If you have been to Bikram yoga, you know what to expect. If you have not, it's a totally judgement…read morefree zone, the instructors are very welcoming and always very encouraging. You will get a workout. Maria, the owner and one of the instructors, is extremely friendly, and helpful. There are two showers, and people are usually pretty respectful with how long they spend in the showers. The changing room is pretty much open space. I'm not that "free", so I usually duck into the bathroom stalls to change. You have to expect that there is a certain smell for a yoga studio where the exercise is sweat your balls off for 90 minutes in 105 deg room, but this studio makes effort to keep the place welcoming. They updated the carpet and steam-clean the space. I also like there is enough space in the studio to spread out. There are enough classes at different times. You are never on top of each other, where you have to sweat on another person's towel, or vice versa.

I have been coming to Hometown Sweat since they were in their old location on Huron Drive…read more Honestly, the vibe has changed since reopening in the new space. Not only is the heated room smaller, it smells ripe all the time, the staff are forgetful and sometimes moody, some of the patrons are rude, the continuous waitlists are annoying, and the "feeling of community" is all a farce. I enjoyed the Sculpt classes taught by Sami on Thursday mornings but due to my schedule, I had to resort to the noontime class taught by an instructor who is consistently forgetful. It has become a running joke among her students whether she's going to remember the right side plank or hydrant after completing the left side or vice versa. The biggest issue I take with this studio is this idea of community and their so-called studio rules. They are unwritten (but apparently are stated rules). If you ask an instructor about these unwritten rules, beware... you could be considered aggressive for asking...and have your membership canceled without even a conversation. What are these unwritten rules you might ask? Surprisingly, these unwritten but stated rules that everyone should know or be able to hear in a crowded room with blasting music and loud conversation is about the positioning of students in the studio when it gets crowded. Of course, this might seem obvious that one would stagger with their neighbor if they felt like there was any danger to oneself or the neighbor. But no...these unwritten rules state that the staggering is led by the person on the complete opposite side of the room. For example, if you have placed your mat in the farthest right corner of the room by the mirror, it is your job to follow the lead of a person on the complete opposite side of the room, someone you cannot see, especially given how crowded the studio is which is why there is staggering in the first place. This happened to me. Another class member came up to my mat at the end of class and confronted me because I did not follow the "rules" to give her daughter enough space. She yelled at me in the class and was very aggressive to me, telling me that she was going to have the instructor explain to me these "rules". After I cooled off on my mat, I found the instructor and asked her about these "rules". She informed me that these "rules" were unwritten but stated at the beginning of each class. I cannot remember ever hearing that these "rules"even existed, maybe because she might have forgotten to say them that day, maybe because I couldn't hear her over the music and the conversations that were happening, or maybe something else. But my asking clarification on these rules became an issue and rather than understanding the facts about the situation, the owner (who was not even present) left a voicemail that my membership was cancelled. I sent an email explaining my side and to express my disappointment about her lack of a thorough review of what happened from all parties , and asked her to provide a written explanation of the cancellation without a review. I also asked that "rules" should be written and not just stated. Not only was I the one who was treated aggressively by another member, but the owner's complete dismissal of their own community member without a thorough review negates the whole "community" that she sold us on, and to do it all over voicemail. She has yet to respond to my email, but left another voicemail. Who does that?