Yoga Blocks

Yoga exercises vary in difficulty and the physical and mental benefits they offer. Some students have no difficulties doing sequences of yoga poses, while some need to be eased into the physical demands of yoga. This is where accessories like yoga blocks come in. These rectangular wedges are used not only as support when doing yoga poses, but also for correcting the body’s alignment and adding variety to your workout. So how exactly do yoga blocks help you with your yoga exercise?

The Use of Yoga Blocks in Yoga Exercise

The most common use of yoga blocks is for elevation. Meaning, there are certain yoga poses that may be difficult for some students to do especially when they are just starting out with their practice and are not that flexible yet to do yoga exercise properly. A good example of this is for doing the Lotus Pose. A common problem students encounter when doing the Lotus is that they can’t make their knees touch the yoga mat, which is often due to tightness in the hips and thigh muscles. So what some people do is they sit on yoga blocks to elevate their hips, making it easier to lower the knees down to the mat.

Yoga blocks are also helpful in adding variety to how you do your yoga exercises. An example is for lunge poses, which work the leg muscles, especially the hamstrings. For the not-so-flexible or for those who haven’t done physical exercise in a while, they can use yoga blocks to alternate between half and full lunges. Yoga blocks can also serve as support for the lower back when doing the Bridge Pose, weight support for sitting and kneeling poses, etc. Examples of other yoga poses where yoga blocks come in handy include the Cobra, Triangle, Seated Twist, Reclined Hero’s Pose, and inversion poses like the headstand and shoulder and head stand.

Dimensions and Composition of Yoga Blocks

You can buy different types of yoga blocks according to dimensions and the materials used in making them. Just like how yoga mats can be made of natural rubber, cotton, PVC, etc., yoga blocks can also be made of dense foam, cork, or wood. Wood like teak and bamboo was most popularly used in the early years of yogic practice, but these wooden blocks can be quite heavy and thus inconvenient in modern day practice, especially for those who travel a lot and practice yoga wherever they go.

Yoga blocks made of dense foam are among the most popular types used today, although many studios and advanced yogis still prefer sturdy wooden varieties. Blocks made of cork are considered as somewhere in between the two; you get close to the level of firmness and sturdiness of wooden blocks but they are not as heavy, and they are also ideal for those who find foam-based yoga blocks too light.

There is no set standard of dimensions for yoga blocks, and this is one factor you should take note of if you’re buying yoga blocks. These yoga accessories are commonly sold in 6 x 9 x 4 or 6 x 9 x 3 inches, although some are sold 1-2 inches shorter or higher. Dimensions are important because you don’t want to end up getting too little support that the yoga blocks end up being not much of a help in doing your yoga exercises, or they might be a tad too high to be used properly for elevation and getting the correct alignment of the body when doing yoga poses. In addition, yoga blocks nowadays come in different colors and designs to meet the needs and taste of every yoga practitioner.