Some join a yoga class as it’s a trend and others take it up because it is known for helping with back pain, stress, weight loss and more. But there can be times when yoga doesn’t work. Even though you pick the best studio or instructor and choose the right asana, keep your spine straight when asked, inhale and exhale at the right time, yoga doesn’t seem to be doing its magic. Clearly, you are making certain yoga mistakes, which is why you are unable to enjoy its benefits. If yoga practice is not helping you, it means there are reasons behind it.

Before anything else, you should know that you are not the only one who is not finding yoga to be beneficial. Yoga expert Rakhi Suryavanshi highlighted this in her Instagram post.

She believes there could be five prime reasons why yoga doesn’t work for some people. Come, let us find out!

1. Hours off the mat count

Every morning, you get up early, wear your workout clothes, take your mat with you and head to the yoga studio or the park. Now, there are 24 hours in a day out of which you spend only one to two hours on the mat. That too not everyday, so the rest of the 23 hours is spent on doing different things. Suryavanshi pointed out that if you don’t lead a wholesome lifestyle along with the right approach and awareness towards life then the yoga practice can not help you at a deeper level.

2. Not eliminating the root cause of your disease

Many claim that yoga helps patients with heart disease, obesity and other ailments or health conditions. You might be also having a disease which is why you decided to make yoga your friend. According to Ayurveda, to get rid of the disease, you have to completely eliminate the factors contributing to the disease from the diet and lifestyle. It’s called Nidan Parivarjan, shares the expert. Without eliminating the root cause, if you are practising yoga then yes, it might help but only to manage the disease and not get rid of it. She said that yoga is a wholesome process and not about shortcuts.

3. Not choosing the right yoga practice

Clothes and shoes come in different sizes, and so do yoga practices. Well, you need to mindful while choosing your yoga practices such as kriyas, asanas, pranayama, as they should be structured according to your body type (constitution), your health conditions (imbalances), your age and your physical abilities.

4. Not practising yoga according to the change in season

Every yoga asana, kriya and pranayama has a different effect on the body, so the practice should be modified according to the different seasons. Sharing examples, the expert said that pranayama such as kapalbhati, bhastrika and surya bhedana should be done more during winter as they generate more heat in the body. On the other hand, pranayama such as chandra bhedana and sheetkari have cooling effect on the body, so they should be done more during summer when it’s hot.

5. Not resting enough

Overdoing it is also not the solution. A lot of times yoga practitioners overexert themselves to gain benefits from the practice. They forget that rest is one of the most essential elements for the body to heal itself as proper rest puts the nervous system at ease which in turn reboots the entire body.