Have you taken up yoga while overweight?

AwesomeSquirrel
AwesomeSquirrel Posts: 644 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm thinking about taking a beginners ashtanga yoga class this autumn, however I weigh 130 kg at the moment. I'm likely to weigh around 125 when this class starts in late October. I'm currently doing the C25K and play a bit of squash so I'm beginning to get some basic level of fitness (I also walk a lot).

Has anyone else started taking a yoga class while still overweight/obese? I've done a bit of yoga at a fitness center a couple of years ago when I was lighter and really enjoyed it, I've since moved so that's no longer an option. This class is at a yoga studio that caters to the public and the university. What I'm concerned about is 1) not being able to do things, though I know full well that I can still do things like sun greetings for example and 2) that maybe all the other beginners are already very thin and fit and judgy (unlikely, I know). I believe the course focuses on teaching you the basic stances in order to prepare you to join with "regular" classes after the course or engage in the self-study sessions where an instructor is on hand to assist.

I would love to hear about your experiences before taking the plunge and signing up! It's £50 for 6 weeks of classes 1/week so obviously a bit pricy - dropping out won't be an option.

Replies

  • clariangel
    clariangel Posts: 156 Member
    I'm overweight and I love yoga! Don't worry about it. I've never had a bad experience in yoga. And th teachers have been great. I would give it a try. And it really helps in my weight loss efforts. :)
  • AwesomeSquirrel
    AwesomeSquirrel Posts: 644 Member
    That's great to hear! Anyone else doing yoga?
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    Yes. I started doing yoga when I was around 275 (that's pounds, because I went to school in the US and they don't teach us how to convert to kg because that would take time away from studying for standardized tests). I did have trouble with certain poses, mostly those that made me reach around my immense hard-fat covered belly. But it was great, worthwhile, and really helped with my back pain.
  • Amberonamission
    Amberonamission Posts: 836 Member
    I love yoga. Even at my smallest I have had trouble with runners pose. The rest I can handle with little trouble.
  • monih10
    monih10 Posts: 577 Member
    I'm at 145... And I LOVE yoga!! Yea, some of the poses are hard to do, but have gotten easier with time. And.... I love the flexibility I have gained!! :-)
  • unsound
    unsound Posts: 31 Member
    I started doing yoga when I was at my heaviest. I've always had back problems and I'm not all that young any more, so I wanted to build a base of flexibility before I started doing much else. I love it. I think you should go ahead and do it. The one thing i might recommend is asking around various yoga studios or classes to see if you can do a single class (sometimes they'll let you do it for free) to see if the teaching style works for you. I've never had a truly bad yoga teacher, but there are lots of different styles and some will suit you better than others. Also, try checking for online reviews -- they can be pretty informative sometimes.
  • AlexandraLynch
    AlexandraLynch Posts: 161
    Yes. Since I have bad foot/ankle issues, yoga is what I do for exercise. It REALLY has helped with my overall strength and ability to perform activities of daily living. There are a few poses I have to modify to allow for the fact I have massive boob and belly in the way, and thick thighs don't quite fold that closely, but I still get a lot of benefit from it, and do it religiously twice a day.
  • AwesomeSquirrel
    AwesomeSquirrel Posts: 644 Member
    Thanks for all the responses! I'm feeling really reassured! This might be a daft question but will I need to bring my own mat or is it usually possible to rent/borrow for beginners? (obviously practices will differ from place to place but it would be useful to know if this is EVER an option)
  • Amberonamission
    Amberonamission Posts: 836 Member
    Bring a mat. You don't want to share that sort of thing.
  • ishtar13
    ishtar13 Posts: 528 Member
    One of the best yoga teachers I ever had was very overweight - but flexible and strong.

    You can start yoga at any size.

    You may want to take it slow and do variations on some postures, but anyone any size needs to start somewhere.
  • ishtar13
    ishtar13 Posts: 528 Member
    Yes. I started doing yoga when I was around 275 (that's pounds, because I went to school in the US and they don't teach us how to convert to kg because that would take time away from studying for standardized tests). I did have trouble with certain poses, mostly those that made me reach around my immense hard-fat covered belly. But it was great, worthwhile, and really helped with my back pain.


    275/2.2 = about 125 kg
  • mfpcopine
    mfpcopine Posts: 3,093 Member
    I think you're going about it the right way. A relative of mine who is older and overweight signed up for some general Pilates classes. When she had problems keeping up, she hired a tutor to help teach her modifications (she has a lot of i joint issues besides being overweight).

    I think disciplines like Yoga and Pilates are great because they teach control and respect for the body. They create a healthy sense of body consciousness that carries throughout the day.

