What to Expect From a Hatha Yoga Class

Yoga began in India around 2,000 years ago as a series of spiritual breathing exercises. The term Hatha was first recorded in the 11th century, but it wasn't until the late 19th century that it came to America, gaining mainstream popularity in the 1960s.

Today, roughly one in seven Americans practices yoga due to its mind-body wellness and health benefits. Research shows hatha yoga helps to relieve stress, support healthy habits, improve emotional health, ease back and arthritis pain, and even help people quit smoking. A yoga class makes a terrific gift for active moms, athletes, or anyone interested in low-impact exercise. Here is what you need to know about Hatha yoga.

What Is Hatha Yoga?

Hatha yoga focuses on posture and breathing techniques to channel vital energy sources. In Sanskrit, Hatha translates to force. The practice involves breath, body, and mind, and classes are usually 45 minutes to 90 minutes and include breathing, yoga poses, and meditation.

Hatha yoga breathing techniques can be traced back to the 1st Century in both Buddhist and Hindu texts. It was another 1,000 years before the use of yoga postures, or asanas, and breath control was recorded to enhance vital energy.

History of Hatha Yoga

Classical Hatha yoga was developed in the 15th century and included guidance for the proper setting of yoga, asanas, pranayama or breathing exercises, mudras or hand gestures, and meditation for personal spiritual growth.

By the 1950s, Hatha yoga was introduced to millions of households across America with Richard Hittleman's popular TV program "Yoga For Health."

A few years later, the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the spiritual advisor to The Beatles, brought a new dimension of yoga to the mainstream with a combination of transcendental meditation and yoga and its popularity soared. Today, Hatha yoga is well-known as a physical and spiritual practice for mind-body health.

Health Benefits of Hatha Yoga

Yogis have long touted the calming and wellness benefits of practicing yoga. Today, research supports many of these claims.

The National Institutes of Health's National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health analyzed dozens of peer-reviewed studies, and while most of the research was performed on small numbers of subjects, they found evidence to suggest yoga may be beneficial for the following conditions.

• Anxiety and depression: Yoga can help relieve everyday anxiety and depressive symptoms, however, it may not be effective for clinically diagnosed mental health conditions. The NCCIH reviewed 68 published studies on yoga and did not find conclusive evidence to support its effectiveness for managing anxiety disorder, depression, or PTSD.
• Arthritis and fibromyalgia: According to the NCCIH, there is little evidence to support yoga has benefits for osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and fibromyalgia.
• Back pain: The American College of Physicians recommends yoga as a non-drug method to treat back pain. A review of eight studies by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality found yoga improves lower-back pain and function with both short- and intermediate-term benefits, and its effects are similar to other types of exercise.
• Balance: Yoga helps to improve balance in healthy people, according to 11 out of 15 studies reviewed by NIH.
• Emotional health: Yoga has a positive impact on mental health and was shown to have benefits of improving resilience or general mental well-being in 10 out of 14 studies reviewed by NCCIH.
• Menopause: Yoga can relieve physical and psychological symptoms of menopause, including hot flashes, according to the NCCIH review of more than 1,300 study participants.
• Mindfulness: In a survey of 1,820 young adults published in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, participants attributed greater mindfulness, motivation to participate in other forms of activity and eat healthier, and the influence of a health-minded yoga community to practicing yoga regularly.
• Multiple sclerosis: Yoga has been shown to have short-term benefits on mood and fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis, however, it was not found to affect muscle function, cognitive function, or quality of life, the NCCIH reports.
• Neck pain: A meta-analysis published in the journal Medicine including 10 studies and a total of 686 subjects found that yoga can reduce neck pain intensity and disability from pain while also improving the range of motion in the neck.
• Sleep: Several studies reviewed by NCCIH have found yoga can improve sleep quality and duration. Populations found to experience sleep benefits from yoga include cancer patients, older adults, people with arthritis, pregnant women, and women with menopause symptoms.
• Stress management: Yoga was shown to improve physical or psychological measures related to stress in 12 out of 17 studies reviewed, according to NCCIH.

What to Expect in a Hatha Yoga Class

There are several different styles of yoga to choose from today. If a class is labeled yoga, it is likely the Hatha variety. Hatha is a gentle yoga that focuses on static poses and is great for beginners. However, even though it is gentle, it can still be physically and mentally challenging. Practitioners will want to wear close-fitting athletic wear and sports bras for maximum comfort and ease of movement.

While each class varies depending on the instructor, most classes last between 45 and 90 minutes. Classes typically start with a gentle warmup, advance to more physical poses, and end with a short period of meditation. Here's a breakdown of a typical class:

• Breathing: Most Hatha yoga classes start with a period of focus on your breath or pranayama. As you go through the poses, your teacher will continue to remind you to focus on your breath and may offer different breathing exercises to try.
• Poses: Yoga poses, also called postures or asanas, are a series of movements that help improve balance, flexibility, and strength. Poses range in difficulty from laying flat on the floor to physically challenging positions. If a pose is too challenging, your instructor can provide a modified posture.
• Meditation: Most classes end with a short period of meditation. During this period of quiet reflection, your teacher may ask you to lie on your back and may cover you with a blanket. Some instructors may take you through a guided meditation or may use Tibetan singing bowls.

A Word From Verywell

Hatha classes provide an opportunity to stretch, unwind, and release tension, providing a good counterpoint to both busy lifestyles and cardio workouts. 

If you go into a Hatha class and it feels too slow or not active enough, don't give up on yoga completely. There are faster-paced, more athletic ways to do yoga. Try a flow, vinyasa, or power yoga class, and see if that's more your speed.