Yoga

...first started going to a yoga evening class in September 2006. I thought that it was a good idea because I didn't do much locally and so it would get me out of the house for an extra evening (I work two evenings a week, so now im busy for three evenings a week) and also I thought that it might help me cope with the stress I often get from work. I also grew up with mild developmental dyrspraxia, which meant that as a child I had problems with balance ...
...did!

The yoga class I go to was initially advertised as being 'yoga for beginners' but its clear than a good few of the people who go, have been going for a good few years, at least some have been for longer than I've been (which is almost a year and a half) and the instructor has never mentioned there being any kind of final class, so its just a constant class she runs throughout the year, apart from at major holidays. Its held in ... more

- Introduction -

This review is basically just tells my experience of Yoga, I hope its of help to some.

I first started going to a yoga evening class in September 2006. I thought that it was a good idea because I didn't do much locally and so it would get me out of the house for an extra evening (I work two evenings a week, so now im busy for three evenings a week) and also I thought that it might help me cope with the stress I often get from work. I also grew up with mild developmental dyrspraxia, which meant that as a child I had problems with balance and co-ordination, two things that you use in yoga, so I saw this as being a bit of a challenge that might help keep me in shape and would feel like a real achievement to me, if I could do it well, if this makes any sense! So I thought, why not?, lets give it a go... so I did!

The yoga class I go to was initially advertised as being 'yoga for beginners' but its clear than a good few of the people who go, have been going for a good few years, at least some have been for longer than I've been (which is almost a year and a half) and the instructor has never mentioned there being any kind of final class, so its just a constant class she runs throughout the year, apart from at major holidays. Its held in a local school building a few minutes away from where I live, so its easily accessible which is handy and gives me a chance to get some walking in to get there and back too. I believe that she's mentioned the type of yoga we do in the class would be classed as 'pranayama' yoga if any type, though there are quite a few different types, which you can read about online.

- How long do classes last & Roughly how much does it cost? -

The yoga class I go to lasts for an hour and a half (7:30-9pm) and costs £4 per class/session, though I believe it can vary a fair bit, in some cities it may cost more but thats what I pay anyway. I believe there are also two hour classes in some places but personally, I feel that an hour and a half is more than enough!

- What Should I Bring?/What Do I Need? -

For the class I go to, you have to bring a mat of your own, though blocks are provided. Blocks are used for people who find it awkward to get the right position for sitting cross legged, among other things, for whom putting a block under their bottom helps them to sit up better.

Yoga mats can be bought from many places, I got one in Woolworths and my first one I bought in Argos, they also recently sold them in Lidl's too, you can get them pretty much all over. The point of the mats are as their non-slip, you can go into any of the positions much more easily, of course. I also bring a bottle of water, to keep me well hydrated, as you do sweat a fair bit during the class.

Another important thing to bare in mind is that yoga is usually done barefoot (though when its really cold I do ocassionally see others in the class wearing socks but I wouldn't really recommend it, I imagine it would make you alot more liable to slip!) and you want to wear loose fitting clothing for comfort and again to help make it easier to get into positions and so on. I wear jogging trousers/leggings and a baggy t-shirt.

- What do classes consist of? -

It starts off with a relaxation session, where you sit on your mat in a cross legged position with our thumb and fore finger together in whats called 'Gyan Mudra' which is your seal of knowledge. The instructor tells us to close our eyes to us, to get us to calm the mind and to concentrate on our breathing. We then take a deep breath in and chant 'Ohm' through our out breath about three times, then we may also do the complete yoga breath, I believe also known as Ujjayi breathing, three times, which is when you place your tongue along the back row of your teeth and restrict your throat, which creates a sort of 'hahhh' noise as you breath out, making you more aware of your breath. Controlling your breathing is a central part to yoga, so its quite important to start out by becoming focussed and aware of it. Afterwards, we start out by slowing stretching ourselves, it can vary the different stretches and positions/postures/asanas we do (An asana being a sitting posture, its a phrase often used in yoga, at least in my yoga class). The instructor plans the classes every week, we don't do the same thing each week so its always a little bit different. However, to start with the stretches are pretty slow and not too bad, you have to start out slowly and build yourself up to the more difficult positions, be careful not to hurt yourself by pushing yourself too far, like we're always told you should feel a working muscle but never go past that!