    If the teachers are dismissive of people who lift weights don't believe it. People who are serious about strength training are very knowledgeable and for them the activity is just as much mental as physical.
  • sexikc
    sexikc Posts: 153 Member
    i have done videos at home but today I attended my very first yoga class and I LOVED IT!! I am going to try to go every week. The poses were not too complicated and there were variations that any fitness level could do. I am 259 (or so, i guess around 117kg) So I am def obese at 5'2 since you have more of a background in yoga than I do....Im sure it will be great for you..
  • waskier
    waskier Posts: 254 Member
    I just started yoga about 5 weeks ago and really wish I had done it from the start of my weight loss. It has really helped my running a lot. Don't worry or be self-conscious. Anyone that would be critical has no business being in a yoga class. Do it, be confident, and enjoy it!
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    i do yoga and was doing it at my heaviest. the only thing to remember is to do poses based on what your body can do and make any modifications that you need. for instance the plow pose i could easily pass out if i put my legs straight back. how i modify is to alternate them going to the sides
  • Danflex
    Danflex Posts: 14
    I started it for flexibility but Yoga not only revealed by lack of flexibility issues but out how out of balance my muscle mass was in terms of strength. Chest up it was only my flexibility getting in the way with certain poses. Lower half it became evident immediately that leg and hip strength, strength endurance and flexibility were way behind.
  • bericoco
    bericoco Posts: 4 Member
    I was going to yoga classes at around 100kgs and never had any problems. One thing that an instructor said to me stuck in my head and I found it very motivating - she said 'if you're feeling it, you're doing it - if you can only reach or bend a small amount and you're feeling it, you are getting just as much benefit from the motion you're making as someone that has to fold in half to feel it'
    When I started I couldn't touch my toes, a year later I am about 5cms off doing the splits
  • LadyIntrepid
    LadyIntrepid Posts: 399 Member
    Yoga is fantastic for anyone of any shape or size -- with the right instructor and right group, because there are sooooo many different kinds of yoga and every group class seems to come with its own group personality. Find the class that feels good to you. Don't worry about trying to execute the poses perfectly. Just do little by little as and if you can. You may also want to talk to the instructor first about the use of props -- many will use them (a chair, block, strap, etc.) to help with the poses that your body just can't do on its own (although it may not be necessary at all for a true beginners' class. Not all beginners' classes are alike.) And do bring your own mat. They can be found pretty inexpensively these days -- Walmart, Target, Marshall's, etc. And listen -- if yoga isn't your thing, you can always use it for an exercise mat at home. The great thing about yoga mats is that they and you don't slip.

    Please feel free to friend and/or message me if you have questions/concerns as you explore this. I have a lot of exposure to the yoga world.
  • Lina4Lina
    Lina4Lina Posts: 712 Member
    I'm over 100 lbs overweight and I do yoga.
  • marsviolet
    marsviolet Posts: 79 Member
    I was over 100kg when I started yoga. It doesn't matter at all! I was so nervous going, thinking that everybody would be super fit and perfect, but my class has a pretty diverse range of people and fitness levels. I am addicted now, you won't regret it!! Have fun!! :D
  • EricNCSU
    EricNCSU Posts: 699 Member
    Yes, I started yoga when I was at about 290 pounds (140ish kilos). There were some poses I couldn't do at all, and some poses (like plank and down dog) I could only hold for a few seconds. My arms and legs would shake the whole time and I would be dripping with sweat. But I kept at it and now I've noticed huge difference in my flexibility and as I've dropped now down to 250 pounds I can hold the poses longer.

    There are always modifications of the poses such as dropping your knees down in plank, placing one leg down in side plank, staying on your hands and knees, or in childs pose while everyone else is in down dog etc etc. The class is yours, you paid for it, do what is comfortable for you and save the rest for later.

    I now do advanced yoga two nights a week, the stretching helps prevent injuries while I'm running.
  • HogSandwich
    HogSandwich Posts: 146 Member
    I started at 100kgs, and biggest in the class. I will recommend yoga to anyone who will listen. It's calming, stretches what needs to be stretched, strengthens you, builds flexibility, and most yoga classes have a built in wind down-meditation segment at the end and the combined effect of exercise and relaxation is a feeling you just can't beat.

    If you're concerned about the judgement of other people - start off in a small class. You'll start to feel how much yoga practice shuts out everyone else and you'll get more confident.

    Also any yoga instructor worth her/his salt can customise poses to fit you if certain things aren't possible. There is a "power down" option for every single pose, and most have three or four difficulty settings.

    I'm pretty flexible but to my annoyance I could stretch further if certain rolls of fat were not in the way...
  • helyg
    helyg Posts: 675 Member
    I do yoga and am just starting pilates. I weigh 87kg so am far from thin and I see people much bigger than me doing it.
  • yerfgirl
    yerfgirl Posts: 65 Member
    Go for it. I am one of the heaviest people in my classes. Kinda felt a little odd for the first few minutes but once we got going it went away. It's all about you, your body and breathing. Everything else just melts away.

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