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Yoga May Not Be Suitable For Everyone - Don't Shoot Me!

Sandra Hoffmann

Updated: Aug 24, 2023



Yoga may not be suitable for everyone - this is just my belief! I studied and became a yoga practitioner/ trainer in not just one but in three practices of yoga. I became a trainer in vinyasa, a trainer in yin yoga and a trainer in laughing yoga (yes, it is a practice and I can categorically say in terms of coaching the best one that I utilise the most, and the most overall affective.)


I’ve had many yoga practitioners tell me that yoga is good for everyone – I don’t necessarily agree.


Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love stretching and do so daily, and love meditation, but I seldom found yoga instructors initially, that is 40 years ago that explained that some stretching and some poses are just not good for my body. And even now, I prefer to do my own thing at a slower pace if I go to a yoga class.


I learnt the hard way after studying and doing the vinyasa training, and by the end of that training my body felt that it was in tatters, but then so did many of the other participants as well. I also learnt meditation when I was 9 years old from our primary school teacher and I still love it. There are some similarities, but yoga involves postures and stretching, which are not necessarily suitable for everyone.


Yin yoga training and sessions I found much more soothing on the body, but again some positions just aggravated my body which you don’t realise until after.

And the problem often is that I don’t know exactly which position aggravated me, and I’d just come out with a pinched nerve immediately after or a few days later.

Laughing yoga is by far the best and allows the body to relax, re-calibrate and feels similar to a great night out with your friends when you’ve finished it, I’ve found.


I found the best quote for yoga on www.yogainternational


“After teaching yoga for over 15 years (and practicing yoga for as long as I can remember), the most important lesson I’ve learned is that not all yoga classes are appropriate for every BODY, all the time.”


Overall, for the majority of people I still believe that light dancing is better on the body than yoga, fewer injuries and less pulled muscles. This is just my opinion.

The fact that my back is too flat and that one leg is considerably stronger than the other doesn’t help trying to do yoga.


I love the principles of yoga. I love that yoga is calming and the space that it holds when you go in, but my body is not particularly flexible enough, has sustained injuries over the years and generally after a session of yoga I come out feeling sore, and not in a good way.


This is my experience of yoga. I will probably get endless complaints about this article. But just like some people prefer physiotherapy over chiropractic therapy, I prefer walking and meditation over a yoga session.

I have endless numbers of yoga instructors telling me that I just pushed my body too far and have told me to try someone else’s class.


These days most yoga sessions I go to are definitely much more grounded than years ago when it seemed that it was more a competition of who could stretch the best.


I will recommend yoga, especially laughing yoga, but I generally say that it is great for people who want to experience meditation and some stretching but will also advise how and why I feel it is not for everyone.


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