Common Misconceptions About Yoga
As I stated in the last post, I am doing a blog post about common misconceptions. I reached out, via social media, to multiple groups with thousands of members each. Quite a few people responded, some with surprising answers!
The most commonly reported misconception, by far, is that you have to be in excellent physical shape and be very flexible. Many people stated that they felt too old, too fat, too out of shape, too inflexible, too inexperienced, in too much pain to do yoga. Let me tell ya, I am definitely not a skinny girl! And I’m most assuredly not as flexible as a lot of yoga teachers out there. I am more flexible than I was when I started practicing yoga, and I know that I’ll get even more flexible as time goes on. I have had surgeries, was hit by a car at a young age, causing massive nerve damage in my knees, I had a herniated disc in my neck, sciatic issues, and I have arthritis. Yoga meets you wherever you are. That’s the single greatest thing about yoga. You don’t have to be anything or anyone besides you. Whether you’re 10 or 90, fat or thin, able bodied or challenged, healthy or recovering from illness or surgery, feminine or masculine, focused or ADHD, yoga is for you.
What I realized after reading all of the comments people wrote, was that the actual most common misconception people had was, in fact, that yoga is just an exercise. Every comment only focused on the physical poses of yoga, the asanas, not anything else. The poses are the most readily seen, outward manifestation of a yoga practice, but they are barely the tip of the iceberg! Yoga is a philosophy, a way of living, that is about connecting the mind and body. Our minds and bodies are not separate; they are highly linked! Other common philosophies are minimalism, existentialism, stoicism, Marxism, and Taoism. It is not a religion, or an exercise routine, or a way to get likes on Instagram. It is a mindset. There are 8 limbs, or parts, of yoga. Think of it as a tree, unless the trunk grows, the limbs cannot exist. Asana, or poses, is the third limb. Yoga starts in the mind. Yamas, or how we interact with others, is the the first limb. Niyamas, or our relationships to ourselves, is the second limb. We will delve into these concepts in later blog posts, which I will link here when they are done.
A few other misconceptions people told me, that I would like to debunk will be listed below:
My wrists can’t handle yoga. Yoga, like most things, requires practice and the building up of certain muscles, both physical and mental. There are many things you can do, even in the physical poses of yoga, that do not use wrists. Practicing the Yamas and Niyamas (which are basically being kind and respectful to yourself and others), standing or prone (laying down) poses, breath work, and meditation are just a few examples. Strength in wrists and forearms will grow over time, but there are some things you can physically do to help your sore wrists out. First, make sure you’re not “dumping” all of your weight into your wrists. This can be accomplished by aligning your wrists directly under your shoulders, spreading your fingers out wide, and pressing into the tips of your fingers and the part of your palm where your fingers meet your palm, not just the heel of the palm. You can also use a fist in most poses. Ball your hand up into a fist and place the flat, knuckle side down while in the pose. Always listen to your body and do what’s best for you.
Using props is “cheating”. Props are used for a variety of reasons and are definitely NOT cheating! Props are used if your body isn’t ready to fully extend or bend in a certain way so that you are not injured. Props are used if you are injured and need to make sure you aren’t reinjured or injured further. Props are used when seasoned yogis and yoginis want to get a little further into a pose. Props are used if your body shape or bone structure is not conducive to a certain pose. One of the most surprising things to me when I was in school getting my certification as a yoga teacher was the sheer number of ways that hips can naturally be formed! No injuries, just people’s bone structures being vastly different. It’s mind-boggling. It doesn’t mean there is something wrong with you if you need a block under your butt in many of the pigeon pose variations (like I do), it means my hip sockets have a different orientation than some other people’s. If you can’t bend over a touch your toes because you haven’t tried that since you were 8 years old, it’s ok to place blocks on end so you can get that nice stretch without feeling like your arms are flailing in front of you.
Yoga is too high/low intensity. I found this one interesting. Many people thought yoga was too intense and they were not in shape enough, and just as many thought it was too boring and too low on the intensity scale. Hot yoga was scary to many (me too! I do not like the heat) and restorative seemed like a bore to others. First of all, balance, people, balance! Some days, in my own personal practice, I do an hour of vinyasa style asanas, which is almost constant, flowing movement, and other days, I do breath work for ten minutes, lay on the mat, do a few stretches, and stay in corpse pose for fifteen minutes…or an hour… or twelve. Yoga, physically speaking, can make you sweat (even without turning the heat up to 103 degrees F), or cool you down and lower your heart rate. It can be fun or focused, energized or relaxed. Yoga is whatever you make it.
I’m too anxious to go to a yoga class. Whether it’s because you’re a high anxiety person or you are just anxious about trying yoga, rest assured, there’s plenty you can do to prepare and dive in! First of all, the amount of online options for learning about yoga are staggering. If you feel in any way anxious or self-conscious, try an online class first. Look up “beginner yoga”, learn about the poses, breathing techniques, styles of yoga, lingo, so you feel prepared. Once you’re ready to go to an in-person class or event, if you decide that is what you want to do, talk with teachers and instructors ahead of time. Most of us would be more than willing to give you information, let you come in early to get acclimated, etc. if it gives you peace of mind and helps you! You can also find a teacher who offers one-on-one session, either online (hello, I’m Bek, owner of Bek’s Asanas…) or in person.
Yoga is only about flexibility/stretching not strength. Again I say, balance. This one made me laugh, not at the person who left the comment, but about something that happened when I lived in Hawaii years ago. This story should you why this is a misconception.
I did Zumba and step classes, Annie did yoga and Pilates classes, and “the boys” were 2 personal trainers at the base gym. They made some light hearted remarks about yoga not requiring strength. I knew it required strength, but was not interested in yoga because I only liked the high intensity stuff. A friendly conversation led to Annie inviting all three of us to her next class. Bets were made regarding the boys. About twenty minutes into the class, the big, bulky, muscular boys were having some trouble. after quite a few poses using upper body muscles, they were shaking and sweating like crazy alongside me at the back of the class doing three-legged downward facing dog. We had been in the pose for about thirty seconds when the first boy fell out; number two didn’t last much longer. People who could bench press hundreds of pounds fell out of a pose in a class with old ladies next to them, holding strong.
Yoga is not an exercise, it’s health for the whole being. Some exercise is still needed outside of the asana practice, if you want to be someone who lifts how ever many pounds, but don’t discount the power of a pose!
I’m so excited to delve more into what yoga is and the myriad of ways it can benefit everybody and every body. Wherever you are in the world, go find a studio, read a book, watch a video, whether it’s with me or another teacher, and give it a try.
What is your misconception, or the most surprising thing you learned about yoga?