There are many things that go on during a single yoga class or a yoga session, whether – concentrating, breathing, bending forward or backward or sideways, twisting your body, balancing, inverting- all these activities demand complete involvement of body, mind and your heart. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced yogi, all these complexities suggest that mistakes are not unlikely and are bound to happen. Some of the mistakes that occur while performing yoga may not cause any serious effects, confined to only uneasiness or difficulty in your yoga progression, but others might actually cause you serious safety compromise or concerns. While it is advisable to perform yoga under some experienced and trained, authorized yoga instructor, but still there are chances of mistakes due to lack of clarification. But you don’t need to worry, most of the yoga mistakes are easily avoidable. Here is the list of common mistakes you must not do while performing yoga, avoid them for the betterment of your yoga practice!
1. Not wearing appropriate clothes
You definitely have to do some experiments to find out best yoga clothing that suits your body and the type of yoga classes or session you are going to attend. Wearing inappropriate clothing which is either too tight or loose, resisting the stretch, scratchy, itchy, not able to absorb the sweat, will going to distract you from focusing on your breath and yoga pose.
It is advisable to wear the clothes that allow you to move around easily, made with a fabric or material that feels comfortable to your skin, highly stretchable and sweat absorbing, having a cooling effect. For hot yoga, you will need minimal clothes with moisture-absorbing properties. For vinyasa and ashtanga classes you will want Comfortable and stretchable clothing is recommended for vinyasa and ashtanga classes. For mild exercising and basic classes, loose-fitting and comfy clothes are the best option. If you are not sure about how to dress for class, you can always take the help of the yoga studio’s instructors and staff for recommendations.
2. Cheap and unclean yoga mat
Nothing is wrong with purchasing a cheap beginner’s yoga mat when you first start yoga. While nobody truly needs the highly expensive yoga mats but relying on an inexpensive mat can hold you back as you progress further in your practice because after a while these cheap mats become slippery, they bunch up and don’t stay flat or in shape. This distracts you and can prevent you from performing the asanas to its fullest, and can even lead to the injuries. While buying a yoga mat always pay attention to the fact that it provides cushioning for your joints, knees, and palms and has a good grip to avoid unbalancing and any type of slips.
Your yoga mat needs regular cleaning keep it functioning proper and not get stinky. A yoga mat used specially for hot yoga or power yoga becomes dirty and eventually starts to smell bad, distracting you during practice. It also has harmful bacteria and can cause fungal infections. It can furthermore compromises the grip of the mat employing to loosing the balance and making your hands and legs to slide or slip, causing any serious injury.
3. Not using the props
It is easy to look at props as unnecessary and a symbol of weakness, but straps and blankets are meant to reinforce, support and deepen your practice. While you’ll get to spend a moment or two gathering props and putting them away, having them by your side will cause you to be fully prepared for any yoga pose that’s taught during class. Many teachers include props in their teaching. When you see props by your yoga teacher’s mat once you enter the classroom, you must gather equivalent props. Requiring to get props in the middle of the session will throw off your flow and be distracting to others.
4. Doing it with full or empty stomach
It is often difficult and quite tricky to time your meals around your yoga schedule but believe it—if you are trying to practice yoga with a full stomach, you’ll instantly regret it. Having your stomach full of meal or water during yoga practice is going to be uncomfortable, slow you down, and even prevent you from achieving certain poses…but even the feeling of starving isn’t good. Avoid the distractions of fullness and hunger by having a light-weight snack an hour or two before your yoga session begins.
5. Improper breathing techniques
Establishing and maintaining a slow deep yogic breath throughout a yoga practice is often difficult if you’ve spent a lifetime not listening to your breathing patterns. While many yoga movements are timed with the breath, don’t hold your breath to stay pace with the teacher. Add in extra breaths when needed, allowing yourself to breathe fully and simply in the least times. If you find yourself breathing through your mouth, consider starting your practice with a slower-paced class.
6. Comparing your progress with others
It is easy to bring our culture’s competitive nature into our yoga practice, but comparing yourself to the person next to you in yoga sessions will do more harm than good. Trying to stay pace with another student will distract you from the important goal of yoga and will potentially cause you to push yourself too hard and get injured. once you end up having comparative thoughts, remind yourself that we were all born with different bodies and need to achieve different places in our yoga journey.
7. Not clarifying doubts
If you’re struggling or have difficulty with a pose, ask the teacher for advice or a variation. Not everyone’s body is the same, so not every pose is going to be right for your specific anatomy. Additionally, if the teacher says something confusing or unclear, you must not hesitate to ask the teacher to elaborate more.
8. Forcing yourself for a perfection
‘no pain, no gain’- not applicable always, especially while performing yoga. Accept that gains in yoga happen very slowly and don’t force your body into the complete expression of any yoga pose before you’re ready. enter each pose slowly and mindfully to seek out your “edge”—the place where you are feeling an honest stretch but no pain. rather than pushing past the limits your body allows, attempt to relax into the yoga pose.
9. Skipping the relaxing Shavasana
Shavasana, the ultimate relaxation pose, is the cherry on the top. If you are not allowing yourself to sink in the relaxing Shavasana pose, you will not be able to fully absorb the benefits of all the work you’ve got while performing all the asanas. After completeing every seession of your yoga regime,spend the last 5-8 minutes in Shavasana no matter how long and complex or simple your session may be. A brief seated meditation is also a way to conclude your yoga practice on good note.