This message was posted on November 12, 2025 by Charlotte Bell. </p><div>
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As much as we hate to admit it, we humans are creatures of habit. Our intentions and actions are often guided by our own habits and by the conditioning of the larger culture. This applies to most things we do, even starting a yoga practice.
For example, fall is back-to-school time. Often we get the bug to ‘get back to work’ when the leaves start to change. The other time of year when we feel drawn to reassess and start something new is at the beginning of a new year. Either way, there will likely be many new students taking up yoga at these times.
Starting a Yoga Practice: Some Tips for Finding the Right Class
So how do you go about finding a yoga class that’s right for you? Here are a few tips:
Ask friends
The larger, better funded studios have much more advertising power than the more modest studios and teachers, so they are easier to find. They may have great teachers too, but large classes are not for everyone. Ask friends, family members, and colleagues where they like to practice and what teachers and classes they like. They will probably have a good idea of what you might like.
Start small
If you’re just starting out, avoid large classes. You may have to do some digging to find smaller, more customized classes, as the people teaching these classes may not have the resources to advertise as widely as the larger studios. But it’s worth looking for a smaller class, at least to start. Practicing healthy alignment is important, both in the short and long term. Healthy alignment will help you avoid injury right now, but it will also help you exercise in a way that will be sustainable for years to come. Smaller classes allow the teacher to pay more attention to each individual.
Try different teachers and studios
It’s great to go to a studio around the corner from your home or work, but be prepared to step out of your comfort zone a little. Your neighborhood studio may not be a perfect fit for you. Keep looking. There are many types of yoga and many types of teachers today. Below is a list of brief descriptions of some of the more popular yoga styles.
Get rested
While many studios have props you can use, it’s really nice to have your own yoga mat. Here is a guide to choosing the best mat for your practice. If you want to practice at home, you not only need a mat, but also blocks, a belt, blankets and possibly a pillow. Here are posts that can help you decide which blocks and bolsters are best for you.
Do your research
The training and experience of yoga teachers can be found all over the map these days. New, young teachers can be inspiring with their enthusiasm for teaching, but they may not have developed the eye for potential deviations that a more experienced teacher would. Again, try different teachers, and once you find a few you like, there’s nothing wrong with continuing with more than one teacher.
Types of yoga
Hatha yoga
Hatha Yoga is the basis for most yoga styles in the US. Physical practice and awareness of breathing are key to the practice of Hatha Yoga. Hatha Yoga classes will typically be on the gentler, more meditative side.
Hot yoga
Do you like heat, specifically 105 degrees? Maybe Hot Yoga is something for you. Many Hot Yoga exercises follow Bikram Choudhury’s sequence of 26 postures. (If there is a studio named after it Bikramyou can expect this series.) Other Hot Yoga studios also practice other poses. Here are some tips for starting a Hot Yoga class.
Iyengar Yoga
Iyengar Yoga was formulated by BKS Iyengara teacher who lived in Pune, India from 1918 to 2014 and taught worldwide. Iyengar’s well-known emphasis on alignment inspired him to invent yoga props: blocks, straps, blankets, sandbags and pillows. Iyengar Yoga is the practice that originally inspired the founding of Hugger Mugger in 1986.
Restorative yoga
BKS Iyengar was created Restorative yogaBut Judith Hanson Lasater a former senior Iyengar teacher, has taken this practice style to the next level. Restorative exercises use props such as blankets and pillows to support your body in deep relaxation. (Restorative yoga is not the same as what is often called “Recovery,” which is often a slightly less active version of Vinyasa Yoga (see below).)
Kundalini yoga
Yogi Bhajan introduced Kundalini Yoga to the world in 1968. Kundalini exercises include postures, breathing techniques, chanting and meditation to awaken the kundalini energy that originates at the base of your spine and winds through your chakras (energy centers).
Ashtanga yoga
K. Patabhi Jois, an Indian teacher who lived from 1915 to 2009, developed Ashtanga Yoga. He and BKS Iyengar studied yoga with the same teacher as BKS Iyengar when he was a teenager. Ashtanga is a ‘flow’ exercise based on four series of postures of increasing intensity. Practitioners flow from one pose to the next.
Vinyasa yoga
Vinyasa is based on Ashtanga Yoga. It is also a flow exercise, where practitioners move quickly from one pose to the next. Vinyasa practices such as Power yoga are often practiced in a heated room to increase intensity.
Yin yoga
Yin yoga is one of the more relaxing styles of yoga, and involves sitting, supine, or supine poses in very long holds, ranging from 45 seconds to two minutes or longer. The longer poses are intended to stretch connective tissues such as tendons, fascia and ligaments to create greater flexibility.
Keep looking for a class until you find a teacher that really resonates. There are so many different teachers and practices today. If you don’t like the first lesson, keep looking. Chances are there’s a yoga teacher or studio in your community that will inspire you to love yoga.