by Sue E

Created on: January 25, 2009

Yoga videos are great ways to explore and practice yoga. They can also help an established yoga practitioner follow a sequence of exercises as part of daily physical training in the comfort of their home.

There are many advantages to using yoga videos.

* Yoga videos are inexpensive compared to enrolling at a studio.
* Yoga videos provide an opportunity to train with yoga icons like B.K.S.Iyengar (Founder of Iyengar yoga) or Bikram Choudhary (innovator of Hot Yoga) who don't conduct classes anymore.

* Yoga videos aid in prompting a practitioner with correct breathing sequences and duration of holding a pose without guess work.
* Many yoga videos can be tried first, by renting from a library, before buying them, thus providing a cost-effective way of training.
* Yoga videos help a practitioner do yoga on their own terms.
* Longer times with favorite poses and extended relaxation poses can be done without catering to the rigidity of a class.
* Yoga sessions can be worked around your schedule, instead of other way around.

There are some disadvantages of depending on videos alone for one's yoga practice.

* Videos are not substitute for yoga teachers.
* Errors in stretching or improper breathing cannot be corrected.
* The energy of the group felt in a yoga class cannot be felt at home with a video.
* Over time, lack of novelty can lead to boredom.
* There is more accountability for missing classes, than missing a session with a video.
* Direct feedback and suggestions for helping with sore spots are not possible with a video.

Choosing the Right Video
Advantages of using a yoga video will have to be forfeited if the wrong video is chosen. Before choosing a yoga video, consider the following pointers.

* Choose the video corresponding to your skill level.
* Avoid exotic sounding, unheard-of-before, yoga flavors, especially if you are a beginner.
* Consider the background and training of the teacher in the video, before committing to one.

For beginners, a video can explain what to expect in a yoga class with some beneficial do's and dont's. For intermediate practitioners, yoga videos help continue practice at home, when it is not possible to attend a class. For advanced practitioners, advanced yoga videos help push their yoga practice to the next level and challenge their practice by attempting postures that they would not normally do.

Yoga videos are beneficial, if used for the right purpose. A video does not substitute a teacher. But it can help with suggestions and hard to remember details for one's practice at home. It cannot be denied that they are a healthy supplement to one's yoga practice.

Learn more about this author, Sue E.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.