Yoga is a great way of establishing a connection between your body and mind.
Many people use it to improve their fitness, while others become yoga practitioners because of its spiritual benefits.
Whatever the reason you have chosen to become a yogi, you are likely wondering how often you should do yoga.
Often, it is recommended that you participate in the activity anywhere between 2 and 5 times a week.
But the truth is that you can do yoga as regularly as you desire. Why is this? Find the answers below.
How Often Should You Do Yoga?
The general advice is to do yoga between 2 and 5 times weekly. The idea is that this is enough time to benefit from yoga without becoming too drained from it.
Plus, this frequency gives your body a break, meaning it is not under constant pressure.
A regular yoga schedule will allow you to see improvements in your ability. You will be able to improve your yoga skills quicker if you often take part in yoga.
On the other hand, we believe that the frequency with which you do yoga should be partially reliant on the motivation for participating.
However, this is not the only important consideration, as you will also need to think about whether or not you have the time for yoga.
Motivated By Fitness
Many people get involved with yoga because they want to become fitter. If you are looking for an exercise that can enhance your strength and flexibility, yoga is an outstanding option.
If this is your reasoning for choosing yoga, you should regularly take part in it. Namely, you should try to do yoga at least three times a week.
However, you should seriously think about what your main fitness goals are. Do you wish to build muscle? Do you want to improve your flexibility?
Do you dream of losing weight? It’s important to consider this because your fitness goals will determine the frequency with which you do yoga and what kinds of sessions you choose.
If you are motivated to use yoga to build muscle, you should get involved with power yoga. This is a branch of intense yoga that can increase your strength.
Be sure to do power yoga between 3 and 5 times a week, ensuring that your body gets a break from this more intense exercise variety.
Power yoga can also help you to lose weight. Just make sure that you complete exercises that are targeted at weight loss.
Alternatively, you can find power yoga classes that focus on specific weight goals.
Motivated By Balance
If you are using yoga to boost your balance, you should make sure to do yoga regularly. Ideally, you should participate in it daily.
If you do not do yoga regularly, you probably will not witness an improvement in your balance.
There are lots of yoga poses that are designed to enhance balance, such as the mountain pose. If you find that the mountain pose works, there are lots of different varieties for you to try.
Motivated By Emotional Relief
The truth is that it does not matter how regularly you do yoga, especially if you are doing it to overcome your stress or anxiety.
If you wish to find peace when experiencing these emotional issues, you can simply do yoga whenever you feel a bit stressed or overwhelmed. During these times, you can focus on meditation.
You can also do any yoga poses that you find relaxing.
For instance, you can do the Balasana, also known as the child’s pose. Simply do this pose whenever you need to feel comfortable and protected.
Can You Do Yoga 7 Days A Week?
Yes, you can do yoga this often.
However, this is not necessarily the best way of using yoga. Many people find that they become exhausted when doing yoga every day of the week.
This is certainly the case for power yoga, which requires yogis to take regular breaks.
If you find that using yoga 7 days a week works for you, then there is no reason to change.
On the other hand, if you think that this is too much and feel a little burnt out, it is advised that you do yoga less frequently.
How Long Should A Yoga Session Be?
As with the frequency with which you do yoga, the length of your yoga session should be as long as you want.
You should listen to your body and mind to determine how long your yoga session is.
Some at-home yogis even have sessions that are just 5 minutes long. This is great news because it means that you can easily fit a useful yoga session into your busy schedule.
So if you’ve had a stressful day of work, you can take a brief 5-minute session to calm yourself.
On the other hand, many yoga sessions last between 30 and 60 minutes, especially group sessions.
Many classes for beginners and yogis with medium levels of experience tend to last this long, giving sufficient time for people to build their yoga skills.
However, some long yoga sessions at retreats can last up to 120 minutes. Though this may sound like a long session, this is a great way of enhancing one’s performance.
Plus, this is plenty of time for one to become spiritually and emotionally relaxed.
Just bear in mind that this is quite a long time, so you may find it difficult to focus on yoga for this long.
Not to mention, few people have 120 minutes to set aside during the week! Consequently, these long yoga sessions are better suited for holidays.
Final Thoughts
When doing yoga, it is important not to focus too much on how often and how long you are doing it. This is because yoga is a unique experience for everyone.
Not to mention, everyone has a different life with various commitments.
Therefore, while some people find it valuable to do yoga twice a week, others will prefer doing it more often. Just do what works for you!
The positive effect yoga had on me was indescribable. Every aspect of my life improved, from social to mental, physical to emotional.
I want my website to help more people get into the world of yoga and teach them how to be present for themselves - even if that’s just for a few minutes a day.
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