Yoga Etiquette
Yoga Class Etiquette/Notes On Mindful Practice
1. Be early, rather than late. Try to arrive 10-15 minutes early for class. This will allow time for registration, payment, and finding your spot in the room. If you do arrive late please wait in the hallway until the centering is complete before entering. (You can listen for movement in the room, or the sound of Om.)
2. Yoga Business First. Please mark your card and sign in on the sign in sheet before settling into practice. Even if you are late. Some of the classes have minimal time between, and this will greatly help your teacher.
3. No huge meals before. Come with an empty stomach. Yoga is best practiced 2-3 hours after a meal. A light snack such as fruit or can also be OK if you are coming to an earlier morning class. Please refrain from bringing food into the studio.
4. Stay hydrated. Bring water, preferably in a container with a lid.
5. Unplug. Turn off all of your devices before entering the studio, or even leave it outside the studio all together. It is very freeing to be without tethers to technology for this short time.
6. Communicate with your teacher. Tell your teacher if you have special health conditions or injuries before class. We are all working with something in the body that requires us to modify or be cautious at any given time. This is especially important if you are a new yoga student. Your teacher is there to help your practice to be comfortable and safe.
7. No shoes needed. Please remove your shoes and leave them in the hall before entering the studio. Occasionally someone might have a condition that requires them to wear shoes in practice, especially for standing poses. If this is the case for you, let your teacher know and make sure your shoes are as clean as possible.
8. Be comfortable in your clothes. Wear snug, stretchy, comfortable clothes that allow for freedom of movement.
9. Fragrance free. Refrain from wearing strong fragrance to class. This includes: perfume, cologne, essential oils, heavily scented lotions or other body products, cigarettes, or body odor. Many people are sensitive to fragrance and we want pure air to practice deep breathing.
10. Bring love not germs. Do not come to class if you are ill with something contagious. Your practice will be there once you are feeling better, or you can always unroll your mat at home.
11. Don’t skip relaxation. Stay through the end of relaxation. It is the final relaxation that is arguably the most important part of the whole practice. This is when we integrate the benefits of all the many aspects of the work we have done. If you absolutely must leave early, please sit near the back of the room near the door, and leave as silently as possible before everyone settles into Savasana.
12. Be tidy. Clean up when you are done. If you have borrowed any props, please return to them the way you found them, or even tidier. Blankets are folded, with the folded edge out, and straps get rolled back up.
13. Let go! Come in with an open mind, and make space for your heart to open too. This allows us all to remain present and less judgmental. The practice of yoga will help you become more aware, understanding, loving, compassionate, healthier, stronger, and skillful. As we practice this way of being with ourselves, we soon discover we are extending this to our friends, our families, our co-workers, and even strangers. Your personal practice of yoga really can make the world a better place.
Welcome to Main Street Yoga!
Namaste