Check this new app to find classes anywhere

FROM hatha and vinyasa yoga and everything in between, a new app helps enthusiasts find upcoming classes nearby.

Om Finder, an iPhone app, detects a user’s location and shows nearby classes.

“The vision was to get more people on planet earth doing yoga,” said yoga apparel Lululem executive Nancy Richardson. The company is based in Canada.

Classes can be found at nearly 7 000 studios in 63 countries worldwide and can be filtered by time and type, including hatha, power flow, vinyasa and hot yoga.

“It offers lots of different options to try different classes, types of yoga, and experience different teachers,” Richardson said.

Yogis can also keep up with the schedules of their instructors. The app has more than 30 000 instructor profiles and includes a schedule of their upcoming classes.

Fellow Lululem executive Rachel Acheson says the turnover for yoga is high. Although there are approximately 20 million people practising yoga, about 20% drop out every year.

“New devotees to yoga every year are substantial,” Acheson said. “Finding your teacher is one of the biggest things that drives commitment to the practice.”

Users can invite friends to join in at classes by sending a text, tweet, e-mail or Facebook message through the app, and say the classes they’re headed to. – Reuters