Arthur Scappaticci

Arthur is an amazing yoga instructor who teaches Iyengar in a few San Francisco spots, most notably at Gold’s Gym in the Castro and Bay Club SF Tennis Club.
+ smart, thoughtful instruction
+ great work out
+ focused attention on new students
+ specific feedback for advanced students
+ original lessons
+ balances mind, body, and soul variables of a lifelong yoga practice
+ sings beautifully during Shavasana
I’ve been going to Arthur’s Tuesday evening yoga class at Gold’s Gym in the Castro for the last four years. The reason why I keep coming back week after week is simple: it’s because Arthur teaches us the underlying thought process that guides a yoga practice rather than bark a routine list of poses to get us through a yoga practice. In other words, his class is more like a course of study. But, don’t get me wrong. He will make you sweat. It is a work out and I thank him in part for my six-​pack.
But don’t take my word for it! I recommend coming in and trying it out for yourself.
But you will soon learn that every time you come back, you learn something new. Sometimes he explicitly names the take-​away from his lesson. Sometimes you have to figure it out for yourself. Maybe it could be an inner truth about life. Maybe it could be an inner truth about our bodies. For example, on Valentine’s Day, we did a series of poses that opened the front part of our bodies. To put it bluntly, he taught us poses that showed us how to open our hearts.
So, his classes are smart because they work on multiple levels.
A yoga class with him will most likely have a theme, for example, developing awareness of which poses ask us to twist, how to create strength in our headstands, or as nitty-​gritty as defining what he means when he says «rotate your inner thighs.» Then, he takes us through a series of poses to contextualize these objectives.
Because he teaches Iyengar, which is a branch of yoga that focuses on alignment, explicit instruction, and use of props, he will show you step-​by-​step how to do a pose (he will give you feedback if he sees you doing it in a way that will ultimately hurt you).
The intelligence and thoughtfulness of his lessons can really be seen on the days he takes student requests and you can watch him figure out how to connect the dots between all the requests and still present to us some kind of a new, valuable insight into our practices. It gives me food for thought and I get a deep work-​out.
On certain days, when the vibe of the class is just right, during shavasana, he’ll sing to us. I always see it as my reward for putting forth the added effort required at the end of the day to focus on my practice and break into new habits with my poses. His amazing voice encourages me to relax and allow my body to process and incorporate what it has just learned. Don’t forget to drink lots of water after his classes!
In a nutshell, if you are looking for a yoga instructor and you are at any level (beginner, intermediate, advanced), I recommend you check out Arthur.