Advice for Yoga Beginners - Where To Start Q&A

Hi guys .

Welcome to my channel .

My name is Cassandra and today I'm joined by Brett .

Brett has a yoga youtube channel .

You can find her by looking up Brett Larkin Yoga .

So today I'm kind of switching things up a little bit and I just wanted to get a little bit more candid and talk to you guys .

So it's January and whenever we get into that month , um there's kind of an energy in the air about wanting to start new routines and then change your lifestyle a little bit and we can put a little bit of pressure on ourselves and we kinda , you know , we get all crazy with our resolutions because we want to get healthier , which is a really wonderful thing to want .

And yoga seems like a natural fit for that .

As a yoga beginner .

When you're trying to start yoga , it can be really overwhelming .

They're intimidating .

Yeah , intimidating .

There are so many different kinds of yoga classes and yoga styles .

And do you want to practice in a studio ?

Do you want to do it at home ?

How are you supposed to practice at home ?

It can be really overwhelming and it can deter people from starting or even maintain meaning a yoga practice .

So I have kind of combined my five tips that I would like to share with you on how to start a yoga practice in a way that's sustainable and realistic also and easy .

We want to keep it really easy and simple .

And Brett as an amazing yoga teacher and Yogi herself or Yogi herself is gonna offer up her advice as well .

So , first and foremost , I think when you're just starting off , number one tip , use the internet .

We are in the amazing era of the internet and you have so many free yoga resources right at your fingertips , like my channel and Bret .

So instead of going , you know , to classes and studios or shelling out a bunch of money to try something that you don't even really know if you're going to enjoy or not go online and just type yoga and see what comes up .

So internet by far is the biggest and best resource you will have at your disposal , especially if you're just intimidated to go to a class , you feel like you won't be able to follow along , just do some classes at home first and then you'll just get a sense of what the poses are , what the names are .

When you actually hit the studio , you'll feel so much more comfortable .

I have to say that's the number one feedback or message that people send me like viewers like yourself will sometimes write to me and say , thank you .

I was too scared to go to a yoga class for , you know , XYZ .

And you just didn't feel comfortable going to a studio because they're new to the practice and they were able to start and maintain a , maintain a yoga practice by just using free resources online .

Why not ?

Right .

Yeah .

So yeah , why not ?

So that's definitely my first piece of advice .

Second piece of advice if you want to start a yoga practice is you need to get some gear but use stuff you already have .

So , you know , yoga mats , yoga clothing blocks , straps , bolsters wheels .

It can all get a little too much and a little pricey , to be honest .

So if you're not really sure if yoga is gonna be right for you , I always recommend that people use what they have .

Don't go out , go out and buy a bunch of clothes , wear something that's loose and comfortable that you can just move in .

When I practice at home , I practice in my pajamas .

So , uh you know , free , you don't need to go out and buy a bunch of fancy stuff and even when it comes to actual gear .

So the first yoga mat I ever bought was a $5 mat and I used it for three years .

It was my all time favorite yoga .

Yeah , mine was a $12 mat .

It went to India with me two times and I still have it and won't even get rid off for sentimental reasons .

So I had to get rid of it cause like it had like streaks on it and then I tried to wash it and it just made it way worse .

The bottom line is , you know , you don't need expensive stuff to get started .

Just start .

You don't .

Exactly .

And um , props really are useful like blocks and straps and stuff , especially if you know that you're inflexible and you want that extra little help , but you can use stuff that you already have at home .

So if you don't own a strap , I like to use a belt .

It does almost the same thing and pretty much everyone has a belt at home .

Right .

And for a block , a really thick book , like a dictionary works wonders for a bolster .

Just grab some cushions and some pillows , like get , get creative .

You really don't need to be spending a bunch of money , spend money when you know that this is something you're gonna want to invest .

And that's another thing I tell people before you buy the expensive mat or buy the nice blocks or strap , try them out in the studio .

First , most studios have like brands of props .

So if you see a brand that you like , note that down and then you know , you're getting something you already like .

Yeah , absolutely .

All right .

So tip number three and this was key for me when I was starting my own yoga practice variety is the most important .

So , we've already kind of talked about this .

There are like ton of different styles of yoga out there .

Kundalini Power , Yin , restorative prenatal uh power .

I'm dizzy .

I'm dizzy .

Yeah , exactly .

So , I mean , me being pretty experienced , I love that .

There's a lot of variety because it means I have lots of stuff to play with .

But when you're new , you go to a class and you're like , oh my God , I don't know what any of these mean and it kind of , it , it can turn you off , it can really turn you off the practice of yoga .

So when you're new my challenge to you and this is exactly what I did .

When I was first starting off , I picked five styles and I tried all of them .

So my favorite ones like ha flow yin , restorative and power , I think , give you a well rounded overview of what yoga is like .

So you can do , you know , restorative or a yin .

If you're looking for something that's a little bit easier to just mellow out and gain flexibility .

If you're looking for , you know , to get a little lean and get a little stronger , you can go for viata flow and power whereas will be a little bit more of a well rounded practice .

