8 things that you might hear in the yoga class that just are not true

I have heard a lot of useful advice, ranging from the practical to the in -depth, in yoga classes. But I have also heard many statements that I would consider, well, let’s just call them doubtful.

The wisdom we get from the yoga practice is difficult to distil in “One size fits all” statements for a good reason. We all come to our mats for the same experience of self -consciousness and self -examination, but we bring enormous different histories, experiences and expectations with us. And that means not every piece of wisdom that is shared in the yoga studio, no matter how well -intended, is necessarily accurate.

You do not need the permission of mine or someone else to ignore statements that do not feel faithful to you. As examples are the following statements for the worst yoga advice that I have ever heard.

1. Yoga injuries are due to poor coordination.

The idea that yoga injuries are inevitably the result of poor coordination is subscribed by many teachers and students. And there is some truth in it. By shooting complex postures on the edge of your capacity, you can end up poorly, especially for parts of your body that are not used to holding your weight, including your head, neck and hands.

However, the ideals of the textbook alignment are more based on appearance on appearance than on practice science. The yoga industry in general is increasingly embracing the leather that slowly enough to listen to the signals that come from your own body is preferred to ignore them and simply mimic the form that your teacher forms.

And luckily whether or not your form matches that of the textbook, the bet is low. The vast majority of the yoga poses brings in much less risk than we walk on the ride or walk to the studio.

2. If you don’t practice every day, don’t bother.

I once heard this statement as the response of a teacher to a student’s concern about being unable to practice often, given work and family responsibilities.

Some yoga styles emphasize everyday practice for a good reason. You tend to take advantage of things you often do, such as brushing your teeth every day instead of once a week. So if your goal is to stimulate your mobility, strength, stability or peace, the more consistent you practice these skills, the better you get to apply them.

However, it is a large piece to suggest that there is no advantage at all to practice less than the outdated advice from #AVydamnday. Everyone who has walked out of the class and feels a better version of themselves – and let’s be honest, that is almost all – knows that even a single class can make you friendlier and calmer in any aspect of life. Repeat that experience even once or twice a week and after a while you see and feel in -depth changes.

Not to mention the fact that Yoga is not limited to the poses that you perform on the mat. Simply to remember to pause and take a conscious breath before you choose your reaction in a difficult situation, yoga is in action. You can practice one of the skills that are levied in daily life by yoga silosophy without even rolling out your mat.

3. If you can, then you have to.

I heard this sentence offered as an encouragement to try crow pose (Kakasana) In what felt like the hundredth sun salutation in a Power Vinyasa class.

Of course, on the right day, finding a moment of balance in crow pose when you once thought it could be impossible to be a powerful memory of your capacity that in turn is encouragement to do or be more than you thought you could reach. But yoga is not about reaching.

Skill in action is a fundamental concept of yoga. The more thoughtful you practice, the more you understand that what you are capable of and what you need, which each varies from day to day. Some days you benefit from the car of your comfort zone. What you need the most is a compassionate space to rest. The decision – and the distinction that is needed to make – is only yours.

4. Keep trying. It can take years before your body is sufficiently open to this pose.

The above is what I heard a teacher explain to a student who experienced knee pain in Lotus Pose (Padmasana). Some things in yoga can really require patience and perseverance, such as balancing in handstand or calming the mind in meditation. However, other things are determined by the congenital range of your body, which is largely dependent on your skeleton structure. This means that you cannot promote your way in a pose such as Lotus. You either have the capacity – which you will usually discover, while you are still fairly new to Yoga Asana – or not you.

The expression “practice and everything that comes” can look like the advice of this teacher. The implication is that if you can’t do Lotus, it’s because you have not tried hard enough. But there is a more nuanced interpretation of this statement. It is that the gift of yoga is available for anyone who is willing to learn more from what occurs during the practice itself, and not what forms they can or cannot find to find on the mat.

5. Do not drink water. It will extinguish your internal fire.

This advice is not unusual in more traditional yoga classes. My most lively memories of screaming from the front of a heated class when my body dripped from sweat and every limb was tired.

Whether you walk into a heated room or not, most teachers agree that hydration is necessary for your mental focus, physical performance and overall well -being. Those who frown during the training on drinking water tend to quote one of the different reasons – that distracting a sip or that drinking too much makes certain positions – such as on your stomach, turns or forward folds – uncomfortable. There is also the more traditional view that Asana, or physical practice, is intended to build internal body heat and drinking water has the opposite effect.

In a perfect world, everyone would be sufficiently hydrated and not having to drink much during a 60 -minute practice. But we don’t live in a perfect world. Nobody wants you to be so dehydrated that you experience dizziness, headaches or cramps during or after class. So if you’re thirsty, I would like to imagine that drinking water is an example of AhimsaOr non-damaging, in action.

6. Smile!

I often hear this well-meaning prompt during a higher intensive phase of class, whether it is core work, a long hero shelf, a complex standing current or a challenging balance position. It comes from a place of encouragement to feel the challenge of practice without creating tension around it. On the right day with the right student, this advice can work exactly as intended.

Unfortunately it is impossible to know which student and which day. Yoga must be a safe place with which you can be exactly the way you are. If it needs all your strength to appear and roll out your mat, you can be asked to paint on a happy face while you do this more than you can tolerate.

Even if your personal life is smooth, the inner focus cultivated by most yoga classes is not intrinsically linked to a smiling face. For many, a smile is oriented. Being remembered to put a smile on your face, you can actually pull out of the same presence that the class wanted to make.

7. You can always rest in the child’s pose.

If you make comfort in the pose of the child (Balasana), you may be surprised to see this suggestion on a list of worst yoga advice. But this statement, which you have probably heard countless times, assumes that the experience of everyone in the pose is a relaxing.

Because we each vary in our skeleton structures and physical proportions, there is no such thing as a uniform soothing pose. I personally prefer a shelf than the child’s pose. Nowadays I have alternative options for when my energy is low, but when I was newer in practice, sentences like this showed me why my experience was so different from that of everyone else.

That leads me to …

8. Savasana is the most difficult pose.

Okay, so Savasana power Be the most challenging that you are asked in class, whether it is because your low back protests to lie down or your anxiety peaks when you are asked to close your eyes in a room of strangers. (In one of these cases I would like to recommend to find a version of the pose that works better for you.)

But if it is not challenging for you, this does not mean that you “do it wrong” or “not trying hard enough”. It’s just that different people have different experiences. Some people spend the whole class counting Savasana, while others are looking for an excuse to leave the room in advance.

All the well -meaning advice that is mentioned here could have been true for the person offering it. But that doesn’t mean it’s for you. Perhaps the best advice I have ever received in Yoga is that each of us is our own best teacher.