Yoga for Beginners: How to Start a Yoga Practice

Beginning a yoga practice can feel intimidating. Physically, it demands your body move in different ways that even the most active workout enthusiasts can find challenging. Mentally, it often requires learning new poses, props and methods for moving and breathing.

Here are a few essentials to feeling comfortable and confident with starting your yoga practice.

Let go of Expectations and Dive Right In! 

There will never be the perfect time to start a yoga practice. Interestingly enough, beginning your practice when it feels the most challenging could be when you need it most. Tired? Yoga can help you feel energized. Have an injury? Yoga may help in your recovery. Pregnant? There’s a yoga for that too! The beauty of yoga is the variety in types and paces of practices that can meet you exactly where you are.

Decide What Your Goals Are

 If you’re a runner or weightlifter who is looking to complement your routine with something stretchier, a gentle flow for increased flexibility and mobility may be right up your alley. To make yoga your workout and get your heart rate up, a Yoga HIIT (high intensity interval training) class may be your speed. If you’d just love a moment to focus on your self-care and slow down and relax, try a restorative practice.

Know that you don’t have to limit yourself to a single goal and if you read through those ideas saying “that’s me!” for each of them, you can set several goals and try out all of these different types of practices and more. The cool thing about yoga is that it can be whatever you need it to be each day and evolve with your needs over time. 

Find a Beginner Friendly Studio

An in-person class is a great way to ask questions and receive beginner friendly instruction. Let the studio know you’re new to yoga and ask which classes are best for beginners. You can also look for the words beginner, basics, or all-level in the description, or see if the studio has an FAQ page. If you have the opportunity to attend a class or workshop specifically for beginners, this can be a great way to kick off your practice. The group setting can be great for building community and feeling, well — less alone! Everyone around you started at one point and especially in a beginner class, you’ll be surrounded by others who are also new to yoga. 

Schedule a Private Session

Another great way to get started is with 1:1 private sessions with a yoga instructor that can help build your toolbox and confidence for attending group classes. This can be done before or as a complement to attending in person classes. If at-home and virtual instruction is what you need, you still may want to consider live streaming classes where an instructor can watch you and provide feedback during class to help you feel your best in the poses. 

Know that you can’t be good or bad at yoga, and it’s all about practicing in a way that feels good to you! If you need help getting started with your yoga practice, try a Yoga Foundations class at Yoga Baum either live virtually or in person at Yoga Baum in Louisville, KY.