Studio City Vinyasa Yoga Studio: Pick Your 60-Minute Flow

Black Dog Yoga, at 11423 Moorpark Street in Studio City, teaches an all-levels vinyasa flow called Mixed Level Flow at 9 am every weekday, and a new student can practice unlimited for two weeks for $60. Every class here is booked in advance, because the studio takes no walk-ins for in-person classes. Late entry is not permitted either, and a missed or late booking costs a $15 fee, so leave time for parking.

The studio has a longer story than its current storefront suggests. Los Angeles Yoga magazine reported that Steve and Shirley O'Connor first opened Black Dog in the Valley in 2002, and that former instructor Peter Barnett later led the community for about six and a half years. In 2015 the same magazine described a handover to a group of teachers: Sigrid Matthews, Dice Iida-Klein, Briohny Smyth, and Amy and Larry Santiago, who also owned Yoga Vibe.

The studio's own about page fills in the next chapter. It calls Black Dog a San Fernando Valley staple for almost two decades and says it moved from Sherman Oaks to its current Studio City home in 2021. Several names from that 2015 article still sit on the schedule. Sigrid Matthews teaches the Tuesday and Saturday flows, and Amy and Larry Santiago lead weekend morning classes, which gives the room a continuity that chain studios rarely manage.

The menu splits into three families: Flow, Hatha and Gentle. Mixed Level Flow is the core vinyasa class, described as breath and movement linked together in a flowing sequence, with teachers offering variations and modifications so everyone can work at their own level. Basic Flow sits below it as a foundation class. Every class on the late October 2026 schedule runs 60 minutes except a 45-minute Mat Pilates session, so a lunch break is enough time.

Candlelight Flow is the evening signature, a gentle flow set to soothing music and candlelight at 7:15 pm Monday through Thursday. Sigrid Matthews, who has taught for almost 27 years, brings a different flavor to the mornings. Her bio describes Focused Flow Yoga, a blend of Viniyoga, power and therapeutic alignment work set to groovy music and taught in stages so newer students can follow. She is an E-RYT500 and a certified yoga therapist.

The site never lists a room temperature, and no class is billed as hot, so do not expect a heated power room. The Hatha classes, Basics and All Level Hatha, are usually taught without music and are not flow classes. On the gentle side there is Yin with props for long holds, Restorative, Gentle Flow and Stretch, and a Sunday Gentle class aimed at anyone working with injuries or a limited range of motion.

Create an account, pay and register before you arrive, either on the website or in the Black Dog Yoga App. The cancellation window is three hours. Cancel later than that, or fail to show, and the studio charges $15 on an unlimited pass or deducts one class from a series. Arriving late counts as a late cancel too, since the door policy allows no late entry. The FAQ closes its refund section with a blunt line: please don't ask.

Bring your own mat if you own one. A handful of rental mats cost $5, and new mats are for sale at the desk. There is water to refill your own bottle. Children under 16 must come with an adult and need their own account. The Zoom version of the 9 am weekday flow requires registration 30 minutes before class, and the link arrives by email about 15 minutes before the start.

A single class costs $30. The 5-class series is $130 and the 10-class series is $250, which brings each class down to $25, but every series expires six months after purchase with no extensions. Unlimited options start with a one-month pass at $185. The BDY Club auto-renew is cheaper at $150 a month, but it carries a six-month minimum commitment, cannot be paused and costs $100 to end early.

For almost everyone, the first buy should be the $60 New Student Special, two weeks of unlimited yoga. Three classes a week for two weeks works out to $10 a class, enough to try a morning flow, a Candlelight Flow and a weekend teacher. After that, twice a week or less points to the 10-class series, and three or more visits a week make the Club worth its contract. Series can also be shared with another student by email.

Weekdays follow a steady grid of 9 am, 10:30 am and noon, then 4:30 pm, 6 pm and 7:15 pm, though Friday wraps up with a 6 pm Gentle Flow and Restorative class. Saturday runs 8:30 am, 10 am, 11:30 am and 4 pm. Sunday adds a 5:30 pm Restorative after its 4 pm flow. Vinyasa fans should aim for Mixed Level Flow at 9 am and 4:30 pm on weekdays, at noon on every weekday but Tuesday, and at 10 am on weekends.

Skip Black Dog if you want a sweaty, heated power class, because nothing on its schedule is billed as hot and the late slots lean gentle. For that, YogaSix Studio City, at 12265 Ventura Blvd, Suite 103-104, runs Y6 Power Flow, a heated, strength-focused class, a short drive south. Also skip Friday night if a real flow is the goal, since the last Friday class is Gentle Flow and Restorative rather than vinyasa.

The studio pitches itself as a cozy neighborhood room for beginners and seasoned yogis alike, and its about page says yoga is for every age, every size and every color. The class list backs that up with Yoga for Well Being, a mixed level flow it describes as beneficial for aging bodies. Time Out's listing called the crowd a diverse community that won't judge if you roll right out of bed into class.

Parking is the first puzzle. Black Dog shares a small lot behind the building, but street parking is free and plentiful on Moorpark and the side streets. Without a car, the Universal City/Studio City station on the Metro B Line sits about 1.3 miles away as the crow flies. Pack a mat and a refillable bottle, and book before leaving home, since the desk will not squeeze in a walk-in.

After class, walk a block into Tujunga Village. Aroma Coffee & Tea, at 4360 Tujunga Ave, fills a converted house that owner Mark Gunsky turned into a cafe in the mid-1990s, with a back patio and sidewalk tables, and The Infatuation warns of a line at all times of the week. A few doors away, Vitello's, at 4349 Tujunga Ave, has served Italian food since 1964 and keeps a Velvet Martini Lounge for a slower evening.