But the mistake I see people make is that they'll go to one class in one specific style .

Not like it and then quit yoga .

That's it .

Yoga is not for them .

They hate yoga .

Yeah .

And a tip here for those of you who are on a budget is most studios have intro specials for new students .

So you should go to every studio that's remotely near you and do the intro special because it's really inexpensive and you'll be able to try a bunch of different styles on the cheap .

Yeah , absolutely .

So that's my challenge to you .

Pick a couple of styles and go out and try them until you find something that you like to connect with you to try a lot before you find the right .

So you fall in love and you might fall in love with a couple of different styles .

That's fine too .

Yeah .

Um OK , for a tip .

And this is really , really , really important , especially in our age of social media .

Keep it simple .

Don't worry about what everyone else is doing .

It's really easy to go online and see everyone doing like handstands and crazy arm balances and post is that you look at and it turns you off because you think , oh , if that's yoga , there's no way I'm gonna be able to do yoga .

But really , there is such a wide scope and a wide range of practices that come with yoga .

It doesn't all have to be crazy poses .

It can be meditation and breathing exercises and just really simple .

Postures that you'll find in a beginner class .

Don't get caught up in the stigma of being a beginner .

Being a beginner is amazing .

It's such a wonderful opportunity to grow and you could really only go up from there , so go to the beginner yoga classes and enjoy them .

Don't worry about all the fancy other stuff that people are doing .

Focus on how you feel .

I agree to see if you can put blinders on .

Even I get intimidated by half the stuff I see on Instagram .

I can't do any of it , that stuff and instead of beating myself up , I just stay focused on my practice and what works for me .

So you guys should do the same thing .

Yeah .

The great thing about yoga is that it's different from other kinds of sports and physical activity that tend to focus on the outcome .

Right ?

So , how good am I at something ?

Yoga is a lot different .

It will focus on how do I feel when I'm doing something ?

So it doesn't really matter what you look like .

Even though , you know , on social media , we might enjoy the images .

It doesn't matter if you're able to do it if you don't feel good while you're doing it .

Right .

So keep it simple and you should be fine .

Yeah .

All right .

Last tip when you're ready , you know , you've gone online , you've tried some classes by yourself at home .

I'm just gonna put it out there .

Go and take a class .

I know taking a class can be really intimidating and sometimes you just feel like you don't really belong , you go to a class and everyone looks so bendy and so , you know , strong and advanced and my best tip .

And that's what I did also at first is I brought a buddy .

I didn't want to go alone and know no one .

So I brought a friend and we went to a beginner class and that's how it all started .

Yeah , another tip I'd throw in there is tell the teacher you're new and introduce yourself and tell the teacher that you want hands on adjustments because a lot of times teachers , if they don't know you , they'll be a little tentative until they see you in class a couple of times to adjust you .

But if you're comfortable being touched and you really want attention from the teacher , feel free to tell them that at the beginning of class because we , as teachers , I mean , we don't know how much attention each person gets and what they're comfortable with .

So if you go up to the teacher and say , hey , I'm a beginner , I'm really trying to get better .

I don't get to teach or I don't get to practice in person that much .

Will you give me some hands on adjustments ?

Teachers are usually really open to that .

Yeah .

I found it really hard to follow along the first time or the first couple of times , I took a yoga class , I had come from the world of dance where everything is very much laid out , you know , every single alignment cue is perfectly outlined and detailed .

And then I got to yoga and yoga is very much about how you feel and how you're breathing .

So I had a hard time following which meant I was looking at everyone else in the class , which was good because I was able to follow along .

But then I fell into that trap where I was comparing myself .

So just squeeze that out the door .

You know , you're , you're not , you're not here to look at everyone else .

You can look at them for guidance .

But really this is about you , this is about you doing something positive and healthy for your own well-being and that is so important and so beautiful .

So don't let other people muddy that for you and destroy it , right ?

Yeah .

Yeah .

Anything else you'd like to add other tips that I haven't covered ?

No , I think this is good guys .

If you like this video , you should definitely give it a thumbs up .

I think Cassandra put together some really good tips and thanks for inviting me to chime in .

Oh , you're welcome .

Thanks for letting me film in your studio .

I'm lucky enough to be visiting San Francisco right now .

So I linked up with t to film all these classes .

But um if there is something that I have uncovered that you as a beginner would like to know .

Just leave me a comment down below and I'll do my best to answer your questions and help you out .

I'm also going to be developing some more beginner friendly yoga classes on my channel .

Although I do have a lot already .

So if you wanna take tip number one and use the internet to your advantage , you can look at mine and breath beginner yoga class .

Yeah , a lot of good stuff out there .

So .

All right , I guess we're gonna wrap it up .

Thank you guys so much for tuning in .

As always just being an amazing community .

Please like this video .

Subscribe to my channel , go , subscribe to Brett Larkin Yoga as well and give her videos a thumbs up .

I'm sure she'll appreciate it and have yourself a wonderful day .

Now , must say .