Never tried it but wanted to for a year now

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#1

Hi everyone, thanks for stopping by. I’m a 33 year old dad and i have been thinking about trying yoga for about a year now. What are the good points and bad points of it? I mean do i need to spend 2 hours a day doing it? What are the health benefits really? We hear so much i don’t know what’s true anymore!!! And i have a bad back, so is this really wise? :frowning: or is this the wise choice? :confused:

And im starting going back to the gym too!!! So do i go to the gym first then start yoga in a few month or go to yoga then gym in a few month? Oh too many questions. :confused:

#2

[quote=NinjaDad;16016]Hi everyone, thanks for stopping by. I’m a 33 year old dad and i have been thinking about trying yoga for about a year now. What are the good points and bad points of it? I mean do i need to spend 2 hours a day doing it? What are the health benefits really? We hear so much i don’t know what’s true anymore!!! And i have a bad back, so is this really wise? :frowning: or is this the wise choice? :confused:

And im starting going back to the gym too!!! So do i go to the gym first then start yoga in a few month or go to yoga then gym in a few month? Oh too many questions. :confused:[/quote]

Hi, there! I started yoga almost a year ago. Prior to taking my first class, I viewed yoga as a sedating activity for old hippies. How uninformed was I! I have been a runner for 30 yeaers, turned swimmer, due to injuries (of course, like any old runner!), and as a result of foot surgery, I needed to do something, so I took a yoga class. And, like the first time I ever ran, I was instantly hooked! Benefits, you ask??? Supreme calm (I am a type A personality - very spastic), much much lower blood pressure, sleep soundly, amazingly more toned that ever, (look at Madonna - who claims her amazing 40 + year old body is from yoga) more strength (I could not believe that I had so little arm/leg strength despite swimming and running!), better balance. THe poses can offer many challenges, and it is a true thrill when one can master a pose, or least get into a pose that was IMPOSSIBLE a month ago.

I’m sure you will get answers to all your questions, but personally, when I do yoga (an hour session), it is harder to do an intense workout, at least at the start of the workout. ONce I get going, I feel very energetic and stronger. I try to get in at least 5 hours of yoga a week - if my body could handle it, I would do at least an hour every day! BUt I also swim, play tennis and walk, so I have to use some discretion. :stuck_out_tongue:

#3

Welcome to the forum. I think questions like yours get a bit more play in the general yoga section but I understand why you’ve posted it here.

Asking me about bad points" of yoga would be like asking me the bad points of eating organic fruits and vegetables. Yes you need to make sure your veggies are certified organic. Yes you need to wash them properly. Yes they are a bit more expensive than produce at Safeway. Yes they need to be prepared and you need to clean up after yourself. But they are the cost of doing the business of eating well and therefore, to me, they are not bad points.

I will caution you this way. Shop your classes carefully. Unfortunately as a teacher I can tell you our industry cranks out a lot of choreographers and very few teachers. Instead of looking for cheap classes consider looking for teachers that offer more with their teaching. That is to say those who are well-trained, prepared in their presentation and curricula, and skilled in the use of economy of words.

You ask about benefits. It is no wonder people are confused. Between pop culture, the media, and “new” yogas it is very murky water. I personally believe that benefits vary from person to person but can not only be numerous but exponentially multiplying. However that comes from five components: the urge to grow, the willingness to change, effort, a sound teacher, and patience.

With a low back issue I would suggest seeking out a practice and teacher that makes yoga fit you rather than one that mandates you fit it. Intially please move mindfully, do not over-do, and watch your sense of performing or gauging yourself based on anything other than that which is within you.

While the vast body of yoga does contain a physical practice (asana - poses) the kit of yoga has a myriad of tools in it which can be used for transformation, growth, change - be it muscles or mind, relationships or attitudes.

#4

Yoga is amazing. I do yoga and weights.

When I started yoga, my practise was intense and up to 7 hours a day. You might become hooked. I have settled down since then as my body has changed. Now the problem is that I practise too little.

I weight train a bit too and find it to be complimentary.

#5

Welcome NinjaDad!

Yoga is one of the best things I’ve discovered in this life along with finding my wife but I digress… I’d been exposed toi it as a kid (my Mom did it with Lillias on PBS) and learned a few things but I never really knew what it was. Years later when looking for more flexiblity to improve my climbing, I found yoga again and got hooked.

Give it a try and like others already said, take a look around and find a teacher and situation you feel comfortable with. Don’t be discouraged if you can’t do everything right away or aren’t as flexible as the others- its not a contest. If you remember to leave the competitive ego stuff at the door, this won’t be a problem.

If you stick with it, the physical, mental, and spiritual benefits will surprise you. The core strength, balance, mental focus, and sense of calm will come in handy in many situations.

My suggestion: Give it a try and see where it takes you.

#6

Yeah, I was going to say…

I would never go running or swimming now.

Have you heard of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga?

That could be very satisfying for you.

