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I have had a number of people approach me lately about wanting to start yoga. Some of the big questions were, “Where should I go?”, “What are the classes like?” and “Will it help me relax/get in shape/lower my blood pressure?”.

Yes, yoga will help you lower your blood pressure, get in shape and calm you down. But if you live in Atlanta, a big factor is actually getting to a studio. If you get stressed out in traffic or have to rush to get to a class, thereby raising your blood pressure and anxiety, the net gain will not be as great. Duh.

My advice: try out 5 different places and/or styles of yoga. Start with a convenient location or travel to a not-so-convenient location on a Saturday morning when traffic is not an issue. Approach each place with an open mind as they will all be different. Go back and revisit your top 2 choices, learn more about their style and begin the process of integrating 1-3 practices at home every week. Use the weekly or bi-weekly class for learning, but start practicing at home. Buy a couple of videos related to your favorite style of yoga and just do it.

If you’re interested in ‘generic’, one-size-fits-all yoga, go to a gym. Gyms are much less touchy-feely and usually will not involve Ohms or chanting or incense. Most studios vary on their candle burning, feel-good, let’s chant in non-English components, but many of them have it. If that stuff freaks you out, stay at the gym. But gym yoga is like eating at McDonalds and there are a few McYogaStudios in the Atlanta area ready to serve the masses.

At the end of the day, yoga is about creating space between your last thought and your next thought. Just like in meditation, breath awareness is central to this process. Some types of yoga may not even mention the breath. Some types will have you sit in a room and do nothing more than breathing techniques. And the best way to learn about what works best for you is just to start trying. It’s like trying to describe the taste of an orange - the best way to know is to taste it yourself.

I hope to give a review of some of the yoga studios in Atlanta in a different post. Until then, here are some of the basic types of yoga and my take on them.

- Yoga based on the teaching of John Friend. Classes are challenging, some chanting in the beginning, are suitable for most and make you feel good. Inner and outer body alignment are focus points.

- Yoga based on the teaching of Pattabhi Jois (Guruji). Vinyasa, Power, Flow - these other forms of yoga are based on Ashtanga. Ashtanga has some chanting, synchronized breath and movement (vinyasa) and makes you sweat a lot. It is physically demanding and most suitable for the young, athletic and strong. I wouldn’t recommend it for a couch potato looking to start yoga. But the practice is fun and moves quickly.

- Yoga based on the teaching of Bikram Choudhury and involves a series of 26 yoga postures done twice, facing a mirror in a very hot room. Every teacher says the same thing in every class, literally. You like hot and constant? Bikram’s for you. Bikram makes you sweat buckets and does feel really good if you can stand the heat. I don’t believe they chant.

- Teaching styles vary greatly from teacher to teacher. There are some really good teachers, however, so don’t discount them altogether.

- Yoga based on BKS Iyengar. Iyengar is very focused on alignment and precision. Instructors are highly trained and have the most difficult road to certification. Classes can be very intense and may focus on very few postures. Generally good for all.

- These little gems usually have no advertising, are usually free or low-cost, and are often taught by very knowledgeable teachers. A “community center” might actually be a room in a local church.

I am leaving out many other systems but perhaps I’ll visit them at another time.

My friend Rusty had a recent post where he was looking for recommendations for “music to do Ashtanga to“.

Traditionally, Ashtanga is without music. And the mention of music and Ashtanga in some circles will certainly elicit a look of distain if not an outright objection. So, let’s call it Ashtanga based vinyasa. Or just vinyasa - except you do the primary series postures, hold bhandas and breathe the Ujjayi breath.

Ok, if I was outside next to an ocean, I might feel differently about not using music. The ocean would provide a nice rhythm. But most of the time, I like music in the practice. Maybe music makes me feel good already and, mixed with a vinyasa practice, combines for the ultimate “natural high”.

5 minutes out of the experience, I recommend Leon Parker. The album Awakening is a mix mash of percussion and bass that keeps a pleasant, groovy pulse. It’s an unusual, “world’ music-ish sound. A friend of a friend gave it to me in Memphis several years ago and it’s been a favorite ever since.

After what seems like an eternity of very light yoga and delicate stretching, I finally jumped back into the primary series of Ashtanga and blazed through the standing postures. I kept in mind the brief time I spent with Pattabhi Jois and how quickly he leads his class through the practice. And for the first time in months, it was fun!

