yoga shoes or barefoot during a yoga practice? We take a closer look at both options!
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You’ll find that some yoga instructors prefer to go barefoot. Often, they would ask all participants to take off their footwear as well. Most yoga studios have shoe racks outside, so everyone can take off your shoes before entering the studio. This keeps the floor and mat clean from outside dirt. Besides, when going barefoot, yoga postures are somewhat easier.
Practicing yoga barefoot is believed to have many benefits. Here are some of them:
Your feet play important roles during yoga classes. Most of the postures require firm contact between your feet and your yoga mat. You need to have a good grip to maintain balance and stability. Wearing shoes may limit your movement.
Your feet are the base of support for your body. And nearly 30% of the joints in your body are on your feet. Practicing barefoot helps strengthen your ankle and arches.
The connection with the ground in barefoot yoga helps energy to flow smoothly through your body.
Even though most yoga studios and instructors will ask you to practice yoga barefoot, it’s more of a recommendation. All you have to do is ask your instructor if their session is suitable for this uncommon option. In fact, you’re recommended to wear yoga shoes in one of these conditions:
Wearing shoes in a yoga class depends on the setting and environment of your yoga practice. If you feel uncomfortable to do barefoot, or you have health conditions, some shoes can help enhance your yoga practice.
Yoga shoes are ergonomically designed to give you the best yoga experiences. Some provide effective foot pain relief caused by long-standing poses.
Most yoga shoe feature cushion, padding, and protection for more effective poses. They give better control on different types of surfaces. Even on a slippery surface, you can have the proper strength and balance on various postures.
Yoga studios are visited by many people, so it often creates a germ-filled environment. Wearing yoga shoes and bringing your own yoga mats are the best for this case.
Some types of yoga shoes are ideal for many different exercises. They help you with stretching and strengthening your feet.
There are some benefits of wearing yoga shoes, both outdoors and in studios. Compared to gym shoes, yoga shoes are more flexible. And they offer sturdier protection than yoga socks. But, you need to make sure to get the one that best suits your needs and conditions. Here are some of the yoga shoes for you to choose from:
Manami Shoes - These unisex shoes are made of Vibram fabric, which makes it lightweight. Perfect for different movements and postures in yoga exercises!
Azami Shoes - These shoes are perfect for outdoor yoga. The mesh and rubber top make them breathable.
Michiko Shoes - These are lightweight water shoes with solid soles, which make them comfortable to wear. With more grips, the slippery surface is no longer a problem.
Kimi Shoes - Wearing these shoes give you a barefoot feeling. Thanks to its super lightweight material! And they are flexible, so you won’t feel restricted during tough poses.
Ideally, yoga is done barefoot. However, the choice of either to wear yoga shoes or barefoot depends on your needs and conditions. If you have some health issues, on outdoor yoga, or are concerned about germs in yoga studios, you can always wear yoga shoes. There’s no sin in that! In fact, it’s highly recommended in those situations.
Barefoot yoga does offer some benefits, such as improving stability and flexibility, plus strengthening your muscles. On the other hand, wearing shoes during your yoga practices also has some advantages. These include relieving foot pains and helping you move more comfortably.
If you need to wear shoes for your yoga classes, you can choose some shoes that give protection and flexibility. Lightweight shoes are great, as they allow you to practice many different poses.
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In a hot yoga class, you’ll spend sixty to ninety minutes in a heated room. If this is your first class, you may not know what you should wear. Most hot yoga practitioners prefer to wear form-fitting clothes. Light and breathable fabrics are preferable as they help evaporate moisture off your skin.
The perfect clothes should support your moves. Most importantly, they should feel comfortable on your body and keep you cool during these practices. Many yoga clothes are made of the combination of polyester, nylon, and spandex. They give maximum comfort, flexibility, and breathability.
Choose function over fashion for any of your workout outfits. You need something to optimize the benefits of intense hot yoga classes. If you wear something uncomfortable, whether it’s too tight or too loose clothes, it won’t help you stay focus. And worse, you may not perform your moves correctly. Here are a few things to help you in choosing yoga clothes for hot yoga.
Wear a light top that supports your body. Form-fitting t-shirts or tank tops that fit right around your hips and waist are the best choices. These will keep them from covering your face on bending postures. Tank tops also give your arms more freedom to move and more airflow to your torso.
Choose soft, breathable, and moisture-wicking fabrics for a quick-dry during your sweaty class. You can also wear tank tops with built-in bras. We recommend Fuyu Tank and Gen Tank from our collection!
Don’ts:
For your hot yoga classes, look for yoga pants or shorts that give you flexibility, comfort, and breathability. The combination of nylon-polyester-spandex lets you move flexible, and they wick sweats. You can find multiple styles of yoga pants and shorts with varying lengths and fits. Shorts is the most comfortable as they keep you cool during your practice.
That being said, longer coverage can be a bonus as the fabric helps to keep you from slipping off your sweaty arms and legs. For less slipping when you're stretching and bending, you can wear high-waisted leggings or pants, like Sota Legging. If you prefer shorts, you can try Chiaki Shorts. It’s breathable, comfortable, and not very stretchy.
Don’ts:
Yes, ladies! It’s important to wear a sports bra for yoga. It keeps everything in place among many other benefits. You will also need sports bras that wick moisture for less sweat. The anti-bacterial feature is always a plus. Make sure each pair you buy is lightweight and breathable as well. It’s your choice to wear sports bras alone or wear them with a tank top or t-shirt. Or you can wear shirts and tops that come with built-in bras.