This teacher in Leeds was trained by the same guy who I did my teacher training with:

http://www.yoginileeds.com/

This is the type of yoga that all those vile (sorry, [I]lovely[/I]…) celebrities do. It will make you fit. You would do it probably Monday, Wednesday, Friday to begin with, and then soon enough it would take over your life and you would become a yogi daddy and your kids would grow up copying you and would go further than you ever will…

This is just conjecture on my part, but I foresee a great future when anyone becomes interested in yoga… :slight_smile:

So many people, especially dancers and athletes damage their bodies for the sake of [I]performance[/I]. I even know martial artists who wish that they had done yoga instead… :slight_smile:

Just get on with it mate!!! :smiley:

#7

I like the look of ashtanga vinyasa so going with that, thanks Fortis_in_Arduis.

I got myself a yoga for beginners book, had a look on youtube and been reading lots of threads on here. So right now my head is full of things i want to find out more about.

#8

I discovered yoga 3 years ago aged 32 .

I regard myself as fortunate to have done so and would like to say that i think discovering yoga in one’s early 30’s is a good age to do so and great, i think, just when one has calmed down somewhat or settling down, after frequently, like in my case, the hedonism of youth like clubbing or pubbing on one’s teens and 20’s., preoccupations that no longer hold any interest whatsoever.(plus the states arrived at were chemically induced,ephemeral & ultimately nihlistic)
One tends to look outside oneself more for clues to what life is all about when younger, and are more impressionable, look to the external world and other people as how one should be living.etc

The gift of yoga is it can last a lifetime, well into one’s 90’s ,if one is dilligent with the practice :smile:

My advice to you is find the best teacher you can( i say that so you learn good habits, avoid injury)), attend classes and to begin with [B]STICK[/B] with it.Soundlike you will if you’ve thought about it for a year.As FiA says --before long,you should find yourself hooked, if you’re getting the seemingly miraculous effects and benefits that can come with a yoga practice.

I started off with an ashtanga type home practice and a regular council facility hatha teacher.But did have shoulders as broad and built up as the angel of the north,… Though might be my body type.Anyone that says you cannot build upp muscle through yoga i am inclined to disaagree with. That is not my experience. It can produce a very lean muscular balanced body. If you’re holding the down dogs for many breaths in ujjayi and doing many chataranga dandasana on a daily basis, it’s hardly surprising.You’ll find with practice it becomes effortless as your prana builds and v. enjoyable.

regarding 1st post- in my experience weight training/body-building and yoga i felt tended to cancel (-+) each other out, specificaly in terms of their effect on the muscles (but also preoccupation with body-image and the competitive agressive aproach of gym) they seemed a little antiithetical.And i’d have to do mor eyoga to undo the effects of gym. The muscles mass hadincreased but alsohad the tension-I think they may call it, in technical terms ,eccentric contraction as opposed to concentric contraction ( the muscles shortens under tension- less desirable!)I have encountered other posts like these before that mention weight-training typically from males because they’re usualy taught in the west at least yoga is a girlie thing, specifically middleaged- housewives…

There are folk here that say they combine the two, but it does’nt really matter. One does what suits oneself. I’ve never one to combine music eitheer ,at home- mere distraction.

You may find you dtiching the weight training after a while, depending on how deep you get into your hatha practice.You realise all the benefits can be attained by this system as long as you are mindful and be safe - taming of ego, mental calm and focus, body like a temple, strong and balanced,loss of aggression, softening o voice, quiet deliberation on every action you choose etc- the list goes on. I can give you total transofrmation, but it is equally easy to get lost, as I have found out, so hence the importance of the advice continually given here to find a compeptent experienced teacher so you don’t harm yourself.

Ashtanga is a very nice choice…
Swenson’s video I found quite challenging. & heating and perspiring.

Try some classes out. You won’t be in any hurry to share with your mates.

A lot of the arm- balncing poses or poses where yubear wight on the upper body ( dd and vinyasa is gd for that)can certainly build up strength, and tone in a way that one could’nt get in the gym.Much better and more balnced to train body/mind using gravity and getting more in tune with one’s own body,asana, than llifting loads on wires attached to machines.
Just go for it. And [B]Stick[/B] with it, to begin with ,at least till your hooked. You’re then unlikely to abandon it completely, I would think.

The mind-body field does have other offerings as I have found out and got into.( i found ‘hanna somatics’ lately ,a little unknown but effective & safe therapy which can heal injuries and imbalnce in the body which i have broadcasted a little on this forum)- you just need an open mind and a desire to apply oneself and make an effort.- some people call this disicpline whichis a lot of what yoga is about.

#9

There are dozens of reason to practice yoga. The easiest to prove is that yoga will get you into great physical shape and made you feel better in all sorts of ways. Rather than over think it, I suggest you try a few classes in your area and see how you feel about it.

When encouraging friends to get into yoga, I offer the following piece of wisdom that I have observed: “People who do yoga like yoga more than other people like anything.”