Nigerians have gotten very big on fitness, people are starting to pay more attention to their diets and get more exercise. However, yoga is one part of fitness, most Nigerians refused to be sold on. The major reason for this, is that most people believe a lot of misconceptions about this ancient practice. These are the most common.
- It is not a religion. Practicing yoga doesn’t mean you are worshiping another “god”.
- You have to be super flexible to do it. Although yoga requires a certain level of flexibility, especially for the more advanced postures, you don’t need to be double jointed to practice it. One of the aims of many people doing it, is actually to become more flexible. The key is starting slow, and not attempting poses like this, your first week.
- It is not a real workout. A lot of people think yoga is just about sitting in a lotus position, practicing breathing exercises and attempting to twist our body parts into ridiculous positions. But it has a ton of physical benefits, you might not know about from weight loss to strength building, depending on the type of yoga.
- It does nothing for your mental health. People who practice yoga, don’t do it just for the fun of it. The truth is that it has been proven to lift moods, suppress anxiety and even help with depression.
- Only skinny people can do it. Whether you are slim or fat, or somewhere in between, having a particular body type does not stop you from doing yoga.
- It’s a white thing. Yoga is not meant for just white people, it just happens to be a stereotype. Like how people think all black people love chicken.