Yoga classes develop flexibility and strength, help you get in shape, and relieve stress. Some of the practices are available even to people with minimal physical training. Let’s find out where to start, which yoga classes to choose, and if it’s possible to practice online.
If the word “yoga” makes you think of muscular Hindus sitting for hours in unimaginable poses, abandon these stereotypes. In Western countries, practices have long been adapted for people of varying skill levels. Learning the names of the chakras and standing on one’s head is certainly possible, but not necessary. The desire to establish contact with one’s body and an interest in the subject will suffice.
The benefits of practicing yoga are sufficient:
- Effectively relieve back and neck pain.
- Return flexibility to the joints.
- Help you lose weight through active asanas.
- Teaches concentration.
- Reduce anxiety.
- Help you relax in stressful situations.
Types of Yoga and Their Description
You can’t say that Ashtanga yoga is for beginners and hatha yoga is for continuing. Both can have classes of different levels of intensity. Different styles are more suitable for different people. For example, if a person is attentive to details and likes unhurried or static movements, then Iyengar yoga which is considered to be the gold standard in adjusting asanas will do. If on the contrary, something more mobile, it’s vinyasa flow yoga or hatha yoga, or ashtanga yoga.
At the same time, the expert notes that for the first time, it’s better to choose classes marked “for beginners”. The teachers there spend more time explaining the basic yoga techniques, and the information is better presented than in continuous groups.
Kundalini
Kundalini is also called the yoga of mindfulness. The technique helps to learn how to be “here and now” and how to interact with your body and mind correctly. Kundalini is said to be the yoga of energy, which gives strength to fight difficulties and withstand stress. The complex usually includes meditations that help keep you calm inside.
Try practicing kundalini yoga according to Yogi Bhajan’s system. It’s no longer relevant to work only with your body. The brain controls everything. And the work of your brain can be improved by meditation. And, as a consequence, both body and psyche get better.
Hatha
Hatha is an energetic yoga. The invigorating morning complex “Greetings to the Sun” is from this direction. The emphasis in this practice is on the body. Performing hatha yoga asanas can be done at home, but with a zero level, it’s better to ask for help from an instructor.
Yoga Nidra
This is a practice aimed at deep relaxation of the body and mind – the so-called yogic sleep. But it’s not just a dream, but rather a meditation, a change of state through relaxation. This practice is difficult for beginners to master fully, so it’s better to practice under the supervision of an experienced trainer.
Ashtanga Yoga
Ashtanga vinyasa is one of the popular yoga schools that originated in hatha yoga. Dynamic exercises are combined with breathing and static asanas. The purpose of the practice is to train the spirit and body. These are sequences, a series of asanas, which an experienced instructor can adapt for any level of difficulty. Such sequences can take several hours, but there are short sets of 15 minutes. This is one of the most physically demanding yoga styles.
Prana Yoga
Prana is a kind of invisible matter of life that permeates everything in the universe. It involves working with the breath and reciting mantras. As a result of many hours of practice, one learns peace and deep peace.
Sahaja Yoga
This is more of a spiritual teaching than a set of exercises. The essence of Sahaja Yoga is difficult to describe in two sentences, but the main goal of all practices is to awaken the energy of fire and achieve mental stillness. It touches on the topic of opening the chakras, the energy centers of a person. It’s difficult for a beginner who just wants to achieve a straight posture to master this teaching. Sahaja yoga is not a good place to start.
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