Yoga is all about the poses and how they make your body feel, it also takes you to a spiritual path with a bit of physical movement. For some people, it is the biggest stress reliever. Not all types of yoga suit every person. You need to try the one that suits your personality. Each person is different in their own way, so is their body requirement. With the help of yoga, you can improve your strength, flexibility, and balance. It releases the tension in your body, provides you peace, and helps you relax. If you are excited to learn the most common Yoga styles or already know it and want to take it to a higher level, read the information below.

9 Most Common Yoga Styles

Here are 9 most common yoga styles:

Hatha Yoga

The Sanskrit term “Hatha” is referred to the physical practice of yoga that teaches you different physical postures. There are no pre-requisites when you start yoga teacher training in India. Hatha yoga is a basic type of yoga for beginners. It teaches you simple and easy poses which you can learn at your own pace. Additionally, it teaches you how to focus on relaxation, breathing, and meditation. It is observed that women who practice this regularly are highly benefited in terms of relieving their stress. In this type, you need to hold each pose for a few seconds.

Iyengar Yoga

Iyengar yoga teaches you a traditional type of postures and found highly effective for recovering from many injuries. This yoga is for the people of all age brackets. It suits best to the detail-oriented people. You may want to use different props to get your poses at right angles.

Kripalu Yoga

It is a modern style of yoga that has been adapted from traditional Hatha yoga practices. In this type, you require to move your body gently. Your body does not sweat and still gets benefited. Beginners find it easy and interesting to start their yoga journey with Kripalu yoga. It places equal importance on the mind, body, and spirit. It focuses on meditation, physical healing, and spiritual transformation.

This yoga style can be adopted by everyone irrespective of their age, ability, size, or other circumstance.

Also Check Out: Yoga Asanas to Improve Memory

Ashtanga Yoga

This style is used specifically for weight loss. It is known as one of the best advance styles of yoga. It generates a lot of heat in your body, as a result, you lose weight faster. In this type, you perform a non-stop series of yoga postures. It teaches you a special breathing technique which helps you to focus on the mind and control the flow of breathing through the body.

Kundalini Yoga

This is one of the most common yoga styles. Kundalini Yoga teaches you a spiritual and philosophical approach to yoga. It includes meditation, breathing techniques, and chanting along with different yoga postures. Many celebrities practice this style religiously to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Its extraordinary style challenges you mentally and physically. It resolves your internal conflicts and creates a self-awareness within you. The challenging poses used in this style create a lot of extra energy within you and make you a hyperactive person.

Yin Yoga

This Yin yoga style is found highly effective to keep your body and mind calm and helps to create balance. It restores the natural power that you might have lost. You need to move your body slowly to perfect your posture and stay there for a few minutes to create stretch for the effect.

Note: Many doctors suggest this yoga for the better recovery of your nervous system.

Power Yoga

Power yoga builds your muscles and helps you streamline your body. It has also proved effective for losing weight and increasing metabolism in your body. This style makes your body highly flexible and increases physical stamina. Power yoga requires you to move in and out of different poses quickly by lifting and holding your body as is. Many people call it a gym-yoga but this style has proved comparatively more benefits than gym exercise.

Power yoga workout involves different styles, such as Ardha Chandrasana (Half Moon Pose), Paripurna Navasana (Boat Pose), Ustrasana (Camel Pose), Salabhasana (Locust Pose), Chaturanga Dandasana (Plank Pose), Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward Facing Dog Pose), and Utkatasana (Chair Pose).

Bikram Yoga

Bikram yoga is a series of 26 postures and two exercises performed in a heated room. This postures warms and stretches your muscles in the order in which they should be stretched for the best effect. These postures should ideally be performed within 90 minutes. It helps you heal chronic pain, such as arthritis, joint aches, knee injuries, and back problems.

Hot Yoga

Hot yoga is a demanding form of yoga performed under hot and humid conditions. It has proved highly effective for hard-core sweat lovers. It helps you burn around 500 calories in an hour. It is the best type of yoga for weight loss.

Practicing yoga in a heated room increases your pulse rate and metabolism, and allows your blood vessels to become more flexible. As a result, it makes circulation easier and increases blood flow to the limbs. The regular practice of yoga keeps your mind and body balanced. You should practice yoga every day or at least 2 to 3 days a week if you find it too strenuous to do it daily.

Conclusion

If you are a beginner, it is always good to take a few classes in a slower style of yoga first to get the feel for the poses. If you are already doing yoga for fitness and to get in shape as well as to explore the mind-body connection, then choose a vigorous yoga style, such as power yoga, ashtanga yoga, or Bikram yoga. If you have any injury, a medical condition, or other limitations then start with a slower style of yoga that focuses on alignments, such as Iyengar yoga and Kripalu yoga.