Month: May 2020

I believe that everyone deserves to access the benefits of yoga, regardless of their ability to pay for it. To eliminate financial barriers to community participation in yoga, equity pricing models ask those who can afford to pay more to offset costs for those experiencing economic hardship. Beginning June 1, 2020, I will reorient live stream class prices towards equity. 

Equity Price = $10 – Equity membership is intended for BIPOC, trans/queer people, people living with disabilities, and those experiencing economic hardship. 

Standard Price = $15 – Standard price is intended for folks who can afford to pay the full price.

Supporter Price = $20 – Supporter price is for folks who have the ability to “pay it forward” and create opportunities for those who are experiencing hardships. 

Ultimately, this is an honor system approach. I ask that you pay what you can, when you can, no questions asked.

Fat Kid Yoga Club members receive a discount code for $5 off each class, which can be applied to any price level.

Time flies when you’re having fun!

Last year, I launched Fat Kid Yoga Club via Patreon to supplement my face-to-face teaching in New Orleans and offer some continuity while I was out of town. I’m truly humbled by how quickly it took off and how many people have joined!

One year later, I’ve got a better idea about what I want to offer to the world, and for better or for worse, Miss Rona seems to be giving me the time and space to do it. In that sense, I’m excited to share with you some changes that are coming to Fat Kid Yoga Club.

Equity Pricing – I believe that everyone deserves to access the benefits of yoga, regardless of their ability to pay for. This is why originally set basic membership at $1 and have encouraged folks to pay what you can. However, I offered additional perks to folks who could pay more. That approach only reifies class stratification contributes to the marginalization of BIPOC, trans/queer folks, and people living with disabilities (to name a few) who could not access these perks due to historical and contemporary economic violence. Therefore, beginning May 30, 2020 I will reorient the current membership tiers towards equity. 

The new membership tiers are:

Equity Membership = $1 – Equity membership is intended for marginalized people and those experiencing economic hardship. 

Standard Membership = $10 – Standard membership is intended for folks who can afford to pay the suggested monthly contribution. (This is currently the “Sustainer” level and helps to cover the costs of running a virtual yoga community)

Equity Supporter Membership = $19+ – Supporter membership is for folks who have the ability to “pay it forward” and offset equity memberships. 

The following benefits are available to ALL tiers:

• Access to the Facebook Group
• On-Demand Streaming of pre-recorded practice videos (one new practice added each month)
• Invitation to Weekly Community chats (more on this later)
• Discounts on FKYC Merchandise
• Discounts on LIVE classes and workshops offered via Zoom

Ultimately, I continue to ask that you “pay what you can” to help keep this community thriving.

Equity pricing will also be implement for all LIVE classes.

Fostering Community – Isolation has reminded of the importance of community. I’m disappointed in myself for not doing more of the last twelve months to hold space for the Fat Kid Yoga Club community. Personally, I’m not a fan of Facebook and I haven’t done much to cultivate the Facebook group. I also know that many folks are limiting social media consumption these days. Therefore, I will begin hosting weekly community chats via Zoom. The day and time are TBD – please keep an eye out for an upcoming poll to help select the best time for most of us. Community chats will be informal and will mostly be a chance for me to see and connect with YOU the amazing humans who make Fat Kid Yoga Club possible.

Member Spotlights  – We have some really badass members of our crew: stay-at-home parents, programmers and artists, plus-size beauty gurus, body love coaches, podcasters, and accessible yoga teachers from around the world. I want to start highlighting the incredible work that you do. So keep an eye out for your opportunity to share your work with the rest of the club.

More Opportunities to Practice with me Live – I’ve decided that I won’t be offering in-person instruction for the foreseeable future. This presents both a challenge and an opportunity. The challenge is that I will lose the income from two studios I used to teach at. I’ve got a full-time job that meets my survival needs, but the money I make from teaching yoga allows me to take additional trainings (which aren’t cheap) which empower me to be a better instructor and continue to enhance my presence in the yoga world. The opportunity is that since I’m not teaching in studios, I’ll have more time to offer live online instruction. 

As of now, I plan to continue to offer Fat Kid Yoga Club practices on Saturday mornings at 10:00 am US Central Time, and Big Fat Queer Dude* Yoga practices on Sundays at 10:00 am US Central Time. 

I’ll be adding additional practice times/days based on interests – if there’s something you want, don’t be shy! As always, thank you for your continued support. I am so glad that you are here and that you continue to trust me to be part of your yoga practice.

<3 Marc

PS – If you haven’t already joined Fat Kid Yoga Club, you can do so here.