Post: #1

Through youtube videos, etc? Feasible or not? At least for starters?

I want to add some yoga to my morning workout, but the crowd I see in Southeast Asia on the yoga scene doesn't look like one I'd mesh well with. Resort/spa yoga type bullshit.

I try to avoid the foreigner crowds as it is and the whole mind-body crowd seems pretty touristy.

Maybe I just need to suck it up and go mingle. Surely some cute hippy girls cruising the scene anyways...

Beyond All Seas

"The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe.
To be your own man is a hard business. If you try it, you'll be lonely often, and sometimes
frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself." - Kipling

Post: #2

I'm interested in this as well. Being that Yoga studios aren't too close and classes generally go for $150/month.

Post: #3

(12-05-2013 11:00 AM)Biz Wrote:  I'm interested in this as well. Being that Yoga studios aren't too close and classes generally go for $150/month.

Damn - that sounds expensive. Where are you?

Beyond All Seas

"The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe.
To be your own man is a hard business. If you try it, you'll be lonely often, and sometimes
frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself." - Kipling

Post: #4

Yes, that's what I did.

I downloaded the Yoga Journal yoga practice from pirate bay - a series of 10 workouts about 20 min each - and did them for about 6 weeks almost every day then went to the yoga studio and I was actually more familiar with a lot of the moves more than quite a few other people.

Post: #5

(12-05-2013 11:01 AM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  

(12-05-2013 11:00 AM)Biz Wrote:  I'm interested in this as well. Being that Yoga studios aren't too close and classes generally go for $150/month.

Damn - that sounds expensive. Where are you?

South Florida

It was about the same when I lived in Boston.

Post: #6

(12-05-2013 11:12 AM)Biz Wrote:  

(12-05-2013 11:01 AM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  

(12-05-2013 11:00 AM)Biz Wrote:  I'm interested in this as well. Being that Yoga studios aren't too close and classes generally go for $150/month.

Damn - that sounds expensive. Where are you?

South Florida

It was about the same when I lived in Boston.

what part of South Florida exactly? There is free yoga in downtown Miami.

Post: #7

Absolutely! It's something you can definitely learn yourself through watching others.

I haven't done yoga in a while now, opting to focus on mobility work instead. Here are two sites I had bookmarked though:

http://yogayak.com/free-yoga-classes-online/
http://antranik.org/yoga-at-home/

Hopefully something of value is in there. If not just scour youtube for a yoga channel you like and they should have plenty of videos.

Post: #8

I've started doing yoga again, after a very long hiatus. There are lots of great videos on youtube (also lots of terrible ones).

Tara Stiles has some great beginner friendly videos.









Basically, search youtube using the following keywords:
- beginner's yoga
- 5 minute yoga
- 10 minute yoga

Find some videos you like, download them onto your harddrive, and then mix and match them to make workouts.

I throw in pilates videos as well.

Post: #9

I don't think you can properly teach yourself yoga. Your alignment would be way off, and you won't be able to get down the proper breathing technique. You'll be building a foundation on top of improper form. There really is no substitute for learning in a proper yoga studio with a teacher who knows what he/she is doing.

Post: #10

(12-05-2013 01:31 PM)travolta Wrote:  I don't think you can properly teach yourself yoga. Your alignment would be way off, and you won't be able to get down the proper breathing technique. You'll be building a foundation on top of improper form. There really is no substitute for learning in a proper yoga studio with a teacher who knows what he/she is doing.

I don't agree. I learned cold by copying people at 24hour Fitness. It took forever.

Teachers in Yoga Training are told to let students, "Find their own path," and other bullshit like that. I've been to at least 20 different studios throughout CA, and have have over 50 teachers. I can think of 3 that actually went around the room and helped put you in "proper alignment."

I would get a Bikram yoga pose poster from Amazon. (Go Bikram because it's a simple form of yoga.) Put it on your wall. Then copy the poses for a couple of weeks.

Once you get used to the poses, you'll have an easier time at a class. You'll get a lot more out of it and won't throw away your money for the first 3-4 weeks.

