Yoga is a wonderful kind of exercise that is for everyone. It can help you build strength, flexibility, balance, and as well as concentration. It means that when you practice yoga, you will develop both your body and your mind. Aside from that, yoga also does not have a competitive or intimidating environment. It is a very welcoming exercise for newcomers or beginners.
A lot of people learn and practice yoga by taking classes. If you want to learn and try different styles of yoga, beginner classes are a great way. You can also read a few on the history of yoga to grasp the principles of this activity. The takeaways from reading can also help you find out what style or kind of yoga is the best for you going forward. If you are thinking of enrolling in a yoga class, or practicing yoga at home but do not have any idea how to begin, you’ve come to the right place. Today, we are giving you some tips for getting started with yoga.
The Practice of Yoga
As mentioned earlier, yoga can develop both the mind and the body. When you practice it regularly, it can also improve your flexibility, balance, stamina, and strength while developing concentration and mindfulness at the same time. You’ll eventually notice some improvement in your general fitness, too. Aside from that, you might even see performance gains in other physical activities that you do when you take yoga seriously.
You might wonder what differs yoga from other exercises and physical training. Well, its mental dimension sets it apart from them. When you practice yoga, you will also do lots of stretching and strengthening exercises, like other workouts. However, your instructor will often encourage you to shift your thinking as you challenge your body with different poses. This is a unique characteristic of yogaand is one of the reasons why it resonates intensely with longtime practitioners.
When you are new to yoga, you might become worried if your body is not flexible enough. But being flexible is a common fallacy in yoga. You do not need to be flexible when you start, because you will earn greater flexibility with continued lessons and practice. If you’re not flexible, don’t worry because it’s not a prerequisite to yoga.
Yoga Tips for Beginners
If you’ve decided to try yoga, here are some of the best tips we can give you to get started:
- Find a Good Yoga Class and Teacher: Learning yoga is much easier and enjoyable when you practice it with other people in a class, and when you find a good teacher or instructor. It is because it’s better to learn yoga with all its detailed and subtle physical and mental aspects from an experienced and qualified person, instead of reading it from a book or watching it from a video. Also, when you have an instructor, he or she will be able to see you and respond to what you are doing. Finding a trainer for yoga is not a big thing – with just a simple search on the internet by a Yoga teacher near me, you will get the updates. And practicing yoga with other people can help in building your confidence, too.
- Wear Proper and Comfortable Clothing: In yoga, you will be stretching your body in all directions. Therefore, you need to wear clothes that will not restrict your movements. It is also better to wear fitted clothes because there are movements in yoga that will require you to bend right over and turn upside down. Wearing fit clothes, like tank tops, long sleeve tops, tights, and yoga shortswill help you avoid exposing more than you wish to. For women, try to find the best sports bra for yoga that will give you support, as well. Most yoga practitioners use to take their shoes off before starting a yoga session. However, wearing shoes while doing yoga depends on where you are. If you require shoes to do so, you better do a little research to find the best yoga shoes for you. A wise decision you’ll never regret.
- Give Respect to the Inner Wisdom and Limitations of Your Body:When doing yoga, do not push yourself to do anything that feels dangerous or wrong for you. You should keep “Ahimsa” in your mind, which is the practice of non-harm. It is important to skillful and beneficial yoga practice. Before starting with yoga, inform your instructor and as well as your doctor if you have any injuries, serious medical condition, or if you are pregnant. This will help you to know which practices are best for you and which you need to avoid.
- Have a Sense of Humor: Yoga is a quiet and focused activity. However, you do not need to take yourself too seriously while practicing it. It’s because when you do, you might end up feeling ungainly and stiff as you try to navigate yourself into new poses. Try to smile and be gentle as these can save you from pushing yourself to the point of strain or injury.
- Make Nutritional Adjustments: When you start doing yoga, you also need to adjust your food intake. Your food needs to be lighter and should contain slow carbs and fiber. Try to eat more oats, grains, fruits, and vegetables. A couple of hours before your yoga practice, eat something light but avoid practicing after being hungry for hours.
- Always Stay Hydrated:Like starting any physical activity, water is key. Therefore, you need to make sure that you drink at least 1.5 liters of water per day. Do not forget to take a bottle of water with you when you attend your yoga classes.
- Learn to Meditate: Meditation, and as well as pranayama or yogic breathing, are two important practices that you need to learn when starting with yoga. These will help improve your physical and mental health. Aside from that, they can also make yoga a more meaningful experience for you.
- Read Books and Watch Videos About Yoga:To expand your knowledge about yoga, you can complement what you hear from your yoga instructor with reading yoga books and watching some videos. Since yoga is a complex discipline, it needs a many-sided approach for you to learn it effectively.
- Relax and Enjoy the Experience:One of the best tips we can give to beginners of yoga is to relax and enjoy the experience. If something is not working out, you can always retry it later and go back to the things you like, which made you feel like you are making progress. Remember that every beginning is a challenge itself. Yoga is a fulfilling and worthwhile practice. When you do it continuously, it will surely be worth your time and effort.
These are some of the best tips we can give for getting started with yoga. An additional tip we can give is when you practice yoga, do not compare yourself to other yogis in the room. Keep in mind that all bodies are unique and have varied strengths and challenges. Just do your best and develop your mind and body.