When I ask my friends to practice yoga with me, the standard response is either an enthusiastic "yes" or a "no way."
To the dissenters I'll ask, "why not?" To which they'll say any variation of the following:
"It hurts."
"It's uncomfortable."
"I'm no good at yoga."
"I'm not flexible enough."
For anyone practicing yoga as a beginner, these are common misconceptions. But it's important to understand these misconceptions before stepping on your yoga mat.
Let's take a look at each idea one by one:
1. "It hurts."
Yoga should never hurt. Ever.
If you are in a pose and experience pain, you should back out of the pose immediately. Pain is your body saying, "you've gone too far." And going too far will do nothing but harm.
It's remarkably easy to stretch or pull a muscle, and feeling pain is the first sign that something isn't right. By harming your body, you'll not only suffer, but you'll slow your any progress made during your practice.
2. "It's uncomfortable."
I admit, sometimes yoga is uncomfortable. But here is where the misconception comes in: feeling uncomfortable is actually good thing, not a bad thing. In order to allow change to occur in your body, you have to feel some level of discomfort. Don't fight this discomfort - embrace it. It's a necessary thing to improving your asana practice.
Be cautious, however. There is a fine line between discomfort and pain. Hold a pose and allow discomfort, but as soon as you feel pain - back out of the pose slightly.
3. "I'm no good at yoga." or "I'm not flexible enough."
If you've ever found yourself thinking this, ask yourself: "what does it really mean?" In order to answer that question, you must first define what it means to be "good at yoga" or "flexible enough."
But this is actually impossible to define. There will always be someone "better" or "more flexible" than even the most well-respected yogi in the world.
Try this little experiment to better understand what I mean: first, think of the most flexible person you know. This person could be a famous gymnast, a famous yoga teacher, or that girl in yoga class...
Do you have someone in mind? Now, I'm assuming you picked this person because you believe they are "flexible." Specifically, they are flexible when compared to you. For example, you would not have picked someone less flexible than you are.
Rubber Boy: Indian Schoolboy Wants To Become World's Most Flexible Man by Barcroft TV
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6918864
To the dissenters I'll ask, "why not?" To which they'll say any variation of the following:
"It hurts."
"It's uncomfortable."
"I'm no good at yoga."
"I'm not flexible enough."
For anyone practicing yoga as a beginner, these are common misconceptions. But it's important to understand these misconceptions before stepping on your yoga mat.
Let's take a look at each idea one by one:
1. "It hurts."
Yoga should never hurt. Ever.
If you are in a pose and experience pain, you should back out of the pose immediately. Pain is your body saying, "you've gone too far." And going too far will do nothing but harm.
It's remarkably easy to stretch or pull a muscle, and feeling pain is the first sign that something isn't right. By harming your body, you'll not only suffer, but you'll slow your any progress made during your practice.
2. "It's uncomfortable."
I admit, sometimes yoga is uncomfortable. But here is where the misconception comes in: feeling uncomfortable is actually good thing, not a bad thing. In order to allow change to occur in your body, you have to feel some level of discomfort. Don't fight this discomfort - embrace it. It's a necessary thing to improving your asana practice.
Be cautious, however. There is a fine line between discomfort and pain. Hold a pose and allow discomfort, but as soon as you feel pain - back out of the pose slightly.
3. "I'm no good at yoga." or "I'm not flexible enough."
If you've ever found yourself thinking this, ask yourself: "what does it really mean?" In order to answer that question, you must first define what it means to be "good at yoga" or "flexible enough."
But this is actually impossible to define. There will always be someone "better" or "more flexible" than even the most well-respected yogi in the world.
Try this little experiment to better understand what I mean: first, think of the most flexible person you know. This person could be a famous gymnast, a famous yoga teacher, or that girl in yoga class...
Do you have someone in mind? Now, I'm assuming you picked this person because you believe they are "flexible." Specifically, they are flexible when compared to you. For example, you would not have picked someone less flexible than you are.
Rubber Boy: Indian Schoolboy Wants To Become World's Most Flexible Man by Barcroft TV
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6918864
