A couple of weeks ago I was talking with a friend who had bought my book, Yoga at Home: Gain Energy, Flexibility & Serenity in 20-30 Minutes a Day. She said she had tried one of the poses (I think it was an inverted pose like the plough) that proved a challenge for her and the next day she was sore. Since we were at a party and carrying on several conversations at a time, I neglected to comment on her soreness.
I realized a day or two later that I should have advised her that she must have been doing something wrong or a bit off because if you follow the instructions I provide in the book, you should not get sore as you learn the 20+ poses I present. I never got sore learning gentle hatha yoga when I began it as a teen (and no, it's not just because I was so young, it's because i followed the instructions from my first yoga book) or when I added some new poses a few years ago, decades later!
I can't speak about the more intense forms of yoga like Vinayasa or Bikram (hot) yoga. But, I can assure you that getting sore with gentle hatha yoga means that you are pushing or straining yourself or holding the poses too long in the beginning.
When beginning a physical regime of ANY kind, my mantra always is "baby steps." Start gradually. If a poses should be help 30 seconds or 1 minute and you have never done it before, start with 5-10 seconds MAX and add a few seconds a week. That's how I did and I have NEVER been sore from yoga. Look at the arm to forehead stretch in the photo above. I hold this pose on each side for 30 seconds. When I first learned it, I started by holding it for 5 seconds only. AND, I certainly could not reach and touch my forehead with my ankle. I was able to raise my leg maybe half-way, I can't even remember. Every time I did the pose I listened to my body. If I felt I could stretch a bit farther, I did. But, never to the point of pain.
Yours for "no pain is all gain" in learning gentle hatha yoga,
Laura Venecia Rodriguez
The Loy-Key Beginners Yoga at Home Coach
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