Mind Body Baby: GR yoga studio for moms to expand
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A popular yoga and support studio for moms and moms-to-be will expand next year to a newly-renovated building in Grand Rapids.
Mind Body Baby, a movement, space and community support studio, has already outgrown its space on Lake Drive in Eastown after just a year and a half in business. Its new building is located near Burton Street and Breton Road.
“It really started with my own journey,” owner and founder Heidi McDowell said. “I went through an infertility journey that was isolating. I was pregnant during COVID and had a very isolating postpartum period, and I realized community is something that I lacked. It really took a toll on me, mentally and physically.”
While the core of the business will move to the top floor of 2020 Breton Rd. next summer, McDowell told News 8 that she hopes to fill the first-floor retail and commercial space with like-minded businesses.
“Whether you’re utilizing the service of Mind Body Baby or you’re going to utilize one of the tenants that are in the collective space, you’re able to use the child care services while you’re inside the building,” she said. “So that you never have to choose between self-care and child care. You can have both.”
The $1.2 million expansion is meant to supply mothers and future mothers with a centralized building that focuses on perinatal services.
“We never apologize for babies crying when we’re working out and just having that ability to get together,” said new mom Victoria Schaap, who has participated in several Mind Body Baby classes, including the studio’s push or labor prep curriculum.
For many new moms, the studio has brought a sense of community and friends who are experiencing the same stages of life.
“A lot of times, the mom is just kind of forgotten. It’s so much put on the baby: How’s the baby doing? Is the baby sleeping? Is the baby eating?” said Alex Koltonowski, another participant. “But it’s also how is the mom doing, and those classes really put you and the baby at the forefront.”
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