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Getting Started with Yoga - How to Get Started with Yoga

Despite the fact that we would like you to visit our Yoga Shop,you basically do not need anything to practice Yoga. The important thing is the attitude - a big heart and a small ego. Some loose fitting clothes or no clothes at all, and a small secluded spot in your house will be enough for you to start with. A balanced diet (sattwik) also aids a great deal in Yoga Practice. A four hour interval between meals is advised. Practicing with a mat, a blanket and a pillow is recommended. Wear a stretch suit or something similar. To get to know the Basic Yoga Postures or Asanas, you can get them from this website or buy an Introduction to Yoga book, video or DVD. There are lots of Yoga Information sources available in the market. The best way to Get Started with Yoga is to buy a Yoga Kit for beginners. (see below)

Where and What to Wear for Yoga

One of the advantages of Yoga is that it can be practiced almost anywhere, without special equipment, and by people of all ages. In looking for a studio, choose a place that is relatively free from distractions, the place should be quiet, clean and well ventilated. Using a mat, a blanket, or towel will provide support and added comfort when you do lying or sitting positions. It's best to wear loose or stretch clothing, such as shorts, sweat clothes, or leotards. Yoga is traditionally practiced barefoot, however, socks or soft-shoes can be put on. It is also best to practice Yoga on an empty stomach or about one or two hours after a full meal. Empty your stomach, clean your nostril and throat, and consume a glass of warm water 15 minutes before you start. You may eat fruit, energy bar, drink a glass of juice or water an hour before class to avoid getting really hungry during practice.

When and How Long should you do Yoga

Practicing first thing in the morning is an excellent way to revitalize the mind and body, while practicing Yoga Breathing and Meditation Exercises at night helps induce a deep, restful sleep. Like in regular exercise, you always start with easy poses to condition your body for the more difficult exercises that follows. Do not strain yourself. Pause when you feel pain or fatigue. Relaxing in between difficult exercises is also beneficial. Yoga Sessions need not be lengthy, but should be done daily. As little as 15 minutes of exercises and 15 minutes of Breathing and Meditation each day can yield benefits.

Yoga Props

As mentioned earlier, you basically do not need anything in order to Practice Yoga. All you need is the attitude - the desire to expand your self awareness. But this does not completely eliminate the need for the different Yoga Props. These props help you achieve the proper alignment, balance and make the pose a bit easier. The use of props also minimizes the strain and supports your muscles, thus allowing you to save your energy by exerting less effort on a pose. Yoga props help people with Medical Ailments and the Elderly to cross their limitations. The props provide support, enabling them to do the poses that their ailments or old age prevent them from doing.

Here are some Yoga Props to start with:

non-slip mat
strap or belt
cotton or wool blanket
chair with arm rests
wooden or foam block or a phone book

Basic Yoga Session

A Basic Yoga Session need not take too long. A basic session usually follows this order:

Warm-up Exercises - conditions your body for safe transition into asana practice. For beginners, you may just use the warm-up poses as your entire practice. Warm-up exercises open the shoulder muscles, the spine, the hips, the lower back, and the groin.
Standing Poses - for alignment of the feet and the body. Opens the hips, stretches the legs, add strength to your back and increases your range of movement. Standing poses facilitates digestion, blood circulation and is good for those who want to lose weight.
Sitting Poses - sitting poses allows you to infuse with the breath and prana, and to revitalize from a pose by giving you a calm and quiet feeling. These poses greatly contribute in shaping your buttocks and legs, and in adding vitality and suppleness to the spine.
Twists - twist exercises releases the tension in your spines, relieves backaches and makes your shoulders more flexible. It also facilitates in the circulation of blood and nutrients in the body making it necessary for the health of the inter-vertebral discs.
Supine and Prone Poses - these poses releases tension in your abdomen and increase the mobility of your spine. It restores strength in your back, arms and legs, and releases your hips and groins.
Inverted and Balance Poses - inverted and balance poses defies gravity and develops coordination, increase stamina and strength, and improves grace, agility and poise. It also improves you concentration and focus since being quiet is necessary to be able to do these poses.
Backbends - backbends are the poses that benefit the adrenal glands and the kidney. It also releases tension in the front body and in your shoulders and pelvic girdle, and improves the flexibility of your spine.
Finishing Poses - these are the cooling-down exercises for Yoga.

Yoga Practices and Cautions

When performing the asanas, try to concentrate on each movement - the process of moving is just as important as attaining a given position. Remember that you should not strain or continue holding any Yoga posture if it causes pain. Yoga isn't a competitive sport, and the extent of the stretch is less important than the technique. Each asana may be repeated up to three times, but it is better to perform a posture once correctly than repeating it three times quickly and sloppily. Try to perform the poses in the prescribed order, since the routine is meant to help balance the different muscle groups.

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Article Comments

alicelharris
Monday 6th September 2004 at 6:25:28 AM

I am new to yoga. I have gained weight since I took an office job and I want to lose weight and I want to learn to deal with stress without medication. My husband is partially paralyzed and worry too much about everything. I just want to be more at ease and feel better about myself.

LaMonica
Sunday 22nd July 2007 at 11:48:34 AM

I took a few yoga classes a few years back, but it got so expensive , and I stopped. But I remember how great I felt after each class, and I am ready to start again.. I could really use some support in my renewed journey.

suzy
Thursday 20th September 2007 at 7:37:48 AM

I have always been an exercise nut :) Lately the heavier routines have not been complimenting my work which constitues heavy lifting and walking. I have been experiencing tightness in the hips and buttocks reagion, a very uncomfortable tightness the aggravates an old back injury. I am hoping the fluidity and relaxation of Yoga will ease the tensions of my daily routines and aid in healing of my body.

kivamar
Friday 25th January 2008 at 11:57:34 AM

I am also new to yoga and want to encourage you. I am a heavy woman starting at age 52 and I know that just in the few weeks I've done it, I feel better after every session. I amslo a desk jockey like you and sometimes walking is just not enough. I encourage us both!

kivamar
Friday 25th January 2008 at 11:58:14 AM

CarolBrooks
Monday 16th March 2009 at 6:03:33 AM

I am practicing yoga from last six months, but not regularly so in a sense I am also new to it one can say. Whenever I do yoga in the morning I feel better, fresh full of energy for the rest of the day. The following article inspired me a lot <;a href="http://asiasmedicaltourism.com/category_story_1453.html">;The Yogic route to health and wellness<;/a>; and so I did some research and ended up here and joined this community to learn more about yoga posses and its benefits.

Serenita
Monday 19th October 2009 at 2:31:45 PM

Hi LaMonica,

before I started yoga, I too wanted to take classes at a yoga studio, but soon realized that a lot of places are a bit pricey and have these set schedules that sometimes do not work with mine. So, I bought home videos - and they are great, not to mention cheap! I can go at my own pace and choosing different ones depending on my mood that day is wonderful. I do sometimes think that maybe I need to be adjusted in certain poses, but there are also books for that that explain how the pose should be done and what it should feel like if you are doing it correctly. So, don''t let cost stop you! Maybe doing yoga at home would be good to try. Good luck!

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