Our Studio 

We provide yoga, Pilates, meditation, and qigong classes, workshops, and teacher trainings in our studio with four classrooms in Columbia, Maryland. Our skilled and kind instructors lead a wide variety of levels of classes for all students, and we host a copious schedule from which to choose those classes. We offer many of our classes, workshops, and teacher trainings in a hybrid format, so students can join us from all over the world online, in addition to meeting in person. Of course, there is nothing like sitting in the same room with your teachers and friends to provide a supportive and nurturing environment for personal growth, but when you cannot be in the flesh, it is convenient to reach out through cyberspace. Our welcoming, newly redesigned lobby contains a boutique of small-business, ethically-made, and locally-sourced artwork, gifts, and other products.

The Yoga Center of Columbia is not your average franchise yoga studio. We have a rich heritage, reflective of the rich heritage of yoga and mindful movement practices, and we have a long history of supporting our community to lead healthy, fulfilling lives with a balanced life-style. World peace seems like a long shot, but it begins with bringing peace into your own heart. You can cultivate your own inner peace at the Yoga Center of Columbia. Join us for a class, won’t you?  

Our Story

The Yoga Center opened its doors in 1992, before there was a yoga studio on every corner. We had a desk and one studio. Our dedicated teachers, in their efforts to spread the practice and joy of yoga, quickly attracted students, and we grew to two studios, then three...all under one roof. As our space expanded, so did our offerings. We developed a highly respected and sought-after yoga teacher training program, and began to offer classes in Pilates, meditation, and qigong as well as other mind-body practices. Our classes have always been about honoring and caring for the whole person, not just the physical body.

In 2005, Kathy Donnelly took the helm, and her compassionate leadership helped our studio become a cornerstone of holistic wellness practices for our community. Kathy's co-teacher and friend of many years, Kelly Fisher, became the Yoga Center of Columbia's newest director in late 2023. Kelly shares Kathy's vision of providing inclusive mind-body classes designed by expert teachers who nurture and guide students with compassion and kindness.

Our Philosophy

Yoga has a rich heritage, originating in India thousands of years ago, and yet the practice continues today because it is so effective at providing mental peace and contentment. And that does not even begin to address the physical benefits of yoga — better balance, stronger muscles, less tension, deeper sleep, greater flexibility. When your body is healthy, your mind can be at greater ease. When you feel at peace, you make the world a more peaceful place. Our philosophy at the Yoga Center of Columbia is to offer a sanctuary for students to cultivate their own inner peace through practice. We aim to honor and care for the whole person, every person, who walks through our doors. We believe in providing a safe and nurturing environment to foster growth and transformation in body, mind, and heart.

Our Community

An extension of our philosophy of all abilities, all bodies, all ages is giving back to our community.

We hold monthly donation-based classes that make service to our community easy and affordable. Many of our meditations are free, offering mindfulness and stress relief to all who join, both in person and online.

Here is a list of some of the many organizations that we have supported:

Howard County Food Bank
HopeWorks of Howard County
Luminus: Network for New Americans
Warriors at Ease
Village of Love and Resistance (VOLAR)
ShareBaby
DC Divas
The Columbia Orchestra
Jewels for Hope

We have also hosted book clubs, accessible yoga classes, classes for people with disabilities, scholarship programs, free self-care classes, fundraisers for Ellicott City flood victims, Ukraine, and India, plus many other events and fundraisers for other local, national and global programs and organizations. We hope you'll take the time to care for yourself and for others by attending one of our community events! 

Taking classes with us feels great for so many reasons! Thank you for being a part of our giving community.