As we have already said, yoga has existed for centuries, and during this time a lot of literature has been published covering various aspects of yoga. But we do not recommend that you strive to study the entire giant body of information, it is best to simply start practicing, having studied the basic rules and tips. In the process of practice, you yourself will understand what information you need to study in more detail.
How to start practicing at home from scratch?
Our guide on how to start practicing yoga consists of only 5 main steps. After you have worked through this list, continue working, gradually studying all the other sections of our site. We also recommend that you familiarize yourself with additional information about the daily routine and practical tips in our article yoga where to start .
- Learn the basic principles of proper breathing ( pranayama ) The most important thing during yoga practice is to breathe, especially when holding a pose. The main principle is to breathe through the nose (both inhalation and exhalation).
- Choosing poses Perform basic yoga asanas - a detailed description with all recommendations is on our website. Before performing any pose, make sure that you have carefully read our general recommendations (especially contraindications and pose adjustment points). When choosing poses for practice, be guided by the goals of practice and health status. Do you want to open your hip joints or stretch your shoulders? Would it be interesting to focus on backbends or inverted poses? Look at the categories of poses on our website: standing / sitting / lying poses, backbends, stretching, inverted poses - all asanas are assigned to one category or another. To begin with, stop at three categories and choose four poses in them. Practice from a sequence of this number of poses will take about 30-40 minutes. Experiment! If you feel that you need a quiet, contemplative practice, perform the sequence slowly and deeply. If you need to cheer up, hold the poses for a shorter time and change them more intensely.
- Prepare a place for practice at home Use a special yoga mat or lay a non-slippery blanket (the surface must provide good grip with your palms and feet). What is the best way to practice yoga, decide for yourself - it is not necessary to buy special leggings and T-shirts, you can wear cotton tights or shorts, a T-shirt or T-shirt. The main requirement for clothing is that it should not restrict movement, distract from practice, allow air to pass through well and simply be comfortable.
- Start with a short meditation on the intention to practice yoga Stand in Tadasana (mountain pose) or sit in a comfortable pose, close your eyes. Breathe calmly. Focus on practice and feel the silence or say the setting, for example: “I am grateful that today I will be able to devote time to my health and mental state. Today’s practice will benefit me” (the text can be anything at your discretion).
- Practice for the planned time Read more about the duration of yoga practice for beginners in our article “Yoga where to start” in the section “Duration”.
- Always end your practice with Shavasana Regardless of the duration of the practice (2 hours or 15 minutes), consciously relax your body in this pose (for 3 to 15 minutes).
Please note that in the first couple of practice times, you may feel awkward or strange, as new processes will begin to occur in the body: blood circulation is enhanced, energy reaches points where it was not before, you pay all attention to your body, in the end - which you are unlikely to have consciously done before, but this will pass over time and practice.
A significant advantage of independent yoga classes is that as you develop inner awareness, you will be able to adapt your practice to meet your own needs.
For example, you may notice that energetic practice is able to cleanse from negative emotions and cleanse the mind. And conversely, calm relaxing practice can relieve fatigue and provide an energy boost. Over time, with due responsibility to the regularity of practice, you will become the best teacher for yourself and will perform your own yoga.
Shishkina Tatyana Evgenievna
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Onik
Hello! What should be the initial yoga complex. I would be grateful if you name the list of asanas to start learning yoga.
Bagmet Anna
I decided to do yoga in the mornings. After sleep, I have low blood pressure. I hope that performing asanas will help to cheer up. Did I understand correctly that yoga classes should always start with meditation and how many minutes should it last? Marina 17.01.2018 at 11:59 Anna, yoga in the mornings, of course, helps to cheer up. But if you have low blood pressure, then the morning practice on an empty stomach (and this is a general rule for all yogis of classical styles) should be treated with caution. Be sure to have a small snack before practice and / or drink water with honey and lemon. Start your practice with a slow repetition of the Surya Namaskar complex, focusing on your breathing during asanas and transitions and avoiding dizziness. Dizziness can be overcome by proper breathing during asanas, read the recommendations for performing poses. Also note that dizziness and nausea can also be a consequence of slagging of the body - improve your diet, introduce more plant fiber into your diet. Over time, the body will cleanse itself and thank you. Be healthy!
Germansev Sergey Alexandrovich
Yoga is not only physical exercises that help develop the body, but also the spiritual development of a person. Yoga classes, even at the initial stage, have a beneficial effect on consciousness and the nervous system.
Hope
And if I started practicing meditation, should I use aromatherapy, I want to light sticks, as a background, or should I not connect any factors in parallel yet? Marina 17.01.2018 at 11:59 Nadezhda, you can use any methods and tools to create a space for meditations. The main requirement is that no factors should distract you: if incense / scented candles, then neutral and a little (to create an aura), if music - a previously listened to calm melody.