Post: #11

(12-08-2013 07:35 PM)CaP7 Wrote:  

(12-05-2013 01:31 PM)travolta Wrote:  I don't think you can properly teach yourself yoga. Your alignment would be way off, and you won't be able to get down the proper breathing technique. You'll be building a foundation on top of improper form. There really is no substitute for learning in a proper yoga studio with a teacher who knows what he/she is doing.

I don't agree. I learned cold by copying people at 24hour Fitness. It took forever.

Teachers in Yoga Training are told to let students, "Find their own path," and other bullshit like that. I've been to at least 20 different studios throughout CA, and have have over 50 teachers. I can think of 3 that actually went around the room and helped put you in "proper alignment."

I would get a Bikram yoga pose poster from Amazon. (Go Bikram because it's a simple form of yoga.) Put it on your wall. Then copy the poses for a couple of weeks.

Once you get used to the poses, you'll have an easier time at a class. You'll get a lot more out of it and won't throw away your money for the first 3-4 weeks.

Then 47 of them were bad teachers-which doesn't surprise me.

I studied Iyengar yoga for a a couple of years. The teacher definitely checked the students postures and corrected them-but then Iyengar was probably less namby-pamby than other styles, at least back then.

The student can't possibly look at themselves objectively, especially when they don't really know what they are doing to begin with.

A beginner should find a good teacher and if they are serious go to classes for a year, minimum. At that point maybe they can work on their own mostly and go to an occasional class as a refresher

Post: #12

the teachers who always nagged about "proper alignment" were just that: naggers.

they were so pedantic about the little-ist angle of your foot that it was tedious to go to a class with them. some would spend 20 minutes on one pose adjusting every little nuance. You know what? not everything has to be perfect. If I'm having trouble then yes, come over and help with some alignment. If I'm really awkward cover over and help with an alignment issue, but adjusting for every little nuance is way overkill.

Post: #13

I never saw anything like that.

There's a reason athletes have coaches

Not really sure what the big objection is here

Post: #14

i was in australia once and has this dope perfect 10 russian yoga teacher lead a class i was in. I'll never forget that twice she went around the room adjusting people's alignment on two different asanas. She was hands-on with everyone but when she got to me both times she looked at me and just said, "good." I'm waiting for her to put her hands on me to fix something but it never came. After the second time I told myself I was purposefully gonna mess up so she'd have to touch me but she never went around after that second time. so mad.....

Post: #15

Don't do it on your own.
Find a decent teacher.

It is impossible to objectively determine whether you're doing it in the proper way.
There is a certain order and method to doing it, and picking up a book / youtube videos to learn yoga would not be the best idea.

Once you do have a solid base, you can then use books/videos to do the advanced material on your own. A strong foundation will allow you to self-correct later on and explore a much wider range if you so wish.

Post: #16

You don't need a teacher to learn how to beginner yoga poses.

Unless you're deliberately inflicting pain and torture on yourself, how on earth can you incorrectly do a forward bend or downward dog? That's like saying that you need a teacher in order to learn how to do a basic push up.

I don't see why you need a teacher for basic movements of the body. And even if you do them wrong, this is yoga, not weight lifting - I don't see how you can injure yourself doing beginner poses unless you are intentionally being stupid.

I can understand seeking out a coach if you have a burning desire to do competitive yoga at the next olympics, but for most people seeking a teacher for yoga is like seeking a teacher to teach you how to jog around in your neighbourhood.

Post: #17

if you say you don't need a teacher then there's a 99% chance that you've never had a GOOD teacher. There's way more to yoga than just stretching. All of the spiritual shit, which I won't get into, but shit that is an essential part of the practice. If anybody is looking for a legit yoga studio in NYC then check out this place. A bit pricey but well worth it. http://www.jivamuktiyoga.com/centers/jiv...chool-nyc.

Post: #18

BB - a few years back I learned one of the key moves of yoga called "Sun Salutation".

I would wake up and this was the first things I did.

I did about 10 repetitions I think. It's a very energizing way to wake up the body and stretch it.

