What are the main types of yoga?
You may have heard of many different styles of yoga but the names don’t always hold a clue to what they mean. Here’s a brief overview to help you navigate in the maze of yoga:
- Hatha yoga – a slower yoga practice where you hold each pose for several breaths. It’s great for beginners, people who like to do things thoroughly and have enough time in each pose.
- Vinyasa yoga – a faster paced yoga practice where you transition from one pose to the next with each breath, occasionally pausing and holding a pose. Most people who want to increase their fitness, alongside working on their mindfulness, choose vinyasa yoga.
- Ashtanga yoga – a specific series of yoga poses, always repeated in the same sequence. Ashtanga is not for beginners as it moves quite fast and you’re expected to know all the poses. Great for people who like routine and have more time.
- Iyengar yoga – named after its founder, B.K.S Iyengar, this yoga practice is all about precision and perfect form in each pose. You work very methodically in Iyengar yoga, using props to achieve the correct alignment. It’s good for people who are recovering from injuries and need to work slowly but you need to go to a studio to learn it properly.
- Hot yoga – yoga practiced at studios heated to about 30-40°C. There’s usually a set sequence of poses – formally also known as Bikram yoga. The high temperature increases your circulation so your muscles and joints move more smoothly but it’s not for those with high blood pressure, diabetes and pressure headaches.
- Yin yoga – a restorative type of yoga where you stay in each pose for at least 30 seconds and up to two minutes. It helps to release both physical and mental tension but if you’re looking for a workout, yin yoga is not that.
- Yoga for athletes – yoga practice following the traditional yoga principles but designed with athletes in mind. Its aim is not to make you a gymnast but to release notoriously tight areas, such as hips, hamstrings and shoulders, increase your mobility, strengthen your core, and boost your mental wellbeing.