I have a confession. When I went to Las Vegas last year with a bunch of my girlfriends for our birthdays, we played a game and this little game involved coming up with “Vegas personas” meaning we each took on aliases and fake jobs to fool people we met in Vegas. My Vegas persona was to be the mysterious and flexible Jenny, who worked days as a yoga instructor and a downer of vodka shots at night. Hey, it was Vegas, don’t judge! My persona was very easy for me to pull off since I have had an on-off relationship with yoga for the last few years. While I have problems committing to one style and one studio, this does make me extremely helpful to YOU since it’s means that I am the perfect person to quiz for a beginner’s guide to yoga!

There are so many styles of yoga out there – what one should you start with? Well it really depends on your fitness level, flexibility, and goals. Here is a concise guide on various styles I’ve tried:

Iyengar

A style created by B.K.S. Iyengar, this type of yoga is characterized by its extensive use of props like blocks and straps to get you into position, which makes this style perfect for the first-timer. Iyengar yoga emphasizes correct posture and body alignment, meaning the teacher will be watching you for slouching!

Hatha

More free flowing than Iyengar, Hatha yoga focuses on relaxation and meditation through the use of poses that focus the mind and the breath. Hatha is a good overall style that has great de-stressing abilities, but can feel a bit slow.

Vinyasa

Also known more commonly as flow yoga, or power yoga, or Ashtanga, Vinyasa yoga is any yoga that focuses on the flow of movement to purify the body and focus the mind. Vinyasa yoga is more strenuous and faster than either of the previously mentioned styles. Practitioners will undergo a continuous rotation of a series of poses, usually sun salutations, which work to warm the body and get the blood flowing. Poses are held only momentarily before moving onto the next one and you can often break a light sweat during a practice. Sweating is good though as this helps to purify your body of toxins.

Bikram

Also known as hot yoga, this style is famous for taking place in a 40-degree room with matching humidity! Imagine the hottest day of your life, and then doing a series of strenuous and awkward poses in middle of the afternoon of that day. I would not recommend this for beginners as there is a high chance it will either be 1) too hard for you or 2) cause you to hate yoga forever. Once you’ve done a few classes of normal yoga though, I would highly recommend doing Bikram as you feel amazing after and it will seriously tone your body. Everyone I’ve seen doing Bikram yoga for awhile has been seriously cut.

Kundalini

A style that isn’t usually offered, but I tried this it out a few years ago and will never again! This style is not like any of the other styles and is really focused on meditation. Unless rolling around on your back like a baby with your legs in the air while chanting appeals to you, then this style is likely not what you’re looking for.

And there you have it, a beginner’s guide to yoga and the most commonly offered styles I’ve come across. I hope this encourages you to try yoga as I truly think it’s one of the best ways to unwind and exercise ever!

Jordana Mah

Software developer by day, writer by night, Jordana works as a freelance writer for various online publications and blogs. You can usually find her glued to a keyboard either shopping online, blogging, or tweeting, but she occasionally ventures out for movies, food, shopping sales, and bubble tea.

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