How to Get the Courage to Go to Your First Yoga Class
If you’ve never done yoga, it looks intimidating. People are flexible, fit, fashionably dressed – wait, I might be thinking of a Lululemon ad rather than an actual yoga class. It turned out that you can have a great yoga experience even if you are a beginner, and we asked yoga instructors how to do it.
Get out those Trapper Keepers and sharpen your # 2 pencils – it’s a week back to school ! Going far beyond the classroom, we bring you ingenious tricks and ideas on how to get started on a chore, brush up on old skills, or learn something new this fall.
You don’t have to be a yoga master to start doing yoga. Makes sense when you say that, right? There will be a learning curve and that’s okay.
I always recommend that beginners set the intention to “have fun and not take yourself too seriously” at the beginning of the lesson. It’s always good to take a friend with you, everything is better when you share, right! Everyone is in the same boat, so don’t be embarrassed. There is a saying that saying that you are not flexible enough for yoga is like saying that you are too dirty to take a bath. —Megan, YogaLife
Try at home
The easiest way to find out what you are getting into is by watching an online yoga video. For example, our list of the best workout channels on YouTube has some great yoga classes.
By observing and reading as needed ( the Yoga 101 section of Yoga Journal is great), you can become more familiar with the terms the instructors use, as well as common postures and how to do them. For instance:
- Namaste is a greeting that instructors often use at the beginning and end of a lesson. It means “I bow to you,” but you can also translate it poetically as something like “the divine light in me recognizes the divine light in you.” My child watches yoga videos in which Namaste is simply described as the “secret code word for yoga.” Close enough.
- Downward dog pose and baby pose are good postures (sorry asanas ) to be aware of. They are very common – you can do dozens of both in the same class – but they are also meant to be used in resting poses. If everyone is doing difficult poses and you can’t hang, just do one of them. Your instructor will understand.
- The Sun Salutation is a sequence of poses that turn into one another. Here is one version you can practice at home . It’s okay to just do this sequence a few times, pausing each pose, taking a few deep breaths, and referring to it as your daily yoga workout. In class, there is a good chance that you will see the sun salutation or something very similar to it as a warm-up or in between other poses.
Several yoga instructors we spoke with suggested trying the video at home first, but one, Chris Lucas, notes that you can hurt yourself if you don’t know what you are doing. He has a video coaching service , so he would say that, but this is a good point: if something hurts or feels wrong, stop. You can ask the instructor about this when you see him in person.
Find a beginner class
Yoga classes are everywhere: yoga studios, of course, but gyms also host yoga classes, and it’s not hard to find social events like a yoga in the park day. But if you want the most enjoyable experience, take the time to do your homework instead of keeping track of what your expert yoga friend wants to do.
This is because even if the classes say they are for all levels or require no experience, that does not mean that they are suitable for beginners. (There are some, but it depends.) I once went to an “all levels” yoga class at a brewery, thinking that we would do some yoga and then everyone would go for a beer, but the instructor quickly talked us into a 75-minute stream of movements that she described only in Sanskrit names. Towards the end, I really felt like I deserved this beer. But if I had not been practicing yoga for years, I would have lost my way.
Take a real starter or base class – not an open level. The beginner class teaches the basics of yoga and basic postures that ultimately lead to more complex movements. – Rebecca Weable , YoYoga
Call the yoga studio (or email the instructor) and ask if they would recommend their class to a beginner. If you’re still nervous and have money to spare, ask about a private session. With one-on-one coaching, you can ask all the awkward questions you want and walk away with a better understanding of what you should actually do when you come to class.
Jody Gonzalez of ArtYogaWellness suggests looking for Hatha Yoga lessons ; they are generally soft and beginner-friendly. She also notes that hospitals and clinics sometimes offer “adaptive” yoga, which is beneficial for people with disabilities or health problems.
If you have friends who practice yoga, ask where they go and what they like about their studio or instructor. In fact, this is not in order to understand the level, but in order to feel the atmosphere of the place. Some instructors are very serious while others are more casual. Some people like to walk around the room and change body position if you are not in the correct posture; others will stay on their mat and leave you alone. If you don’t have a friend to share inside information, you can also ask the instructor these questions.
“Go to your first class with a friend, call the studio ahead of time and ask questions that have kept you from trying classes in the past. Fear of the unknown is the first obstacle to overcome, so the more you understand in advance, the less you are afraid at the moment. ” – Dr. Jody Ashbrook
Get ready and go
The yoga studio has all the necessary rugs and accessories; just bring a bottle of water. If the activity is outdoors or in an unusual location, you may need to bring your own rug. (Even if you’re going to the studio, you can always bring your own rug if you like. They won’t be offended.)
