When it comes to health and fitness, yoga is getting quite a bit of attention. It is increasingly getting popular amongst people of all age groups, all over the world. Yoga is a collective group of physical, mental and spiritual practises. The aim behind it is to establish a balance between your mind, body and spiritual self to improve your way of living. 

Yoga has been proving beneficial to many people if done correctly. However, if you are a beginner you may find it a little cumbersome. Even though yoga looks fairly easy, there is a proper way of doing it in order to yield maximum benefits from it. The list of do’s and don’t might look a little overwhelming for beginners, but trust me, it’s not that difficult once you get a hang of it.

Here we have a list of Dos and Dont’s to help you start your journey without much hassle.

Read- Everything You Need To Know About Yoga

Prepare Your Surrounding

Dos

• Your surroundings should be clean while doing yoga.

• Always do yoga in an open area. A garden or terrace is an ideal location but in case you are doing it at home or in a closed room, make sure it has windows and proper ventilation.

Don’t

• Make sure there is no dust or dirt anywhere near you.

• A closed room without proper ventilation or a window should be avoided at all costs while doing yoga.

• Don’t do yoga in a drafty place or under direct sunlight.

• Never do yoga in an air polluted area. The practice involves lots of breathing exercises and doing it in polluted areas may have a negative impact.

How To Prepare Yourself

DOs

• Keep your stomach empty. Yoga, specifically asanas should be performed on an empty stomach. If you prefer doing yoga in the evening, ensure that there are at least 4-5 hours gaps between your last meal and the session.

• Aside from your stomach, your bladder and bowel should be empty too when starting the session.

• Always do yoga on the floor using a proper mat to ensure a good grip. This reduces the chances of skidding and injury. 

• A Warm-up exercise or loosening exercise before starting the stretching asanas is mandatory to avoid any kind of injuries.

• Your yoga session should always start with a small prayer as it helps calm your mind and relaxes your mind.
  
• Take your time while doing every exercise you perform to establish awareness in your mind and body. Do every step in a slow and relaxed manner.

• Stretch your body only to its limit. For beginners, it is oftentimes hard to perform a stretch but don’t worry. Give your muscles time and they will start stretching.

• Wear comfortable and supportive clothes while performing yoga. Don’t wear too tight or too loose clothes.  

• Always keep a check on your breathing and ensure you are breathing correctly while performing any yogic exercise.

• Breathe through your nostril all the time while doing yoga unless it is instructed to do otherwise.

• Always keep your body hydrated during your session.

• Complete the session with relaxation techniques to cool down your body.

• Always lay on your back after finishing postures. Stay in a relaxed position for atleast 2 to 5 minutes with relaxed breathing.

• Be aware of how much you could do. Perform the session keeping in mind your body limits and stamina. It takes time, patience and a lot of practice to develop and perform the practices according to one’s capacity. It takes some time to get good results, so persistent and regular practice is very essential. 

• Always do poses first followed by the pranayam and at last do the meditation.

• Yoga sessions should end with meditation or deep silence. 

DONT’S

• Never do yoga when you are tired or have any illness. Especially if you have fractures or any serious injury, refrain from doing the session.

• Women should refrain from doing yoga when on periods, especially asanas. You can do pranayama (breathing techniques) and relaxation techniques.

• Never rush through your session as there are high chances of hurting your muscles or injury.

• Never do yoga on hard floors or beds. Always use a mat to get the grip.

• Never breathe from your mouth unless the instruction says so. 

• Don’t perform your session immediately after meals. Wait until 2 to 3 hours after a meal in order to have an empty stomach.

• Never hold your breath unless it is specially mentioned to do so during the practice.

• Never do yoga without doing a proper warm-up as it could increase the risk of injury or muscles strain.

• Do not wear tight, uncomfortable clothes. Avoid wearing tight undies at all costs.

• Never sit with a hunched back while doing. It is not the right posture for doing yogic excercises.

• Never push your body beyond limits as it may risk injuries.

• Always perform the asana as instructed and avoid any undue jerks to the body.

• Don’t do strenuous exercises straight after your session. 

• You may consider avoiding yoga in adverse and extreme weather conditions (too hot, too cold or humid).

Our Final Thought

Always do yoga carefully to yield maximum benefits from it. The list may look overwhelming but over a period of time, it gets easier to follow. Always consult a trained yoga instructor to learn and practice the yoga session.

If you have any questions related to yoga- drop us a DM on our Instagram and we’ll get you the best possible solution from our yoga experts.

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