ATL LOVES #KOPYOGA

King of Pops, the beloved fresh fruit ice pops company of Atlanta, recently began hosting #KOPYOGA on the BeltLine. Over the summer, the free outdoor yoga sessions - held every Tuesday at 7 PM - have grown quickly from a few dozen to a few hundred! We were lucky enough to interview CEO and co-founder of King of Pops, Steven Carse, on why he believes in "promoting community and healthy living in an approachable way."

Inspiration for beginning King of Pops: I fell in love with the paleta (fresh fruit ice pop) during my travels to Latin America, and after years of eating, decided it would be fun to try to make and sell them myself. The perfect opportunity to do it came when I was laid off from my corporate job and needed to think of what to do next. So in the spring of 2010, King of Pops was born with only one used push-cart on a street corner.

Mission behind #KOPYOGA? Last year it started as something we did 100% for our employees and decided we might as well invite our neighbors. Between 15 and 30 people came out and it was one of the things I really looked forward to each week. I'm a beginner, and it was a nice way to work on my practice and enjoy the outdoors. We didn't do much differently this year. We started to promote earlier, but on the first day you could tell it was going to be different. Instead of a few dozen it was a few hundred. It's a testament to our community. I feel like the actual yoga practice is the least important part. It's just nice to be doing something with your neighbors. At the end of the day, that is the point. Get out and enjoy your life.

Favorite Atlanta pastime? Lately it has just been riding my bike. Whether it's an organized ride or a slow stroll on the Beltline, it is what I do to get some quality ME time.

All photos courtesy of Haley Sheffield Photography.