start in Toronto in 2009 and in San Francisco in 2012.
Since Californians voted to fully legalize marijuana last November, Dussault's biweekly class has nearly doubled in attendance from 10 to 15 students to the 25-person cap every session.
I recently sat in on Ganja Yoga to learn why cannabis-fueled yoga is becoming one of the hottest workout classes in the Bay Area. Here's what it was like.
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On a Wednesday night in San Francisco's SoMa district, Dee Dussault's students trek up the stairs of an art gallery, past remnants of a Burning Man installation, to find her studio.
They form a semi-circle around her, eyeing the bounty of marijuana joints, vape pens, and weed-laced cookies. "It's like a Choose Your Own Adventure!" Dussault laughs.
The regulars fire up the joints and begin passing them around the circle, while a handful of first-timers start up conversations with their neighbors.
Meanwhile, Dussault works the room to collect the $25 class fee, which covers instruction only. The pot is free, as California's Proposition 64 made gifting up to an ounce of weed legal.
Students do not need a medical marijuana ID to participate.
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