Its fairly safe to say that we go through the positions of the plank, the dog and salute to the sun at least once per class, usually. We also go through some routine, I think its called tall tree, from a book called Yoga Flows, which our instructor is particularly keen on, in practically every class, though she tends to add on extra elements to it as well. Incase your wondering, the plank and the dog involve stretching out arms and legs on your mat and stretching, downwards for the plank and upwards for the dog (there's downward dog and upward dog but we generally do more upward than downward (lol)). Salute to the sun involves standing up on your mat, with your legs outstretched and your right arm above your head, swinging over, with your left hand going as far down your left leg as it can, then, if your neck doesn't hurt too much, you look up at your right hand.

After these initial poses are done, we then turn to the side to complete warrior pose, where we stand with our legs and arms outstretched (arms at chest level) and bend and stretch to both sides at a time, moving our arms as we go (I'll leave it at that or I could go on forever! this should give you a rough idea what to expect though). There are various other positions we do as well, which differ per class.

After thats completed, we then have to put our legs above our feet, to take the stress out of our feet after all the work we've done so far. This can be done by doing a headstand or shoulder stand or, depending on the venue, you can put your legs up against a chair and so on. This should be done and held for at least three minutes for the full/proper effect.

Next we go back to our mat and do the fish pose, Matsyasana, to rectify any hollowing in your back. You can read how to do this here:-

http://www.abc-of-yoga.com/yogapractice/thefish.asp.

After this, we get ready for Shavasana, which is when you lie down on your back, spread both legs and arms a comfortable distance from your body and get ready for the end relaxation, similar to the start only your not sitting up and it lasts longer, with again 'Ohm' chants and we also chant 'Shantay' too. This relaxation is a longer relaxation too, the instructor puts on some nice soothing music and guides you through being able to relax all of your core muscles and basically all of your body, part by part. It is very relaxing and she actively encourages us to yawn at the end, it should mean you get a good nights sleep after a class! This is when the class ends. Its also worth noting I suppose, that you can put on your socks or a zip-up top and/or anything that makes you more comfortable before starting Shavasana, if you don't feel comfortable and relaxed, then it won't work.

You can read about many different postures here:- http://www.abc-of-yoga.com/yogapractice/postures.asp

- Tips/Advice -

The main advice that we're given is as follows:-

* Never push past your working limit, its not a competition, everyone has different working limits. You should feel some discomfort as the stretches come into effect but you should not feel real pain, as this tells you that you've gone too far and you could hurt yourself, so be careful

* Always let the instructor know if you have any problems in any of the key areas, which could be any part of the body really but particularly the main areas dealt with, these being:- Knees, back, neck, shoulders, arms and legs. They can adjust the moves or give you advice on safer ways to do it so that you don't make any pre-existing complaints or problems any worse.

* In yoga, your always supposed to breath through the nose. Don't worry if you find it difficult to follow the moves in the right breath (usually, the instructor will say 'do this move in the in breath' but it can be difficult to get it the right way around, if you have quick breaths or/and are new at this and so on), it can take a while to get used to this and control your breathing well enough.

* If the instructor is helping others and your holding a pose and it starts to hurt at all, let go and drop out of the pose/position, don't hold it for any longer than feels right, though usually the instructor will tell you how to properly 'come down' from each position but if s/he is distracted and your still stuck in a position and it starts to become very sore then try and come down yourself, our instructor always says don't over hold.

* Don't worry if you find that your not as good at holding positions one week compared to others. We're told that it can vary from week to week, depending on our state of mind and health and probably other factors too, how far we can stretch and how well we can hold positions, so, it can vary, don't feel too bad if you struggle one night, you might well be better the following week and either way, its not a competition, everyone is different, some people find some positions easier than others, we all just do what we can and we don't judge others. At least I don't, I know what its like starting out and I don't find some of it so easy myself!

