Hate yoga? You’re not alone.
As someone who tries to fill classes at her studio, this issue is near and dear to my heart. As someone who has practiced yoga all over the world, I can definitely see why people don’t love to come to yoga classes.
Reason 1: Snooty Yoga Teachers. Nothing kills enthusiasm for trying something new faster than a condescending instructor. I have been in classes where I have been belittled, called out, and made to feel unwelcome. On many occasions I have looked around and thought to myself, “PEOPLE ACTUALLY PAY FOR THIS???!” A teacher who is feeding their own ego, has a lack of empathy, or transmits misery should really look for another profession. Preferably in a cubicle…away from other humans. Some people might believe that strict, unsmiling, or dismissive teachers are somehow more “serious yogis”. They’re not. They are just serious asses.
Reason 2: Yoga is weird! Many yoga studios still adhere to chanting and saying pose names in Sanskrit. On top of that, many studios have statues, murals, and artifacts that belong to Hindu culture. The vast majority of people trying a yoga class are looking for stress relief, not a religious service. They feel uncomfortable reciting the guru Gita, and I can’t blame them. Add to that the simple fact that most paraphernalia in a studio that is not owned by a person of Indian descent is cultural appropriation, and yeah people hate it.
Reason 3: The classes are painful. Every wonder why hot yoga is so popular? Because traditional yoga sequences without heat are agony for western bodies. Instead of adapting the movements and keeping the philosophy of the practice, the solution has been to turn up the heat… right up to hell hot. The result? Lightheadedness, dehydration, exhaustion, overuse injuries, and the astronomical increase of the carbon footprint of a yoga class. Who wants to bake for an hour? Not me. It seems to me that an easier solution would be to change the exercise so that it is not painful and so that the students in the class can build their own heat in their muscles. You know, naturally instead of having the heat blasting in New Jersey in JULY.
So what do I tell people who have had the experiences I mentioned above? Try a High Energy Fusion Yoga class. Bump to the music. Enjoy the welcoming atmosphere and interact with the people around you in a meaningful way. Mind and body are engaged (in a normal temperature room) and the end of class is always met with rest, reflection, and gratitude. The formula for helping people love yoga is really not that complicated. Perhaps the yoga world can stop trying to ACT yogic, and actually embody the idea that we are a human family that is here to support one another.
Want to learn more? Come to a class and see for yourself how our style is different.
