Back to Nature with Naked Yoga

The practice of yoga is not usually associated with practicing in the all-together but naked yoga is now becoming surprisingly popular. There are regular classes springing up across America although it still seems to be a fairly well-kept secret. 

Those who attend are matter of fact about the whole process and essentially naked yoga probably isn’t anything new, many people may have practiced at home without wearing the usual yoga garb, but it’s the concept of a class full of naked people practicing yoga, which seems to be causing a stir.

If the thought of naked yoga is appealing and you are tempted to search for a local class, take a moment first to consider some of the benefits that you might experience:

Feeling of freedom for those participating
Feeling of being less inhibited.
Being more in touch and comfortable with their own bodies
Connecting on a more intimate level with other students

Classes can be any size and groups are often mixed. Whilst on paper this may seem to have some sexual connotations, this is not the aim of many of those who attend. Naked yoga provides a freedom of movement and increases the ability to be able to focus on the postures and the correct lines without being hampered by restrictive clothes and in addition, it enables the practitioner to be able to view their actual positions in the mirrors and so they can self-correct if the pose is not as it should be. Naked or not, yoga poses are important and it is vital that the postures are accurate.

Teachers also are able to see much more clearly if a final position is not quite right and can help the student to realign their position thus increasing the benefits of the posture.

Whilst initially there may be some embarrassment whilst removing clothes, once the practice sessions start, and the students focus on the task at hand, the embarrassment begins to fade. As yoga is non-competitive, there is little use trying to focus on others, attention is turned inward, students reconnect with their inner feelings and what their bodies are trying to tell them.

Many of those who study naked yoga feel that they are somehow reconnecting with nature, even if much of their practice is done indoors and away from scrutiny.

Practicing yoga outside whilst not wearing any clothes takes the practice a step further, but again practitioners feel that it enhances their individual session allowing them to reconnect with their body in a way that they would not be able to if wearing any sort of clothes.

Of course, naked yoga is not for everyone, and it is unlikely that the craze will see the demise of more traditional yoga groups, providing those who attend benefit and feel relaxed and comfortable in their environment, maybe there is something to be said for the back to nature theme.