For those who don’t know (I have to at least feign readership!), Ashtanga yoga synchronizes breathing with movement. The series of postures moves rather quickly and keeps a sustained pace. Initially, it is overwhelming and extremely difficult to do. The practice quickly raises the body’s temperature and, if you’re not accustomed to sweating, it can be quite a surprise. But it feels great!

Because it is so challenging, the Ashtanga series can create problems if not approached with respect and awareness. I have witnessed many avid practitioners injure a shoulder, wrist, neck, back or knee just by doing the prescribed series of postures (myself included). Most of them were over 30 years old. Sometimes a teacher pushed them beyond their limit. Often they pushed themselves beyond the point of stretching. In all cases, the effort exerted to “achieve” a posture was greater than their body’s ability to comply.

Guruji began his practice at an early age so it makes sense that his yoga studies included a more robust physical component. His teacher, Krishnamacharya, taught others different approaches to yoga that were less physically demanding. Krishnamacharya’s son, T.K.V. Desikachar, studied with his father for over 30 years and approaches yoga completely different than the Ashtanga system. It is easy to speculate that Krishnamacharya taught individuals based on their needs as a student of yoga. Age was likely a factor, as was health.

Many Ashtanga devotees appear to be limiting themselves when they delcare their belief that the practice is ‘perfect’. I have to ask, was Krishnamacharya only perfect when he taught Guruji, or are all the forms of yoga perfect as well? I would go with the latter arguement.

My favorite Ashtanga teacher, and the first Westerner to study the full Ashtanga series with Pattabhi Jois, David Williams, lays it out simply: “If yoga is not the second best feeling thing in your life, you’re missing an opportunity.” David just happened to show up at Atlanta Yoga at a time when my aching back was making me question my ability to practice Ashtanga. David reeled me back to the basics - bhandas and breath, and emphasized the wholistic approach to yoga that is about healing. I probably would have given up years ago if I didn’t get a dose of his wisdom just in time. “If you were to go up to one of these old, grey bearded Yogis in India, one of those wise men living in a cave, and you told him that you hurt yourself doing yoga, he would think you were crazy.” Amen.

I had orthoscopic surgery 2 weeks ago and I am managing well. I ride a “spinner bike” every morning and do some yoga afterwards. My range of motion is still compromised and there remains some soreness. But all in all, I can’t complain so far. Hopefully my knee will mend well.

Since I played college football (and by “play” I mean running tailback against the 1st team defense every day and mostly watching the game from the sidelines on Saturday), most of my friends assume that the knee was an old injury related to the “collision sport”, as the late Vince Lombardy called it. But it wasn’t football. It wasn’t rugby. And it wasn’t baseball either. It was yoga.

At this point in my life, I have been practicing Ashtanga Yoga for over 8 years. And I began that journey like it was a sport. Ashtanga is very difficult. And like any good athlete, I wanted to “win” and be “good at yoga”. That was silly. It has taken me years to not only realize, but to practice yoga as a “letting go” instead of an “acquisition”. A teacher once told me, “anyone can work hard, we do it every day - but can you listen and take a step back?” Another said, “the smartest yogi is the one who knows how much yoga to do for that day.” “If it hurts, you’re doing it wrong.” That message did not reach me in time.

When I first learned to snow ski, I couldn’t gain enough speed to hurt myself. When I became a better skiier, that’s when it became dangerous. When I started practing Second Series, I was probably ambitious, but ready nonetheless. Second series Ashtanga requires open hips in order to get into some of the foot-behind-the-head postures. I had a regular practice and when my body was warm, I could move into most postures with relative ease. And it was almost easy when I entered Vatayanasana. Here is a pic via Yogaclub

Notice the right knee is on the ground and the right foot is in lotus position. Beyond the delicate foot/knee position, much balance is at play. It doesn’t take much to slip. And a small slip changed things considerably. So, what is yoga for, anyway? What did I learn?

I teach it to my students and it’s a lesson that I apparently needed to learn again - Yoga is about using your breath to create space between your last thought and your next thought. And when I practice, I feel better, I’m in a better mood, I am nicer, more grateful and a less cranky person. And if I practice with a non-competitive, non-aggressive, compassionate attitude, I won’t get hurt doing something designed to heal.

David Williams puts it nicely: “If you go to India and go to one of these ancient caves where there is an old, bearded yogi inside, and you tell them that you hurt yourself doing yoga, he would think you were crazy.” He would certainly ask, ‘how in the world could you do that?’” Indeed.