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Anyone joining a yoga class for the first time is impressed by the large number of yoga poses needed for the beginning level alone. Surely, things are taken progressively, with the instructor starting by naming the yoga poses and explaining them one by one while also giving a personal example. The benefits that result from the full practice are manifold, from health improvement and body mobility to the ability to control the workings of the inner self and stress management. Yoga gives offers many rewards when practiced regularly, particularly if it implies a balance not only over the body but over the mind in particular.

Another name for the yoga poses is asanas, and each of them has a physical and mental dimension to it. Instructions for the execution of various yoga poses are given in books, e-guides, on Internet sites and magazines. Asanas work for almost all the parts of the body, and most often the instructor will indicate where the physical stress lies. What needs to be mentioned here is that depending on the yoga variant practiced, the asanas can differ a lot too, particularly since some postures are specific to one school or another.

Besides the physical capacity to perform yoga poses, one also needs to grow the balance and the concentration ability, since the physical is just one side of the practice that gets complete by the spiritual dimension only. By the breathing and relaxation techniques you'll learn how to ignore the difficulty of a posture as well as the disturbing elements in the background. The idea is not only to reach the yoga poses but to also be able to hold them for a determined period of time.

The practice of yoga poses without professional guidance and help could turn into a threat to the practitioner's physical and spiritual health and could result in injuries. Therefore, do not start yoga practice by word of mouth, or following directions in books, Internet sites or videos. Beginners have to be under the direct guidance of a trainer, with the mention that the beginner stage can often extend way beyond a year of practice. The complexity of the yoga poses will get higher with every advance you make on the way, but progress remains slow on the average as one learns to push the limits of body and mind.