During a hot yoga class, you’ll have the entire 60 to 90 minutes of movement and sweating. Some moisture-wicking base layer for your comfort is essential. Buy undies that don’t rub or move too much. Or you can also wear pants or leggings without underwear.
**Don’ts: Avoid cotton or lacy underwear. They breathe well, but they also absorb sweat. And it makes them heavy and don’t dry quickly.
To keep your feet from slipping on the mat, you can wear socks while practicing hot yoga. Choose socks with dots on the bottom to prevent sliding or yoga-toe socks. Something lightweight is preferable.
To avoid drop-changing weather from your class to outdoor, you can opt to have a sweater or jacket with you. It helps you, especially during winter, when you need to do some errands after a sweaty class.
When you buy yoga clothes, check the washing instructions each has. Pay attention to these to prolong your apparel’s quality. Turn your outfits inside out and wash them in cold water, never in hot water. You can tumble dry on a low setting or just hang them to dry. Separate items with zippers to prevent them from snagging the soft fabrics.
There’s nothing more fulfilling than finally racking all the benefits from a rewarding hot yoga session. And being comfortable in your yoga clothes for hot yoga will help you achieve a better workout. For a short practice, it’s fine to wear regular yoga clothes, such as simple shorts and tank tops. But, for intense hot yoga classes, you’ll need something more. Thus, proper outfits to withstand the heat and sweat are important.
Choose a lightweight and breathable material for hot yoga. Comfort is a must, but style and durability should never be compromised! Check out our catalog for all of these and more!
]]>Whether you're joining for a class or simply following a Youtube session from home, it’s important to wear a comfortable outfit, including a sports bra. Find out why you should wear a sports bra for yoga!
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Choosing the right clothing for our fitness session also works as an investment. Wearing the right sports bra for yoga ensures not only comfort but also serves as a form of double self-care. Starting a healthy lifestyle is as important as being able to do it for as long as we can. Some of the downsides of not wearing a sports bra during your yoga session are injuries around your back or neck. This is far from our goal of wanting a healthy body.
Breast support is essential when you’re doing any physical activities. Wearing a sports bra will cut the risk that may surface later. A suitable sports bra will help you achieve your goals, boost your performance, and drop discomfort. In the long term, it keeps your body safe from any form of physical injury. We sure do not want back pain or neck pain as the repercussions of healthy behavior.
One of the main things we do in yoga is stretching. Doing the right stretch will help optimize the benefit you seek from yoga. While it doesn’t require many movements, wearing a sports bra will aid maximize room for movements. Some of the motions still require flexibility. That’s why it’s important to note that your fabric doesn’t constrict much of your movement.
Sports bras come in different models these days, as you can see in YogaMatto sports bra collection. With so many options of fun bright colors and still preserving its main purpose, it wouldn’t hurt to stay in style. Picking a sports bra that matched best with who you are can fulfill the function of a secret weapon to boost your confidence. Or, it can pretty much work as a self-serving satisfaction, like picking the right outfit for your day!
Yoga is not the type of workout that requires heavy movement or much jostling of your breasts. But it’s still important to wear a sports bra as it may differ from other bras we wear daily. Although there are none yoga-specific sports bra, wearing one should benefit you. Especially when it comes to comfort around the front, back, and shoulder area.
A yogi would need a different type of bra compared to the ones worn by runners or dancers, considering its low-intensity workout. Yoga practices demand low-impact physical activities, postures (asanas), breathing techniques (pranayama), relaxation, and meditation. These practices allow you to get away with wearing thinner, stylish sports bras that don't look like typical padded ones. Here are a few tips in choosing a sports bra:
When choosing a sports bra, it’s important to know what your body needs. Different sizes of breasts required different sports bras to ensure support and comfort. Look for cup lining to prevent overexposure and adjustable straps to customize the fit. Besides, back and side mesh panels are always handy as it helps reduce weight. Here are some of the tips in choosing a sports bra according to your breasts size:
Sports bra emphasizing breast compression works best for women with small breasts. It restricts movements as it compresses breasts against the chest wall. Women with small breasts also have more options in how much back and shoulder support they need. For this, we recommend our Kokoro Sports Bra or Mayu Sports Bra.
If you go with C or D cup range, you need a sports bra that combines both compression and encapsulation. It helps the breasts held close to the chest wall as well as adding support to the breasts. Encapsulation bras also support each bra with the help of individual cups. Consider getting one form our Himari Sports Bra collection!
For women with larger bust sizes, thick elastic bands, higher necklines, and overlapping strap details will work as more support. It allows your chest to make room for movements, especially when the expansion of the chest occurs during Pranayam. Lucky for you, we have just the right one in our collection. We highly recommend Kanako Sports Bra.
Even though yoga is considered a low-impact workout, it’s important to pick a certain set of materials. Thin fabrics that come with moisture management and abrasion resistance is best used to avoid any chafing. One of the main activities in yoga is to do proper breathing. This shouldn’t only apply to your lungs but also your skin! You wouldn’t want to wear anything that traps the sweat—yes, yogis sweat!—and cause you derm problems in the long run.
Beyond comfort and confidence, wearing a sports bra can help you prevent unwanted downsides. As a type of sport that emphasizes breathing exercises, the importance of wearing a sports bra for yoga can contribute to your physical condition in the long run. We wear it to avoid possible affliction that may surface if we don’t pay enough attention to our body’s comfort. Especially in the chest area.
Next time you’re in for a bag of new sports bras, make sure you know what your body needs. Catering to your breast size is an important note in choosing your sports bra. Whichever size your breasts fall in the spectrum, we encourage you to pick the best fitting sports bra for your upcoming yoga class. Namaste!
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