Rox Does Yoga

As an addendum to my series on tips for new yoga students (see the full series here), I thought I’d comment on not just the technical aspects of finding a yoga class and what to bring to it, but how often to practice. Last week in my teacher training session, J mentioned that this question, “How often should I do yoga?”, is one of the most frequent questions he gets. The answer, of course, is different for every person (much to the dismay of J’s questioners, who all wanted a specific answer!).

How often should you practice yoga? It mostly depends on what you hope to get from your yoga practice, and on your other commitments and responsibilities as well. If you want to make real changes in your physical health or in your spirituality, you should practice as often as possible. Physically, yoga can have real benefits on the body, such as increased strength, flexibility, and stamina, but you have to practice regularly to reap those benefits. Similarly, if you’re using yoga as a part of your spiritual practice, perhaps with meditation, you should also try to practice as often as possible – you’re training your mind to be calmer and more focused, the same way you’re training your body to be more flexible, and the results will only come with continued practice and work.

If you really want to make progress with yoga, you’ll find a way to practice yoga every day – with daily practice you’ll see results much more quickly. For those of us with busy schedules (for example, me, and pretty much everyone else), this can be really hard to do. If you want to make yoga a part of your life, it’s important to make room in your day to do it; on the flip side, practicing yoga all the time and letting your other obligations slide is no good either. Personally, I don’t try to force myself into a full hour-long yoga practice every day (although it would be wonderful if I could – when I do practice yoga more frequently, I feel stronger and more energetic). Instead, I try to balance my yoga practice with the rest of my life. Some days I can fit in a big practice, some days I manage 25 minutes, some days I do a few quick sun salutations, and other days I’m proud I can squeeze in a five-minute meditation. What’s important is deciding to stick with it and then making some room for yoga somewhere!

In the past, when I was practicing yoga more casually, I attended vinyasa yoga classes twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays, for a good two years. During that time I definitely did notice that my flexibility and strength were improving, as was my technical ability to do the physical poses. Twice or three times a week seems like it could probably be a good compromise for beginning yoga students. Then, later on, you might choose to deepen your practice.

If you’re truly busy (and I’ve been there this year!), you want to try to get to yoga class once a week. Say to yourself, “Monday! Monday is yoga night!”, and then build a little wall around Mondays in your schedule. Make it a big defensive wall with a moat, even. If you’re that swamped, you need that little sliver of time to yourself, and if you don’t defend it, nobody will and you’ll lose it. Set your alarm to remind you to practice, schedule the time in Outlook and set up email reminders so you’ll leave the house on time – whatever you need to do to make it happen. Remember that this is for yourself, to keep you healthy so you can keep on giving to all the people you love. At this point, maybe yoga becomes less a fitness thing than a sanity thing, or a social “the one night I see my friends” thing, and that’s okay. Just keep it going, and keep it regular. If you have that sliver of regular practice in your life, it will be easier to expand that into a larger practice later on when things calm down.

The last answer, the answer that people don’t want to hear, is that if you don’t keep a regular practice, you won’t make progress with yoga. Period. It’s just like lifting weights or kicking soccer balls or practicing ballet dancing or even going to Bible study: if you want to make progress, to deepen your skill and knowledge, you have to practice. Maybe right now your life is so hectic that you can’t think about a regular yoga practice; maybe you’re moving to a new city and now isn’t the time for you. Heck, since starting to practice yoga eight years ago, I’ve moved six times, and three of those moves were interstate. I feel you. But if it’s important to you, find the time. Make the time for yourself. The longer you let your practice go, the harder it will be to pick it back up and get back into a regular rhythm.

When you ask, “How often should I do yoga?”, the answer should be, “As often as is practical for you.” Think through your commitments and your schedule and find a time that you can dedicate to your yoga practice, and then stick with it!

Here’s another yoga teacher’s viewpoint on how often to practice.

Inspired by this article on how to find the right yoga instructor, I started writing some tips for those new to yoga. Parts 1, 2, and 3 covered deciding what you’re looking for in a yoga class, how to find a class in your area, and tips for a successful first yoga class. Now we’ll move on to making the most of your yoga class.

• Speak up.

Don’t be afraid to talk to the instructor! When you arrive  early for your first class, let the teacher know of any concerns you might have. Tell her about your lower back pain or your bad knee. This will help the instructor a lot! If the yoga teacher knows that there’s a brand-new student in the room, she may teach differently, choose different poses to teach, or describe the poses in different ways. She may keep an eye on you to make sure that your alignment is right, so you don’t do anything that will hurt that bad knee. Good communication with your yoga teacher will reassure you, help her plan her class better, help her help you better!, and make the class a better experience all the way around.

• In any yoga pose, try to be comfortable and steady.

In all of the Yoga Sutras, this is pretty much the one thing that the sage Patanjali had to say about physical poses: be comfortable and steady. And yet this is something that most yoga instructors don’t think to mention. If you are unsteady, wobbling all over the place in a yoga posture, you’re not going to be doing anything valuable for your body, and you’re more likely to cause yourself an injury. Yoga is about finding the middle path: not doing too much, and not doing too little. In any pose, you want to find the spot where you are steady but still working hard. If a pose makes you wobbly, it’s okay to take an easier variation of the pose, drop a hand or knee to the ground, or just sit down and rest.

• Pay attention to your breath.

