Yoga Equipment
When it comes to practicing yoga, there’s surprisingly more than just a mat that can be used to help you. There’s yoga balls, straps, blocks, incense, sandbags, and many more! In this blog, I’m going to list a few of these pieces of equipment, what they are, and how they can be used to make your yoga experience more enjoyable!
Yoga Balls
When you hear these words, you probably think of one of two things. Either the big bouncy yoga ball that some people have taken to use as a replacement for a desk chair, or small hard sand filled balls you might see in a gym or any workout studio. If you guessed either of these two choices, you’re right! Yoga balls can be both of these things, and in this blog, I’m going to be talking about the former option. These bigger, bouncier yoga balls can be used for a multitude of reasons. Usually 13-40 inches in diameter, and filled with air, these tools are great to work on your balance and well as flexibility in the yoga studio or at home. You can try and sit upright on them, or try certain yoga poses that were too simple for you before to help add a new level of difficulty to them. Or, you can use them as a desk chair as more and more people are doing now a days.
Yoga Straps
Never heard of these before? That’s totally fine, most beginner yoga practitioners haven’t heard of these either. Yoga straps are used for helping to enhance a person's stretch while doing a certain pose to enhance the difficulty. These are also often used in the gym when working out, when squatting or doing leg ups. They add a level of resistance when used that can make a stretch more difficult, but more thorough. These are great for when certain poses and stretches have become too ‘easy’ and you want to challenge yourself just a little bit!
Yoga Cushions
Cushions? For yoga? Sounds weird, I know, but they can actually be really helpful in the studio. Yoga cushions are very beneficial for posture, and opening up the body. Usually used towards the end of a workout or session, you can use these cushions on your lower back, below your things, under your neck, or anywhere that feels the most sore. These are great to have in the studio because they give you that extra stretch and comfort that can help to drastically eliminate future pain from possible extensive workouts. These cushions come in many sizes and shapes depending on how you want to use them, and range in price from $20-$45 depending on quality!