When You Decide to Start Doing Yoga for Exercise
It is easy to be confused on where to begin when you decide to use Yoga for your exercise. As with any exercise program, you have some steps to consider:
What type of exercise routine do you want to do? The different types of Yoga are discussed in my post Yoga for Fitness and Weight Loss . For weight loss, power Yoga is the best. Power yoga is a movement from one pose to another in a faster flow than ‘regular’ yoga. Instead of holding a pose for minutes, you may hold it for seconds or for one minute before flowing into the next pose.
Where will you do your exercise? As a beginner, you will need to learn the poses and the routines. You will want a routine that is set up to flow from one pose to the next. Once you learn the poses and feel comfortable with them, you may choose to re-arrange the poses. Some flow quite nicely into others, while some are more difficult to flow from one to another. You can either find a yoga class to attended, or you can get DVD’s with the instructions and routines. There are also written routines. I prefer the DVD’s. I can do them in my home on my schedule, and I do not need to feel embarrassed while learning the poses. The DVD’s show the correct poses plus the correct timing. In contrast, in a class the teacher can observe your pose and give you suggestions to improve your performance in a pose.
What clothing and equipment will you need? You will need a mat and comfortable clothes, not too tight, but not loose enough to flop around. Yoga is normally done barefooted – no shoes or socks.
Optional equipment would be blankets or blocks to help achieve the proper placement of hands, hips, and/or feet during poses – such as in a pose where the hands are not to reach to the floor. Straps are good for poses where the hands are to touch, but you are not able to yet, and when you are to touch your feet, and again you are not able to reach them yet.
What can you expect? I would suggest either watching the Yoga DVD through prior to attempting the poses/routines at home, or asking to observe a class prior to signing up for it. These will both give you the feel for how the class flows and what will be expected of you. It also helps to become familiar with some of the terms used. My Yoga Jargon post gives many of the terms you will hear and be expected to know.
In my next post I will start describing some of the basic poses.
You may have covered this already but i can’t find anything so i thought i’d ask. I have a heart issue that does not allow me to do the aerobic exercises i used to love. I’d like to get into doing yoga, not only for fitness but for stress as well and i’m told by my doctor that Yoga would be a great way for me to do both.
The problem is, i’m a work at home mom and I live out in the boonies. Literally. we have no health clubs near by that teach yoga and i have no idea where to start or to even find a gentle way to begin. Do you have anything that you recommend for total beginners that starts easy and works up eventually?
The type of yoga is also an important consideration. Many people think yoga is just stretching. However, yoga can be very physically demanding. There are some styles I would not recommend for a beginner such as Ashtanga and Bikram. In fact, a beginner may want to start with just gentle or restorative yoga. I find these to be my favorites even though I have the ability to practice a more rigorous style. Just find the one that is right for you and enjoy!
i am currently enrolled in a Yoga class. the health benefits of Yoga on myself is great. I am more relaxed and i can sleep well at night.