- My Opinion -

I quite enjoy going to yoga. Some weeks im not really in the mood for it but I do try to push myself to go, as I think its good to calm the mind and relax and discipline the body, to a certain extent anyway. I've gone for quite a while now and I have been told by the instructor that she's seen quite an improvement in me, which I take as quite a compliment. I find it hard to judge my own success, sometimes I feel that I'm a bit wonky but when your doing it, you can't see it from anyone elses point of view, so I can't see if I'm as wonky as I feel, if you know what I mean lol.

I wouldn't recommend going if your not well and feel at all fatigued, or you might faint or collapse, possibly. I only say this as one time I had a bit of a bug but I was feeling I thought alright a while before the class and decided to give it a go anyway, thinking it would relax and tone my body so I could get a decent nights sleep. However, I felt more shaky doing it than normal and my parents reckoned I suffered from fatigue and it made me push myself a bit too far, so that was probably a bit much.

I like that it isn't a competition, as I say and so you don't feel bad if it takes you longer or if you can't stretch as much as others. In the class I go to, there's a fair range of ages, though there are probably less of us young 'uns and more middle aged and older ladies (well, from what I can make out - apologies if I'm wrong to anyone who can tell which class I'm referring to! if thats possible). I would probably feel more intimidated if I were surrounded by people my age who had all done it for much longer and were able to go through all the moves much more smoothly. I do think I'm better at it now and I've learnt how it works, like what sort of thing to expect and some of the 'buzz words' too, though I think that I have some way to go before I feel that I'm any kind of real expert to be honest! Some positions I find harder than others.

I do find it helps to calm the mind and I do feel quite fit the following day, though when you leave, your pretty knackered! I remember a doctor asking me what exercise I get and I'd mentioned going to this class, as to me it feels like quite a workout, you do certainly work up a fair sweat but she dismissed it as simply a relaxation routine, that sort of thing. I beg to differ but it isn't entirely relaxing to me, you move quite alot and you do walk away feeling quite toned and tired! how that doesn't really count I don't know, it hasn't put me off from going though anyway. Its good exercise for me to walk to the venue and back home too.

I've found that it does help to clear the mind, you have to concentrate quite hard to achieve the different positions and I do find it hard to totally quieten and clear the mind, im always thinking about something else, im a pretty fidgety and like constantly thinking person unfortunately lol the ironic thing is, I've found that I often end up thinking of something useful, deciding to do something or remembering something important, during the class, which is handy lol I guess its clearing most of the mind and slowing it down, it makes you think and remember the more important and useful stuff, with the smaller part of the mind that isn't totally calmed - something like that!

It is a bit strange to start with, with the chanting and the postures that everyone else appears to know like the back of their hand and your looking around thinking 'ok, how did they do that?!' but in time, you do get into it. I'm sure it must have some good effect on your body, toning yourself and you do feel a bit more healthy for having done it, if not somewhat knackered right afterwards!

I would recommend yoga to anyone with a busy lifestyle who gets stressed and would like to take a bit of time out to calm and relax the mind and to work on their body and/or anyone who wants a good nights sleep afterwards, this should help! Just be careful not to push yourself too far and don't go if your feeling at all washed out really, to be on the safe side. If your feeling stressed and busy, it is a good thing to do to bring your thoughts under control to some degree and to work on your body and relax yourself. Don't be surprised if you do work up quite a sweat though, I don't care how relaxing people say it is, which it is, it is also a fair bit of hard work and particularly when your new to it, it can make you work up quite a sweat! so it may be worth bringing a bottle of water with you too, to keep you hydrated.

I also find that sometimes its hard to tell if I've pushed myself too far, until I get up the next day and realise I had pulled a muscle. Its all well and fine saying 'you should feel a working muscle and no more' well, when am I feeling having pulled a muscle (by which point surely its too late?) and when im feeling the working muscle? im a bit better at judging now I feel, as I don't seem to pull muscles as much and my body is more used to doing yoga now but I did used to pull a few muscles by mistake and it can be hard to judge just what your working limit is, you do have to be careful!

I hope this review helped give you a basic look into what a yoga class can consist of and the main points to bare in mind. Thanks for reading! 

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