You don’t need to dress in spandex, but you do need to be comfortable. Normal sportswear will do. If you are wearing a loose-fitting T-shirt, it may fall over your shoulders when you do this doggy style. Just keep this in mind. Don’t worry about shoes; you will remove them as soon as you arrive at the studio.
Come early. Yoga lessons tend to have a structured start, and it’s not cool to waltz halfway through. (One day I was late for class and the instructor locked the front door to the studio. I had to turn around and go home.)
Since you will arrive early, you will have time to introduce yourself to the instructor. Explain that you are completely new to this and let them know if you have any questions or concerns, or if you have an aching injury that you need to fix. Yoga teachers’ brains are usually an encyclopedia of posture modifications (“of course, if your wrist hurts in a downward dog, you can do this or that or that … “) and they will happily share. I also like to explain any problems to the teacher so that if they see me taking extra breaks, they know why.
“As a teacher, I really like it when students ask questions about their practice – this is a way to get to know each other, and you – to improve your progress. Whether it’s the mind-body connection, trauma modifications, breathing, or just cool etiquette, trust me, there are no stupid questions here. “- Erica Lee Spurl
Once you have done this, set the rug in a good location. If you are sitting in the back, you can look at other students anytime you feel lost. But since you can turn to face the back of the room from time to time, the middle may be the best option.
Ask if you need any accessories for your afternoon lesson, such as a strap or a notebook. Collect them from the mat. Then just sit there until the lesson begins. Or use the bathroom. For an additional reward, sit up straight and practice deep breathing.
“Breathe. Even if you just sit on the mat and breathe throughout the lesson, this is yoga. In fact, it is an amazing yoga practice! Most of us are attracted to yoga over other forms of fitness because it is an active meditation, so regardless of whatever is confusing or confusing at that moment, if you focus on your breathing and breathing through it, you are doing it right. ”- Kelly Karnes
Enjoy the class
All classes are different, but this is one common structure:
- You will start in a seated position (there are unusual ways to sit, but plain old criss-cross applesauce will work ). The teacher can say “Namaste” and bow to you; say it and bow back.
- The teacher may ask you to “indicate intent.” It just means think for a second about what you hope to gain from the lesson. Nobody will ask what your intentions are, but here’s a good option for newbies: silently tell yourself, “I want to have fun and maybe learn something.”
- You will do a few poses and maybe breathing exercises or whatever the teacher has in mind. Most classes don’t raise their hands often to ask questions, so instead watch the instructor and other students to try to figure out what’s going on. If you are feeling overwhelmed, just take the downward dog or baby pose to give yourself a break.
- The last thing is often relaxation in shavasana, the posture of a corpse. You usually lie on the floor and relax for a while. Don’t be surprised if you do this for five minutes or more, perhaps with some posture changes.
Just listen to the instructor all the time and don’t worry about what others are doing. “A person doing some crazy stretching / twisting / whatever is just trying to achieve the same deep sensations [they] had in the early days,” says Chris Lucas. Go at your own pace and work within your limits.
“If something the instructor asks you to do feels wrong to you, don’t try to get rid of peer pressure, wait for further instructions, it’s not worth the injury. I was injured in 2003 when the instructor pushed me too hard on my back trying to increase the stretch, and since then realized that this is a common thing for beginners wanting to do what they are told. ” – Yancy Wright, Alternavida
At the end of the lesson, thank the instructor and look for a spray bottle to disinfect the rug if you borrowed one from the studio. If you enjoyed the tutorial, plan to come back again! If not, then next time you can go somewhere else or just enjoy the sun salutation alone in your living room. If you challenge yourself a little and have fun, you are doing yoga the right way.
“Beginner students tend to put tremendous pressure and excessive expectations on themselves to quickly master and“ fix ”postures. This leads to feelings of fear, embarrassment and insecurity. But in fact, postures were not and never were the true goal of yoga. You don’t need balance, flexibility, or yoga knowledge to practice. These qualities develop naturally over time. The body is simply seen as a door to the mind. As your body opens up, so does your capacity for mindfulness. So, the most important thing is the very experience of exploring your body and developing awareness of it through trial poses. New students just need to have the courage and determination to come to their tatami and practice. ” —Brittany Saffron, Sass Yoga