Should I Practice Yoga? If so, Which Type is Best?

Yoga Strengthens What’s Weak and Balances What’s Strong

Yoga is for everyone, whether it’s meditation/pranayama (breathing exercises) or it’s an active yoga class, you can do it. My mom, a yoga instructor and owner of Kai Yoga Studio for eight years, always said that “saying I’m not flexible enough for yoga is like saying you’re too dirty for a shower.” She also said, “Yoga strengthens what’s weak and balances what’s strong.”

Which Style of Yoga is Best? As Always, It Depends!

Ask yourself what your intention is first and foremost. What are you seeking? Maybe a deeper spiritual connection to something greater than yourself or maybe physical, emotional, or mental health benefits. Whatever the reason, there are many, many different types of yoga out there.

First, all yoga is based off of Hatha yoga. Tirumalai Krishnamacharya brought in a “Hatha revival” in the 1900’s, which is how all of our “modern” leaders of yoga learned and developed their particular type. So, there is no one kind of yoga. Let’s go through some of the major styles alphabetically!

Aerial/Swing/Anti-Gravity (room temp, active/passive, music)

This type of yoga is right for those with an adventurous side, who also want anti-gravity health benefits (decompression of the spine, etc.). Christopher Harrison used aerial fitness techniques in 2007 and later started applying a yoga practice to his fitness swings. Today, aerial yoga has become a new, excited yoga practice; it’s rooted in Iyengar, pilates, and sometimes dance. These classes are led by a teacher, who can add breathing, meditation, and other variations to the practice. Being a newer type of yoga, there are many possibilities for these classes.

Don’t attend a class unless you know if the swing’s structure has been securely bolted down and has passed inspection. But these classes bring the kid out in all of us and are a joy to attend.

Ashtanga (warm/high temp, active, no music)

Considered to be a more traditional type, Ashtanga yoga is best for people seeking an active, disciplined, and structured class with a focus on deep breathing to connect each pose to the next. Ashtanga yoga is a set of series developed by K. Pattabhi Jois after he studied with T. Krishnamacharya. Ashtanga means “eight limbs,” referencing the eight limbs of yoga. There are six full series (originally four). The idea is that you must balance building strength to do those poses as well as memorize the poses in a series. Think of this like a video game — you add more poses when you’re either stronger and/or remember each pose leading up to it and then moving to the next series once you regularly practice all postures in the previous series.

“Yoga is 99% practice and 1% theory,” K. Pattabhi Jois. There’s two types of classes here, led and Mysore-style. Led is when a teacher leads a whole class based on counting the breaths in Sanskrit through a series, walking around and assisting students when needed. Mysore-style (Mysore named after the Indian city) is when there’s a teacher assisting your personal practice, or sometimes there’s no teacher as you could be practicing at home. With a teacher in Mysore style, they can tell you what poses come next and gauge whether you‘re ready for a next pose or not — it’s more personal, but also gives you some freedom to practice through the poses that you remember.

Vinyasa and power yoga (both hot temp, active, with music) developed from Ashtanga [Vinyasa]. Vinyasa is a great class for those looking for a workout with continuous, active movement. Power yoga has spun into almost an almost palates, fad spin-off (no offense), performing repetitions of challenging sequences of active poses — not recommended for beginners.

Baptiste (warm temp, active/passive, music)

This yoga practice is ideal for those seeking a deeper, spiritual connection to the Devine and self-realization as well as a physical practice. Walt Baptiste learned yoga from his uncle, who studied under Paramahansa Yogananda. Yogananda combined Kriya yoga and Christian teachings to emphasize a pursuit of a physical practice and spiritual self-realization.

Baptiste is a Hatha-based, Iyengar-influenced practice with a teacher that chooses poses and then teaches a flow to the class. Some classes might include guided-meditation (depending on the teacher) to help you reach self-realization. Baptiste yoga isn’t strictly a “Christian yoga.” As with all yoga, there’s an invitation for you to connect with your deity.

