Let's Talk About Yoga Student Safety

Yoga provides wonderful results for almost anyone who tries it! It's great as an exercise to improve flexibility and to tone muscles, especially some that aren't used often. It's a slow, quiet oasis in a busy, fast-paced life, and, for that reason, is great for alleviating stress. A few precautions for yoga student safety can keep yoga safe as well as beneficial.An injury can, of course, add to the very stress the student is trying to relieve. Proper teaching and awareness of safety measures will go a long way to prevent injuries in both the classroom and practice setting, so both student and teacher need to be aware of the best safety practices.A student's history can affect safety.Everyone studying yoga needs to be evaluated accurately by the teacher and should be prepared to provide an honest history to make this possible. Age, previous yoga or exercise experience, past or present injuries, weight, and general physical condition all play a part in allowing the student to practice yoga at a level consistent with safety.Yoga doesn't appear to be strenuous, but it is. Flexibility is important, but previous injuries can affect the flexibility of the injured muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Some poses may have to be avoided at first to avoid aggravating existing problems; these can be added later as the earlier injury heals and fitness improves.Some health conditions that don't involve joints and muscles can still cause problem situations with certain poses. For example, high blood pressure restricts the student from inverted poses, which may cause blood to pool in the head. Students need to keep the instructor informed of current health issues, and teachers need to ask the right questions about general health.


Sometimes descriptions of class levels don't give sufficient information to prevent a student becoming involved in a class that is too advanced. Trying to keep up beyond the correct level can cause injury. Some instructors begin each new student at the beginner level regardless of his or her background. Others evaluate each student's level individually.Listening to the body greatly increases safety.A good yoga teacher encourages the student to listen to his or her body during and after the classroom session as well as during practice at home. If muscles and joints are sore in an area, that part of the body should be allowed to rest. Since there is a yoga pose for each part of the body, other poses can still be done that will benefit unaffected areas while allowing affected ones to rest.Attitude affects safety in the classroom and in individual practice.It's important to remember that yoga, while strenuous, is an individual, not a competitive, pursuit. Teachers can foster a positive attitude and discourage a "push through it" mentality in their students by treating each person as an individual in his or her progress, rather than the class as a whole.Yoga fosters flexibility, but developing flexibility takes time and patience. Pushing ahead when the body hasn't acquired the necessary flexibility is a major cause of injuries. It helps to remember that learning to be patient is a way yoga can benefit the mind just as the physical poses benefit the body, and patience increases safety!