Your breathing is a key indicator of how you’re doing in a pose. Nice steady deep even breaths? You’re doing fine and could maybe push a little harder. Quick shallow panting breaths? Something may not be right – you may be doing too much in a pose, or you might need a rest. You should strive to keep your breath steady and even. Focusing on your breath gives you a barometer of sorts of how you’re doing in your practice, and it gives your mind something to focus on. Of course, in a more athletic style of yoga class, you may end up breathing harder, but continue to be aware of your breath, and know what the difference is for you between hard working breathing and needing a rest.

• Understand the difference between discomfort versus pain.

It’s normal to feel discomfort during yoga class, especially as you bend in ways you might not have bent in years, and as you discover muscles you never knew you had! Stretching it out can be uncomfortable. However, there’s a difference between discomfort and pain. Yoga should never hurt you. If something genuinely hurts, then stop doing it and take a step back: maybe your body isn’t ready for that pose or that variation, or maybe you just need a rest. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s your yoga practice – take care of yourself!

• Adjustments: okay or no-go?

The yoga instructor may ask if she can touch or adjust you during the class. Be honest about how you feel about this. Being adjusted by the yoga instructor can be really helpful in understanding the correct alignment of a pose; however, it’s okay to say no if you don’t want to be touched, and the teacher should just give you verbal instructions instead. If the instructor adjusts you in a way that hurts at all, tell her right away! This can be scary, but don’t be afraid to speak up. In general, a teacher’s adjustment should be helpful, such that when she gets you in the right spot, you go “Oh!” and things click into place.

• Try lots of classes – and don’t give up.

If you go to one yoga class and you don’t like it, try another class. This is the #1 most important thing I want to say in this post, so I’ll say it again: If you try one yoga class and don’t like it, try another yoga class. If you have a bad or uncomfortable experience, that’s a shame, but it doesn’t mean that yoga isn’t for you – it just means that that one class or that one teacher isn’t for you.

Maybe you were looking for a beginners class but the vinyasa class fit your schedule better – then you find out that, yup, you should be learning basics just like you thought! So try to make time for the beginners class. Or maybe you went to the beginners class but the teacher moved too fast. Try another class with a different teacher, or try another yoga studio. Remember that yoga studios are independently owned small businesses, so the style of yoga taught, the schedule, and the pricing scale will vary greatly from one studio to another – what you can’t find at one studio might be present in abundance on the other side of town.

There have been plenty of times when I’ve talked to someone about yoga and the person says, “Yoga? Oh, I tried that once. It wasn’t for me.” Or “That yoga class was okay, but we kept falling asleep, so I don’t think we’ll go back.” (Yes, seriously.) Remember that one yoga class does not represent all the variety that’s available. If you have a genuine interest in yoga, try lots of different classes so you can get a sense of what’s out there!

I truly believe that yoga can be beneficial for everybody. That’s why I’m training to become a yoga teacher! I hope that this series of yoga tips for beginners has been helpful for you. (Anything I didn’t cover? Just ask!)

Last time, I gave you some pointers on identifying what you want out of a yoga class. Now let’s figure out how to find the right class!

• Try different search methods to find an appropriate yoga class in your area.

Once you know what you’re looking for in a yoga class, it’s time to go find one! Yoga classes are held in a variety of places: there are independent yoga studios, of course, but you can also find yoga at a gym or YMCA, or at an unlikely spot like a dance studio, a church, a garden, someone’s home, or even your own workplace!

Gyms and YMCAs are often good, affordable options when you’re just starting out with yoga. These places usually offer yoga classes to their members along with other exercise classes as a part of your monthly membership. Joining a gym can be more cost effective than taking yoga classes at a studio, but you’re likely to get less variety and more emphasis on the physical workout at a gym. Many gyms will offer a trial membership, so you can check it out for a week and see if you like it. Call and ask if this is an option, and if it is, take full advantage!

If you want to try yoga at a yoga studio, there are several ways to find one in your area. Yogajournal.com maintains a directory of yoga studios, which is a good way to get ideas, but not every studio is registered there (I just looked at Pennsylvania, and while there are 101 listings in PA, the two studios where I practice most often aren’t listed). You can also look at local resources like yelp.com, where you can see ratings from other yoga students in your area (and both my favorite studios do show up on yelp). You could even just go to googlemaps and search for “yoga near” your zip code. If you don’t see what you’re looking for under one search, try again on a different site!

Another option is to look for an individual yoga teacher. Yoga Alliance, the national education and support organization for yoga in the United States, maintains a directory of registered yoga teachers (RYTs) who have completed the training requirements (i.e., what I’m doing right now). There may be a yoga teacher in your area who doesn’t teach at a studio or gym but who does private lessons or small home classes. Looking for a teacher might be good for you if you have an irregular schedule and can’t make it to a regular class, or if you have physical problems that make it hard to leave home: bring the yoga to you!

Finally, word of mouth is a great way to find yoga classes. Maybe there’s a yoga class that meets weekly in the basement of the church up the street from you, or maybe your daughter’s dance teacher rents her studio out to a yoga teacher on Sunday mornings. Yoga can crop up in the unlikeliest of places. Look on bulletin boards at the grocery store!

Or maybe some of your colleagues have been wanting to try yoga too – go together to your HR department to see if you could get a class started at your office! Yoga at the workplace can be a nice thing for an employer to do, since it boosts morale and improves fitness (which means fewer injuries and lower health costs!). And sometimes, if enough employees are interested, the employer may subsidize the cost of the classes, leading to cheaper yoga for you. It doesn’t hurt to ask! (And if your employer is willing but you need to find a teacher, check out the Yoga Alliance yoga teacher directory!) If you tell people you want to try yoga, you might be surprised at where it leads you.

Next time: making the most of your first yoga class!