Yoga classes do not require equipment, but many yoga instructors enhance classes with regular gym accessories and yoga props. Many yoga studios and fitness centers have yoga mats and props on hand that students can borrow. Yoga students can find yoga exercise equipment in department stores and yoga boutiques.
History
The style of yoga most known for the use of props is Iyengar. The famous yogi B. K. S. Iyengar, or Guruji, founded the yoga style and used props in his classes to bring students into the best expression of yoga postures. Other styles of yoga now adapt Iyengar principles of alignment, sequencing and prop use into their class formats. Yoga Journal writer Fernando Pagés Ruiz recounts that the sticky yoga mat emerged in London thanks to the entrepreneurial spirit of Angela and Richard Farmer.
Function
Yoga props serve a variety of purposes. Many students use yoga exercise equipment to help them modify yoga poses. Blocks, bolsters, wedges, straps and blankets often assist students with making a pose more accessible. These same props can allow yogis to deepen and perfect a pose. Most yoga classes have students practice on sticky yoga mats, which keeps them from sliding or slipping during poses like the Warrior and Downward Facing Dog.
Exercises
Yoga exercise equipment makes poses more challenging or focused. For example, a small yoga ball, or core ball, can allow a pose like Chair to more fully engage the leg muscles when it is placed between the thighs, just above the knees. Iron Yoga style classes incorporate the use of hand weights. A student might hold a three- to eight-lb. weight in each hand during Warrior 2, for example. Instructors can structure entire yoga classes using large balance balls.
Stretching
A yoga strap often encourages students to stretch deeper in poses like Seated Forward Bend or Dancer. When students practice Hanumanasana (the Splits), they can place each hand on a block underneath both the right and left hands. This helps them sit in a more upright position while holding the pose. Blocks are useful for both Seated and Standing Forward Bend. In Seated Forward Bend, students can place the block in front of the feet to help stretch. In the Standing variation, a block raises the floor so students do not have to reach as far.
Restoring
In gentle and restorative yoga classes, yoga props become tools to help students relax deeper in poses. Bolsters may prop up legs during relaxation and blocks can rest underneath the back during Bridge pose. In the prone version of Pigeon, yogis often place a block underneath one hip to make the pose more accessible. Wedges make seated poses more comfortable when placed underneath the hips.
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