Health and Wellness: Intro To Yoga

With so many options, which one is the right one for you?

by Marcia Scredon

March 2, 2008

I t wasn't easy just a few years ago to find certified yoga instructors in metro Atlanta. Today there are many good choices, and teachers of all teaching styles are well represented. In fact, when you hear people discuss the various types of yoga - "hot" yoga, Ashtanga, Kundalini - it's easy to be confused. The question is no longer where can I find a teacher, but which one offers what I need.

Below are some basic questions and answers for someone trying to navigate the yoga minefield.

Q: How do I find a qualified teacher?
A: Look for a Yoga Alliance credentialed teacher who has had a minimum of 200 hours of training by an accredited school. Find out how long he or she has been teaching and how many classes are taught weekly to get an idea of their level of experience. Look for a teacher who is kind and supportive. Don't stay in any situation where you feel intimidated by the teacher.

Q: What kind of yoga is right for me?
A: Some styles of yoga offer more physical challenge and some offer a more moderate or therapeutic approach. Some styles ask you to chant or meditate, and others emphasize extreme heat, vigorous breath work, or precision. The important thing is to like the style you choose and to feel comfortable with the teacher. Remember, you don't have to be able to do the postures when you start, but do choose an intensity level that makes sense for your age, health and fitness goals. There is a level of yoga for everyone.

Q: So how does yoga work?
A: All of the numerous styles of yoga share three fundamental practices: the cultivation of awareness, conscious breathing and relaxation. We practice yoga to awaken the latent intelligence within the body and brain, not just to acquire knowledge and physical capacity. As you explore the different postures, you will find your range of motion being extended and challenged not only physically, but also emotionally and mentally. Not only will you strengthen, tone and fine-tune the body through yoga, but you will actually appreciate the lessons your weaknesses will reveal.

Q: Are there additional physical and mental benefits?
A: Yoga offers tools to help achieve health and happiness. The biochemical changes that accompany muscular effort, changes in the oxygen and carbon dioxide balance through patterns of breathing, and the amount of time spent in a stretch or hold all contribute to our evolving self. Combine yoga with the chemical contribution of a plant-based diet and perhaps throw in a few other positive lifestyle changes, and you will begin to feel the changes.

Q: What is the difference between yoga and Pilates?
A: Pilates is a form of physical exercise incorporating ballet and yoga stretches to strengthen the core muscles and tone the physical body. It was developed by a man named Joseph Pilates in the 1920s to help injured ballet dancers. It is a great form of body awareness, but it is not a spiritual tradition.

No one knows exactly when the yoga tradition began, but it was already considered ancient when the Bhagavad-Gita, the most well-known of the yoga scriptures, was composed 2,500 years ago. The earliest references to yoga have been found in the Vedas, the foundational text of India's religious and philosophical practices.

DVD Recommendations
A person who has never taken a yoga class should not rely on DVDs. The DVD can't correct your alignment mistakes or modify postures to your personal needs, or give you the group energy of a live, yoga class. If you are watching the television to figure out where to put everything, your inward focus is seriously compromised just when you are trying to learn how to develop it.

However, a DVD can help supplement your practice when you can't make it to a living, breathing class. Here are my top recommendations, from the easiest to the most challenging.

Yoga 101 Workout by Lilias Folan
Kripalu Yoga Gentle by Sudha Lundeen
Yoga for Every Body by J.J. Gormley
Essential Flow Yoga for Everyone by Barbara Benaugh
Backyard Series: Beginning Yoga by Erich Schiffmann
Yoga for Longevity by Rod Stryker
Inner Body Flow by Angela Farmer
Yin & Vinyasa Yoga by Sarah Powers
Uniting Movement & Breath by Seane Corn
The Body & Beyond by Seane Corn

Popular Styles Of Yoga Practice
Hatha: This is an umbrella term that simply means physical yoga. It does not tell much about the particular level of difficulty or what specific techniques a teacher will use. Teachers who have a more classical approach or those who combine training from several schools will often employ this label.

Lyengar: This yoga style focuses on precision of alignment and introduces the use of props, including the sticky yoga mat. Classes are built primarily around achieving mastery of the postures.

Bikram: This is the popular "hot yoga." It is a series of 26 poses practiced in a room heated to 105 degrees. Yogiraj Bikram Choudhury, its innovator, is in Hollywood, Calif., and is a flamboyant and somewhat controversial teacher who has patented his formula for this ancient practice. You will find heat in many studios, but you will only find Bikram Yoga at a Bikram Studio.

Ashtanga: This is a challenging "power" style of yoga focused on strength and endurance that incorporates movement from posture to posture through conscious breath and the application of physical locks or bandhas. You will sweat.

Vinyasa Flow: This is a more free-form, adaptive approach to Ashtanga or Power Yoga that was developed by some of today's greatest American teachers. Like Ashtanga, it incorporates flowing from posture to posture, but each instructor is an innovator and Vinyasa can come in a range of intensities.

Viniyoga: This style is a therapeutic approach to practice that features a very gentle and basic flow, using some props, and incorporates a counting approach to breath.

Integrative Yoga Therapy: As the name implies, this is another therapeutic, adaptive form of gentle practice. Many of its teachers will give private classes or offer specialty classes to work with special needs such as back pain or pregnancy.

Kundalini: Some styles are known for healing the body. This style of yoga is know for healing depression and anxiety while it tones and strengthens us physically. This style utilizes a lot of powerful pumping breath, repetitive movement, chanting and meditation.

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Marcia Scredon's yoga studio is in south Gwinnett County. She holds certifications in Integrative Yoga Therapy and also Classical Hatha Yoga. In addition, she regularly trains with a variety of nationally respected Vinyasa and Kudalini master teachers.