6 Different Types of Yoga

By Cory Clemons


Yoga is becoming increasingly popular all over the world today, although it has been in practice in the East for centuries. There are a variety of places offering yoga classes taught by trained and experienced instructors, and there is also a great number of types of yoga available. There re types such as Ashtanga Yoga, Iyengar Yoga, Hatha Yoga, Bikram Yoga, Vinyasa Yoga, Power Yoga, etc. So, in the event you don't take a well-informed person's opinion, you can easily get confused as to which type will suit you.

Ashtanga Yoga: In Sanskrit, "ashtanga" means "eight limbs". This yoga is fairly energetic and intense, and involves a set of asanas (poses) that's coordinated with breath. Ashtanga yoga can be extremely exhausting mainly because it requires that you shift quickly from one pose to the next. You have to be quite flexible to achieve this type of yoga, and it allows you to increase your body's flexibility, strength and stamina a lot because it is so demanding physically.

Hatha Yoga: "Ha" means "sun" and "tha" means "moon" in Sanskrit, which is an Indian ancient classical language. In contrast to Ashtanga yoga, the Hatha yoga is slow-paced and mild, and it is best for a beginner to yoga to start off with this yoga. Because it does not require any difficult poses, a newbie will be comfortable with this type of yoga. Like all other types of yoga, the Hatha yoga aspires to bring together your body, mind and spirit.

Iyengar Yoga: This yoga is founded on the teaching of B. S. Iyengar and focuses on the appropriate alignment and form of your body. While Ashtanga yoga involves moving fast from one pose to the next in the sequence, Iyengar yoga focuses on holding one pose for a longer period before moving on to the next. Because of this type of yoga, you'll need blocks and straps to help align your body into various poses.

Power Yoga: This particular yoga is founded on the Western interpretation of the Ashtanga Yoga. It doesn't always stick to the correct sequence of poses as prescribed by the Ashtanga yoga, nevertheless it does involve moving through various poses without stopping and starting again.

Bikram Yoga: The Bikram yoga can also be known as the "Hot Yoga". This is because it is practiced in a room which is heated to 105 degrees and it has a humidity of 40%. Usually, the Bikram Yoga involves a sequence of 26 different poses, and also the heated atmosphere enables you to loosen muscles. The hot room temperature makes people perspire a great deal, and this helps to wash toxins out of your body.

Vinyasa Yoga: "Vinyasa" means a breath-coordinated movement which is yet another rapid kind of yoga. It starts with salutations to the sun and carries on to strong stretching. Each pose is balanced with a counter-pose.

There isn't any rule about you staying with one kind of yoga. You can start with an easy one and proceed on to more difficult ones.




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