I know someone who is an integral yoga teacher who recently did this post on Facebook
It doesn’t cost much to start a home practice. All you need:
YOGA MAT
1.5mm or 3.5mm thickness, I bought both for my students to give them the option, the thicker mats are especially good for beginners. You can also buy yoga towels that have a strong grip, which are ideal for when you travel as they fold up neatly and don’t take up too much space. There are lots of good brands that are affordable, you can buy a mat that is fit-for-purpose for as little as £6, but prices go up to £100. I got these M Life yoga mats for my students from TK Maxx, a high quality eco-friendly brand but I paid less than a third of the original retail price.
YOGA BLOCK
Each student needs 2. These are really important for seated stillness meditations, for supporting the hands in standing poses like ‘ardha trikonasana’ (revolved triangle pose), for lifting the pelvis in all seated poses (which enables the chest and spine to stay lifted and lengthened), and for supporting the lower back and middle in supine poses like sethubandasana (bridge pose). These are extremely useful for a variety of things and can be very lightweight. The ones I bought for students weigh less than 20g each and cost £4 each. Decathlon do decent ones for round £5 each and other good quality brands but pricier include Gaiam, Oak & Reed, Yoga Design Lab, Pido Yoga, M Life and YogaMatters. The weight varies from brand to brand but generally cork yoga blocks weigh the most.
YOGA STRAP
These are great for helping the lengthening of the spine, stretching the hamstrings or for adding a little space to practice flexibility. These can be elastic or fabric with D-rings - I prefer elastic ones and these are the excellent brand Theraband (used by physiotherapists for treatment), worth spending a bit extra for the quality and durability.
BLANKET
This is essential, one large enough to cover the body, and dense enough to create height when rolled up tightly. That way you can use it as a meditation seat as well or to add a little height when in some seated poses like dandasana (staff pose). Also needed for relaxation in shavasana (corpse pose) at the end of the session.
Other equipment that might be useful:
BOLSTERS
These are essential for yin yoga and restorative yoga because they provide a soft surface and height to relax your body into.
‘ZAZEN’ MEDITATION SQUARE CUSHION WITH SEAT
I love these cushions, China produces the most beautiful ones I’ve seen. They are square mats that fold up, with a small additional seated cushion to elevate the pelvis. They usually have embroidery and are extremely comfortable for meditation because they cushion the knees as well and are soft but very supportive.
MEDITATION STOOL
These are usually wooden and foldable. They are ideal for those who want to practice silent stillness meditations but struggle to sit in seated poses such as padmasana (lotus pose), ardha padmasana (half lotus pose), sukhasana (easy pose) or siddhasana (accomplished pose) for extended periods of time. They alleviate pressure on the lower half of the legs.