Yoga blocks are a great way to help beginners when they’re learning poses and strengthening their bodies. However, they are good for much more than only beginners. They are a highly necessary way to help a large percentage of people in a yoga class for many reasons. There is a lot that they can help students with, and the support they get from yoga blocks may just encourage people to stick with yoga.
Yoga Blocks Help Students With Alignment
There is a lot of alignment that needs to be at the forefront when students attempt many different positions. Many students struggle with knee-and-ankle alignment when they’re engaged in standing poses. Some have a hard time with their spinal alignment. Some have trouble with squats or bridge pose because their knees cave in. Yoga blocks can help in all of these situations to help the student align themselves better.
It can be especially helpful for keeping the spine aligned and to help people who have joint problems. If students have a muscle imbalance, blocks can be extremely helpful for getting into the right positions and staying there. These blocks can help students to use their muscles in the right way and start to get some muscle memory. This can help them to strengthen the areas that need it as they reach the poses they are striving for.
Lift the Floor
There are many poses that require students to reach their hands down to the floor, and this can be difficult for many people. Using yoga blocks can bring the floor upward closer to the student so that they can more easily get into position. Once they have mastered reaching down to the blocks and have strengthened those muscles, they can try reaching to the floor. When showing students how to use yoga blocks, they can be stacked either horizontally or vertically, as needed by the student.
Using them this way can help people to find their balance for many different poses, such as the triangle and warrior 3 poses. This also helps the student to avoid curving their spine or straining their hamstrings.
A Comfortable Place to Sit
There are many people who have trouble sitting on the floor for very long. The problem may be joint problems, or it may be tight hamstrings that make it hard to sit cross-legged. It’s easy for the spine to become hunched over when sitting on the floor. It can also cause the knees to be too high. Beginners may have trouble with it that can be relieved by having yoga blocks to sit on. They are highly
comfortable and can allow for a straighter spine.
When students are in hero pose or child’s pose, having a block to sit on can allow the spine to be better aligned. When the student is doing bends where they are seated forward, using a block to sit on can help prevent tension in the back and allow the pelvis to have the proper tilt.
Help With Deeper Stretches
When students have yoga blocks to put their hands on, they have the support they need to get into the pose more deeply. They are especially helpful for beginners to help them learn balance and to open themselves up where they should. Poses that require the hips and inner thighs to be open can be helped by blocks that can be placed in between the feet. It can also help students to avoid back pain in certain poses such as asymmetrical standing. It can even be used to help students to open their chests more in poses such as a reclined hero pose. The blocks can help greatly with stretching more deeply as well as breathing more deeply.
Stretches with yoga blocks can allow for better stretches that lead to stronger, longer muscles. People at all skill levels may find that they stretch better when they use blocks.
Longer Poses
It’s important for students to be able to both get into the correct positions and to stay in them. Beginners who are struggling to stay in their poses for very long can be greatly helped by using yoga blocks. Using blocks can help students to hold their poses for far longer that they could without them. This helps them to build their flexibility as well as their strength and stamina. It can also allow for the therapeutic benefits of yoga to work their magic.
When a student has a block to use, they get the support they need to be stable in their posture. With more stability comes better relaxation, better calm, and deeper breathing. Beginners and those who have muscle or joint problems can especially benefit from using a block to hold their pose.
Yoga Blocks Build Confidence and Encourages Exploration
Whether a student is just starting out or is experienced with many basic poses, using yoga blocks can help the feel more confident in what they’re doing. This extra boost of confidence can help with every aspect of yoga, including stretches and breathing. When students feel more confident, they are more likely to try new poses that may have otherwise intimidated them. Trying new poses keeps people moving along their yoga journey and allows them to keep improving their bodies.
With more support for the tough poses, students can feel free to explore a wide range of poses. Using the blocks can open students up to aspects of yoga that they may never have explored. As an instructor, it’s important to keep students growing and thriving in their practice of yoga. Blocks can make that possible for a wide range of students.
For so many reasons, it’s important to have yoga blocks in your practice and to show people how to use yoga blocks in helpful ways. There are so many ways that they can be helpful that having blocks can take your practice to the next level. Make students more confident and help them to get the most out of every class they take. When they get more from what they do, they are more likely to continue on with their yoga journey.
If you’d like to learn more about how you can use yoga blocks to enhance your yoga practice, try us out at Yoga Nyla. Our teachers are passionate, caring, and fun. We would love to have you in our community.