Doesn't take long and isn't tiring, quite the opposite.

Follow that with a cold shower and then a large cup of coffee - set for the day!

I used the following stickman guide - you can watch videos on Youtube to get a better idea of the flow of the move and the positioning of the toes (I always missed that)

http://yogasite.com/sunsalute.htm

Post: #19

(12-08-2013 11:19 PM)Thomas the Rhymer Wrote:  You don't need a teacher to learn how to beginner yoga poses.

Unless you're deliberately inflicting pain and torture on yourself, how on earth can you incorrectly do a forward bend or downward dog? That's like saying that you need a teacher in order to learn how to do a basic push up.

I don't see why you need a teacher for basic movements of the body. And even if you do them wrong, this is yoga, not weight lifting - I don't see how you can injure yourself doing beginner poses unless you are intentionally being stupid.

I can understand seeking out a coach if you have a burning desire to do competitive yoga at the next olympics, but for most people seeking a teacher for yoga is like seeking a teacher to teach you how to jog around in your neighbourhood.

Even with something that looks simple like a downward dog, a good yoga instructor will find a number of ways you are doing it incorrectly. Mastering yoga is a life long journey.

Find a yoga class where the instructor walks around giving each student the personal corrections they require on each pose if needed. Generally these good instructors are in there 40/50s, have 15+ years teaching experience and are genuinely passionate about the benefits of yoga. They are not usually found at the trendiest studios.

I recommend reading the NY Times article "How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body" :

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/08/magazi...wanted=all

Post: #20

Why would you want to teach yourself yoga? Personally I'd rather go out and learn some moves in a class, and come home and practice the techniques. Yoga apparently is a great way to meet people if you choose to pursue that path.

Post: #21

(12-05-2013 10:57 AM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  Through youtube videos, etc? Feasible or not? At least for starters?

I want to add some yoga to my morning workout, but the crowd I see in Southeast Asia on the yoga scene doesn't look like one I'd mesh well with. Resort/spa yoga type bullshit.

I try to avoid the foreigner crowds as it is and the whole mind-body crowd seems pretty touristy.

Maybe I just need to suck it up and go mingle. Surely some cute hippy girls cruising the scene anyways...

Yes it is totally feasible to learn yoga through youtube. You sound like you're more interested in serious yoga and not the hatha yoga playful postures that most western women are into. Kundalini yoga is the hardcore stuff, and so I'll post 3 different very simple exercises you can do. Just be sure to follow the guy's instructions because they are very powerful techniques.

http://anmolmehta.com/blog/2007/03/29/3-...as-part-1/

http://anmolmehta.com/blog/2007/04/05/3-...as-part-2/

http://anmolmehta.com/blog/2008/06/11/ta...ntric-sex/

As you can see, it is pretty simple breathing types of exercises, so it is not hard to practice.

Post: #22

a mix of both self training and structured class participation is the best route.

the spiritual aspects are something you definitely will not tap into with a self practice if you've never experienced a teachers closing mantras unique to each teacher.

most yoga studios have drop in classes in which you only need to pay $10 for the 90 minute class.
better yet, the studio will offer a really low introductory rate for being new to the studio.
in my city, i have hit up 4 different studios for an unlimited month of classes for $30.

find a spot you feel comfortable at.
one that has a good vibe and the other students are receptive to you.

yelp the yoga studios in your area and following trail of top spots to their webpage.
take a look at the times and read the description of the class.
some studios offer some funky shit.
i went to a 'metal-yoga' class recently- one of the more intense workouts i've ever had.
chillin' in downdog while pantera races through the room at an ear piercing volume.
appreciate the heavy steady breathe.

you gain respect in the room with the fluidity of your practice.
it's easy to tell who is new and who goes to class every morning at 07:00 like clockwork.

with that in mind, hit up a class once a week, drop the $10-15 and soak it in.
take your learnings, find a youtube yoga teacher you like and run with their videos.

having a home practice is essential to becoming fluent in the classroom.

prepare for you're body to send positive feedback to your mind.
it will come.