Do you really like YOGA!!!!!!!!

lol I didnt love it at first either, it was pulling me directions i felt my body would never get to. I felt clumsy, off balance, stiff and awkward. After i started to accomplish the poses, gain more flexibility the addiction started to kick in. Then when i started learning hand balances i was like sh&% this is so cool. Now im a junky lol. Plus after doing it for the last 7 months i hate waking up and feeling tight and sore. Im not content until i do my daily hatha flow

LOVE yoga! But you have to have the right class/instructor. If you get an instructor who thinks everyone should be in some inverted pretzel knot, run away! If you get an instructor who helps you work with your physical limitations to increase your flexibility and stamina, then you've got a winner. I have chronic back problems and balance problems due to a "rebuilt" foot. I worked with an instructor who modified positions and flows for everyone, and as we got stronger/more capable, she'd throw in a challenge. We were never forced to complete the "challenge," it was more to see where our limits were. Her motto was, "This is not a competition. This is YOUR practice. Listen to your body, and only push it as far as it let's you, and not beyond." I always felt taller, more relaxed, and fully oxygenated after class. And talk about a workout! It felt gentle, but the next day I'd be sore (in the good way) like I got a fantastic workout.

Sadly, she moved out-of-state, and I have not found another instructor yet, so no yoga for me. I very much miss it.

I have been doing it by suggestion of my personal trainer as i have zero balance and little flexibility. I like it as it feels good after strength training but i do not love it as i find it difficult and i am always the biggest one there. It has helped me a little with balance as i can now stand on one foot for longer than a couple seconds but it is slow going.

My gym does have something called power yoga which looks intriguing as people are like doing handstands and crazy poses at a fast pace. maybe its the type of yoga you don't like (i am doing gentle and yoga 1).

There are a lot of different kinds of yoga...

I practice restorative yoga a couple of days per week on my rest days to aid in recovery and repair of my body from all of the other **** I put it through during the other 5 days. I love it...but wouldn't necessarily love it as a primary form of exercise and probably wouldn't really like doing it daily or anything...but a couple days per week for recovery is awesome.

I wold also note that the instructor can make a huge difference if you're attending a class. It's just like anything else, some instructors suck and some are awesome. I do my yoga on my own.

Yoga isn't for everybody. I tried it a few times, but I find it boring. I hate standing still and I'd much rather dance/skip/do vigorous calisthenics/HIIT/ANYTHING except yoga.

Edited for typos. Ugh.

Yeah, I'm not a fan.

You can google "benefits of Yoga" and find a lot there. I did not like Yoga at first, but now I do some form of it almost every day and do a class at least once a week. Some of the benefits that I have seen is increased flexibility, better balance and strength. It really helps you to get very in tuned with your body and if you have back problems Yoga really helps to strengthen those core muscles that support the back. If you've ever gone to PT for your back, many of the exercises that your therapist will have you do are Yoga based moves.

Also my favorite benefit of Yoga is the calm that I have after it. I sleep like a baby the night after my Yoga class. Also it teaches you controlled breathing, how to stop, calm down and focus. I have a stressful job, and during the day it's nice to be able to know how to take a minute to calm myself down and focus. The longer you take it the more you will begin to see the benefits. The instructor is key though. Some in my opinion are just too aggressive and go too fast. Also, some people are super flexiable and some (like me) are not very flexible at all, so it can be intimidating if you are ina class full of rubber band girls. Good instrucors will work with you within what you can do. You may want to pick up the Rodney Yee A.M/P.M. DVD and start doing it at home.

As for Hot Yoga (Bikram)? I am going through menopause so I have no need for hot anything :laugh:

So hot instructors or hot yoga? I get super bored with yoga but when I go to hot yoga I love it... Maybe try different types?

Yoga was the first thing I wanted to try when I still had a gym membership. I went once, and felt so out of place & unwelcome that I left before class was done.

Eight months later I took it at college, with this instructor who was so tiny I could have lifted her up with one arm. She made everything feel safe & possible, my classmates were all respectful & supportive and I've since befriended her and try to do a little yoga a few days a week.

Yoga's one of those things where, if you stick with it, you get better results. I was really not into it at first, but had to force myself to quiet down and focus on the moves or else I'd fall over/lose my balance. I really enjoy the spiritual side to it, energy, etc, because I have problems with stress and anxiety and my mat brings me quiet and clarity when I have a day of panic attacks.

Acro-yoga is tons of fun and I think anyone who's nervous about it should totally try to hunt down a class for it.

Try a few different class styles. I really love Hatha yoga, its slow, relaxing, and I get a great stretch from it. Its like going to the Chiro for me, I do it on Mondays and boy can I tell when I skip a week! It helps with all the tension that builds in my shoulders and back from sitting all day at my office job. I also do Ashtanga yoga sometimes and they are nothing alike. Ashtanga is flow yoga and its an intense sweaty workout. Sometimes I get really sore afterwards. I don't love Ashtanga but I like the workout effects so I have stuck with it when I have the time. I prefer classes to at-home/online videos.

But its like anything- you have to enjoy an exercise to want to do it as part of your regular lifestyle. Try the various kinds and if its still not for you, find something else that it.

i didn't care for yoga at first. thought it was boooooooring & slow. but, i was a place in my life that i needed to slow things down a bit. yoga opened a whole new world for me. reminds me i NEED to get back to mat.

anyway, try out small sessions of yoga practice. it doesn't have to be an hour long. also, learn more about yoga, you will find that yoga goes beyond the bendy pretty poses. check out this site.

http://www.yogajournal.com/

namaste.

Yoga is not just a physical practice, chances are if you are taking time for it at a gym or with a video you are missing out on so much of what makes it special. I live in a town (100,000 population) that has about 25 different yoga studios so I have been lucky to "shop around." It takes time to feel comfortable in an uncomfortable space, situation or pose so give yourself that time. Also it is called a practice because the point is it is something to practice for a lifetime. Took me a while to understand that I would never master any pose or intention-there would always be room for improvement.
Here is a little tip for hot yoga until you get through it without it-I roll a few ice cubes into my towel so that every time I wipe my face I get a tiny bit of relief. Also set your mat up near the door, that is almost always the coolest spot in the room. Eventually you will embrace the sweat and the discomfort, but it takes a long time.

I loved it when I first tried it. It's much harder than it looks and I can see why it gets people in shape.

The instructor makes a huge difference for me. I was lucky. My first instructor was really keen at adjusting the challenge level to the level of her audience. If she saw someone was struggling she would go to them and help them modify their pose. Likewise, if someone was obviously not being challenged she would go to that person and suggest a more challenging addition to a pose. She is the reason I love yoga!

I love challenging my body to do more difficult and advance positions. And when I truly focus on quieting my mind and my breathing it's even more challenging.

If you're being physically and mentally challenged it's amazing. If the instructor just stands in front of the class doing the poses with you instead of interacting and assisting participants to make sure each student is getting what they need, it's a bore.