Bikram (high temp and humidity, active, music)

Bikram is for someone looking for a hot, active yoga workout. Developed by Bikram Choudhury, is one of the first mainstream “hot yogas” in the ‘70s. It shares a commonality with Ashtanga as the practice consists of a series of the same 26 postures, but with two breathing exercises. This style became popular during the demands of workout routines developed in the ‘70s and ‘80s. Caution, Bikram Choudhury has had a legal cloud around him, to say the least, which may influence your decision of following his teachings.

Hot yoga won’t appear on this list. Why? Take any active yoga class, turn up the temperature to the extreme, and you have hot yoga! But mostly, hot yoga developed as a way to replicate the heat and humidity of India, especially for the cold, northern hemisphere practitioners.

Iyengar (room temp, active/passive, no music)

Iyengar is great for someone looking to be present in a pose longer and/or someone who feels that they could use props to help modify their practice. BKS Iyengar developed Iyengar yoga during the same time that K. Pattabhi Jois developed a modern Ashtanga and they both studied under Krishnamacharya. Iyengar focuses on precision and remaining in a pose for a bit longer than Ashtanga poses.

These classes have a teacher picking and choosing certain poses and then leading a class through what we might call a “slow-flow” sequence. BKS Iyengar toured the U.S and noticed how immobile the Westerners were compared to Indians, so Iyengar heavily emphasized the use of props (blankets, bolsters, straps, etc.) to help people find ease into poses. This is why their classrooms will always have a wide array of props for students to use.

“Yoga is like music. The rhythm of the body, the melody of the mind, and the harmony of the soul creates the symphony of life,” B.K.S. Iyengar.

Kundalini (room temp, passive, no music)

This class is what you need if you aren’t looking for a physical practice, but rather a spiritual and philosophical journey. Kundalini is an older yoga study under Hatha, referred to by Hinduism as “divine energy” based at the spine. Although most types of yogas make reference to and incorporate the chakras, Kundalini focuses on chakra studies and meditation as a way to achieve mystical experiences. It also heavily influences Hinduism and New Age thought.

With its heavy connection to eastern religions, it may be the reason why some people assume that “all yoga” is tied to Hinduism even when it’s not. Kundalini is one of the few particular areas of yoga that is tied in closely with eastern religions, although, it is still not a religion in itself (important distinction to make). There will usually be a teacher leading you through meditations and Kundalini mindfulness practices to activate energy in the pursuit of these mystical experiences.

Restorative (room temp, sometimes warm, passive, gentle music)

Restorative is best for people with physical injuries and isn’t looking for a workout, but more therapeutic movements. An early disciple of B.K.S. Iyengar, Judith Hanson Lasater, helped to popularize Restorative Yoga by 2007. As BKS Iyengar taught to hold certain poses longer than some practices, his student took that to the next level by holding poses for minutes at a time (even up to 20!). Same with Iyengar tradition, restorative fully utilizes props to help its practitioners.

Restorative yoga is a way to breathe deeply in poses, allowing the body time to fully relax in a pose and usually composed of only seated postures. It differs from Yin yoga in the way that restorative is mainly meant for practitioners suffering from physical injuries and is a great physical therapy practice. These classes are led by a teacher and sometimes contain breathing practices either before, during, or after the practice.

Yin (room-temp, sometimes warm, passive, gentle music)

This practice is what you want if you want slow movements, to hold a pose, but to not be there for “forever.” Yin yoga made its debut in the Western world in the late ’70s and was founded by martial arts expert and Taoist yoga teacher, Paulie Zink. Yin was mostly meant as a complement to other forms of yoga and emphasized holding poses between 45 seconds and two minutes. Zink, being in martial arts, originally had more yin/yang poses during his classes (active and passive poses).

Today, Yin classes have a teacher leading a sequence and is usually composed of mostly seated postures with slow, steady transitions between each. Yin uses props as well as moderate pressure to the connective tissues of the body (tendons, fascia, and ligaments) with the aim of increasing circulation in the joints and improving flexibility. This is also a very therapeutic type of yoga for those looking to relax and unwind.

I hope you enjoyed this not-so-brief overview of some major types of yoga. There are even more variations out there with their own particular way of practicing, but I did my best to mention some of the major names out there.

Leave a comment if you have any questions or thoughts to share!