To not find yoga calming?

[serenedream]

Admittedly I am a newbie! I hope that I am unreasonable, because I have dearly wanted to learn for many years, and have only been able to commit to it recently.

I have a rather lousy local class and can't yet get to one further afield as not driving at the moment. By lousy I mean it is very large and the teacher can't really help individual clients.

So, I have tried many vids at home and have studied alone (books, documentaries, etc) and tried out small sessions here on my mat, going gently and trying to find a fit that feels right for me.

But some of even the easier poses feel stressful, it is even worse if I try to follow a video as my neck is twisting around to see it! I thought of planning a set of poses before hand then easing into them alone, but even then I can't quite seem to find it relaxing. I must admit that my muscles feel fab after though! Some dreadful soreness as a newbie (hope this is normal) but my mind feels odd and frazzled! I felt even more stressed and hyper after doing it.

I have meditated for years so not a novice there, I am usually very comfortable being alone with myself and breathing/inner silence and calm. It's just that I can't seem to combine that with asanas - which is what yoga is supposed to be about!

AIBU to think maybe it is not for me? Perhaps it works for some and actually upsets others? I have had a really sore neck and feel unpleasant doing any kind of inversion. Even downward dog makes my head pound. Maybe I could do modifications?

I dip in and out of doing yoga. I prefer vinyasa to yin, I like to keep moving.

Everyone bangs on about bloody Adrienne, I can’t bear her! Waffling on, getting on my tits. Ugh. I prefer Kassandra on YouTube, she is brilliant. Calm, no hippy dippy waffle and gives great alternatives for poses and very much a fan of doing a pose in a way that works for you.

Yep. It's no secret that yoga has been appropriated by the west. Highly recommend the Yoga is Dead podcast.

I don't find yoga calming, but that isn't the reason I do it anyway. I'm only interested in the physical part of it - I've got zero interest in the other stuff.

Thanks for the replies, it's all food for thought.

@Softplayhooray Yes, this is exactly it, and the almost cult like attitude surrounding it. Social media doesn't help matters, but I do prefer youtube to insta so not too familiar with the yoga starzzz on there . And it is often grossly oversexualised on SM.
A lot of the imagery and cynically priced merchandise can be off putting, with so much emphasis on contortion/acrobatics and a sort of orthorexic fanaticism (purity, food exclusion and so on) added to the mix.

But I have been drawn to it for many years, drank too much wine over 2020 to really get started, then add some works stress....but have finally created the right space in my life (and mind) for practicing this year. I am drawn to it physically, but can't explain what I mean. It even wakes up each of my individual toes and seems to make them happy, lol.

@Sidge I don't know a lot about Adriene but her vibe is very warm and inclusive, which is great. My issue with most online beginner videos is how most of them are not really designed for beginners. I even have a book here for 'new yogi's' which leaps straight in to crow pose as an introductory suggestion! I could break my bloody neck attempting that.
But don't mid a little bit of hippy waffle...hehe.

Thank you everyone I will check out the yoga is dead thing!

People tell me about the benefits of yoga, meditation, etc but I have ADHD and the harder I try to clear my mind, the louder I end up singing the theme tune to Only Fools and Horses on a silent loop. Plus, I’m always trying not to fart. And my boobs attempt to suffocate me no matter how sturdy my sports bra is.

Definitely not relaxing for me!

I know this is going to happen now as soon as I get into a pose

May I present you with the Del Boy yoga mat!

I can't be doing with it, I am really inflexible but do a lot of sporty stuff so can see the benefit, but I just find it boring and I can't really get out of my head. I can run for hours and clear my mind, but if I try and do a downward dog (or whatever) I just start thinking about work or an embarrassing thing I said once and lose focus.

I'm a really self conscious person too, so find the whole thing a bit awkward and embarrassing.

Outstanding - I'm assuming it doesn't come with a money-back guarantee?

A couple of people have mentioned Adriene’s MOVE series. I found this the most difficult and least enjoyable of her 30 day programmes, because it’s so physical. Imo True and Dedicate are better. If you subscribe you get access to a lot more, and you can filter to see which ones are slow-paced, low to the ground, etc, so you can pick what you’re in the mood for. I quite like the discipline that the mix in the 30 day programmes give though- I always used to skip day 6, but now force myself and find them much less hideous. Even enjoyable!

I do the 30-day yoga challenges of Yoga with Adriene and some of the specific back/hips/neck ones, but otherwise I mainly do the bedtime yoga ones because they're so short and I do actually find them relaxing. I used to do Sivananda yoga at work and there was a lot of the breathing out of one nostril thing (I know there's a name for it) and that was fairly relaxing. But I usually find that I'm relaxed after yoga, not really during!

Yes, I was considering taking it at my own pace, without worrying about progression or achieving positions that I many never be able to do. It is the feeling of practicing that delights me in itself, and I have learned this past week that it pays to leave your ego at the door.

If I worry about achieving plank, cobra and so on, I feel stressed out (how will I do a sun salutation!???) But my upper body is not remotely strong enough currently and I could injure myself trying. I think I will apply modifications and just see how it rolls over time.

I keep trying to give yoga up, which is hilarious. But it's something I can't quite put back down! I can't find the words to describe this curious hook it has in me. It is possibly very personal, as now in my late forties is the first time I have ever even thought about my body, or felt good in it....or wanted to make it feel good. It is almost as if something unconscious is driving me to persevere. Perhaps my time of life and osteo issues in my family are a part of that.

I would like to avoid the trendy/wellness elements of the yoga 'lifestyle' though. I can see the attraction, but it does seem to be bound up with too much ego and status (not to mention food 'morality' and judgement). My ideal would be a series of private lessons to get me going on my own. Will check out prices and go from there.

Thanks to everyone who contributed on this thread. It has been incredibly helpful and taught me a lot:)

only a plonker would expect that!

Crikey, just did my 30 mins, which incorporated some 'gentle beginner stuff' with Adriene.
It involved being on my back hugging my thighs into chest, etc.
My bloody arse bones and lower back bones poke into the floor, through my mat and really hurt. Caused quite a bit of pain later which was curiously soothed by lying in child then corpse pose for 10 mins. I have the feeling I might wish I had never been born when I wake up tomorrow!

Good news is I found I can hold tree pose well which was lovely and relaxing, and I am doing very short cobra's, just making sure to get out of them before hurting myself.

You shouldn't hurt through your mat. Sounds like you need a new yoga mat.

In what position did your lower back bones push into the mat? If that is happening you need a thicker mat or a blanket. Knees into chest should be a restorative pose it's used for sciatica a lot.

This really isn’t a normal way to feel after the poses you describe.

There’s something a bit masochistic about persevering with an activity you clearly don’t enjoy, particularly if it causes you to feel pain.

I suggested to you a few days ago that you just don’t do yoga any more but you gave a sarcastic response. I’m not sure what you’re seeking by continuing with perversely persevering with it, and by updating this thread.

Just give it up and try something else. Nobody’s compelling you to do yoga, you know.

I have serious issues putting my legs back out straight when I'm on my back if I've had one or both legs raised. Always causes a pain in my very lower back. Eventually I found an adjustment where I roll to my side to put the final leg down. I persevered and it didn't work.

Steffy White has a few good videos on YouTube. I started with her bedtime yoga routine which is super relaxing and moved on from there. Her Scottish accent is very soothing.

I wouldn’t force your body in to poses that hurt (this is the issue I have with yoga)

The worst back injury I ever had was from a yoga pose.