Once you’ve worked through to the lowest setting on your block and your hands are flat on the floor, you can use the block to make the pose more challenging. Have you ever, for example, noticed what your upper body is doing in forward fold? What’s up with your shoulders? Do they have to be so close to your ears? When you’re not rushing to reach the floor, can you tilt your pelvis forward and send some reassurance to your legs? Can you remember to breathe? With another point of contact to the floor, you can shift your attention away from the race to the floor. Or, you hang over your legs, rounding your back in an effort to release the wall of cement that was the back of your legs.Ī yoga block brings the floor closer to you, and you can set it to different heights depending on how much space you need to create. Either your fingertips touch the floor, and whether you’re comfortable, properly aligned, or gnashing your teeth, you keep them there. Beginners and advanced yogis alike tend to think that this pose is a race to the floor. What am I talking about? Let’s look at a common pose: standing forward fold (uttanasana). You’ll begin to play more on the edge of difficulty in postures, because you’ll have more options of where to go - and more support in getting there. By learning to use blocks appropriately, you develop an understanding of how the body moves. I teach a lot of beginners, and I know from experience that if you feel like a pose - or a class - is too far beyond you, you won’t come back in a hurry.īlocks help students and yoga teachers break down poses from acrobatic to accessible. When you’re new to yoga, the postures, sequences, strange terms, and even the classroom can feel intimidating. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that - other than a yoga mat - the first thing you should get is a set of blocks. From someone picking up their very first yoga mat to advanced practitioners, blocks can enhance every practice. I firmly believe that yoga blocks are helpful for everyone. Practices like Pilates and Iyengar yoga taught me the nature and use of props. As it was, I didn’t start using them until I began branching away from hot and vinyasa classes. In truth, I would have benefited from using them from my very first yoga class. Do yoga blocks help beginners?Īs I mentioned earlier, I started using props a few months into my yoga practice. But if you want to go deeper in your poses while maintaining (and understanding!) proper alignment, I’d use blocks whenever possible. So can you do yoga without yoga blocks? It’s possible. Using yoga blocks give me more options in each pose - whether in my home practice or when teaching class. Personally, I never really know if my ever-tight hamstrings or sensitive knees are planning to cooperate that day. You might start your practice with something particular in mind, and find that your body wants a different practice. I like to have a set of blocks close at hand whenever I’m on my yoga mat. Even though you can practice without blocks, you may find that they feel necessary for certain poses. However, blocks add a new dimension to your practice. There are times when you might not have access to one, and that doesn’t mean you should skip doing what you can. You can absolutely do an entire yoga practice without blocks. As you advance in strength and flexibility, you’ll be able to use the blocks in new ways. The rectangular shape (with three different measurements) allows you to “adjust” the height of the block to accommodate different needs. Cork yoga blocks are more sustainable, durable, and offer more stability. Foam blocks tend to be softer and less expensive. However, the standard dimensions of a yoga block are 9 inches by 6 inches by 4 inches, and most are made of foam or cork. They come in different sizes and a variety of materials. Like most yoga props, blocks can be used in a variety of ways. What is a yoga block?Ī yoga block (or yoga brick) is a dense, rectangular prop that is used to make some aspect of a yoga pose either more accessible or more challenging. After over a decade of practicing, I still reach for my blocks in every practice. I learned a lot just by watching, but looking back, my practice would have developed much faster if I’d known just how useful yoga blocks are. I wanted to look like I knew what I was doing, so I focused on listening to the teacher and watching the other students. In the early days of my practice, I had my hands full (metaphorically) trying to learn all the yoga poses. I was hooked on yoga well before I ever learned what a yoga block was and what it was used for.
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