Japanese sitting pose
This past week I received an email that alerted me to the latest "Yoga in America" study coducted by Sports Marketing Surveys USA on behalf of the Yoga Journal. Since the last sstudy released in 2008, about 4 million more Americans now practice yoga for a total of 20.4 million people.
That seems wonderful! Of course, this depends on how one interprets the statistics and how many statistics are provided. Of the yoga practitioners surveyed, 82.2 percent of U.S. yogis are women compared with 17.8 percent of U.S. yogis being men.
I find that piece of data so ironic considering that in India, yoga's land of origin, most practitioners have been men. In fact, the famous 90-something (she turned 94 this past summer) yoga instructor Tao Porchon Lynch whom I met last summer, stated that in her youth in India, she was the rare female who decided to learn yoga.
No doubt culture influences the gender in yogis who practice in the United States versus those elsewhere, particularly India. In recent yeas however, more of my American male friends and acquaintances have started to take up yoga - although it seems they engage in the more intense forms of yoga and not the gentle, restorative yoga that I practice.
Another key, not surprising statistic of the yoga practitioners surveyed was that most yoga practiioners (62.8 percent) fall within the age range of 18-44. The article also reported the data concerning how many people practice for one year or less; how many practiced one to three years, and how many practice three years or more. However, I would also love to know how many regular yoga practitioners are over 50 like me and designer Donna Karan and have been practicing more than 4 decades! I believe the most significant benefits result from consistent practice over years and years...Maybe these statistics exist but it was not reported in the article on the study.
Another key statistic that was not noted was how often each week this U.S. yogis practice yoga. That is a crucial piece of data because frequency and consistency make all the difference in how much one benefits from a yoga practice.
Although doing yoga even once a week can produce some benefits, there's a vast advantage in practicing yoga at least 5 or more times weekly. The article did not reveal if the study looked at frequency of practice - a significant omission, in my not always so humble opinion. Also, no data were apparently provided to note what types of yoga those who are surveyed practice and how they learn - in a class or at home with a book or DVD.
The key reasons cited for beginning yoga included flexibility, general conditioning, stress relief, improving overall health, and physical fitness. No suprise here.
What I did find especially interesting was that apparently of "current non-practitioners, 44.4 percent of Americans consider themselves to be aspiring yogis. I would venture to guess that many of the aspiring yogi are afraid to start because they become intimidated by all the pretzel poses they see in the media and because of what they hear about the intense forms of yoga offered at many studios.
Don't let this happen to you! This yoga blog is dedicated to helping aspiring yogis and beginning yogis to overcome any concerns so they can begin to benefit from this wonderful ancient practice
Yours for starting a gentle home yoga practice - if not today - tomorrow morning!
Laura Venecia Rodriguez, The Beginners' Home Yoga Coach
Thank you so much, Deborah. The purpose of my blog is to inspire regular practice and my book contains many tips as well. You can download sample chapters at www.DoYogaAtHomeNow.com.
Happy holidays to you also!
Posted by: Laura Rodriguez | December 21, 2012 at 09:15 PM
Wow, so happy I found your site. I desperately need motivation to get me to consistently practice yoga. I love reading books, magazines and blogs about yoga, and I even made a spare room in my house as my "yoga room". Unfortunately, my practice usually lasts for a few weeks then I stop for months until getting the motivation to start up again; then the cycle repeats all over. I've enjoyed taking classes in the past, but they have gotten to be quite expensive. I'm hoping your blog will give me inspiration to maintain a home yoga practice. I look forward to reading from your archives and catching up on your blog posts.
Healthy and happy holidays to you,
Deborah
Posted by: Deborah Grandys | December 21, 2012 at 07:45 PM