I think I'd like to try yoga as a way of improving my flexibility and being more active in the winter. Does anyone have any tips for how to start? There are studios in town, but I don't know where or how to begin.
Look up a studio near you (avoid gimmicks like hot yoga etc. especially as a beginner), take an all levels or level 1-2 class in Vinyasa yoga, which is the typical style at least in the US. Make sure you're pushing yourself patiently but fully, make sure youre breathing deeply and not holding your breath/tensing up. Be prepared for ludicrous quantities of strange humming, possible meditation, and a sore, sore ass in the morning. I was a 160-lb varsity wrestler with a messed up back and zero flexibility. Yoga once or twice a weekend had me all Jaden Smith in no time.
This was what I was going to suggest -- make sure it's a beginning class bc they'll help you with bad alignments which aren't actually the correct stretch. I have structurally fucked up hips and knees and yoga 2x a week helped me move without pain for quite some time. i should get back into the habit of 5-6 sun salutations a morning bc that shit warms you up quick.
Do you have insight on the different yoga types? A studio near me has beginner hatha yoga on Saturdays. How does that vary from vinyasa?
Hatha yoga is all about meditation, and it includes bikram (hot) and iyengar yoga which are the most common styles besides vinyasa. Vinyasa is what is going to challenge you physically, in your muscular strength, flexibility, and balance.
If you're not comfortable diving into a studio, there are plenty of YouTube instructional videos to get educated and familiar with some of the more basic poses. Sometimes my girlfriend will play one in tandem with an ambient soundtrack of rain falling, the sounds of a forest, beach, etc., and many of the YouTube yoga instructional videos already have built-in ambient audio.
Thanks, I'll give that a shot. I do want to try studios eventually to get some direction and correction, but being a bit more familiar will help. Total rookie question: can I just wear the same workout clothes I'd wear running?
Yep. The only problem might be a shirt that's too constricting. You need unimpeded freedom of motion. There is no shame in doing yoga wearing solely underwear or even going nude when in the privacy of your own home. It worked for Patrick Bateman, at least.
I went to the Lesmils body flow class a couple time at my gym and i think it's yoga. It's quite fast but poses seemed yogaish. I don't now what's up with my gym but we have a lot of things like bodyflow, bodypump, bodywhatever from LesMils.. who is that guy and why can't we call a yoga class a yoga class? Is there some king of copyright on workout routines? I don't get this stuf.But yoga is fun :)