Motivations for Adopting and Maintaining a Yoga Practice: A National Cross-Sectional Survey.

Background: Yoga practice is becoming increasingly popular around the world, yet little is known regarding why people adopt the practice of yoga or how their reasons for practice change with continued practice. Furthermore, whether those who practice different types of yoga have different motives remains unknown. Methods: To address these issues, the authors conducted a national cross-sectional online survey of 1,702 yoga practitioners in Germany, asking about demographic information and motives for initiating and continuing yoga practice. Results: The most common primary reasons for starting yoga were relaxation (26.6%) and prevention (25.5%), which were also the most common secondary reasons. Nine hundred and forty-one (55.3%) reported a different primary reason for maintaining than for adopting yoga practice. Prevention (38.4%) and spirituality (26.4%) were the most commonly reported primary reasons for maintaining yoga practice. More highly educated participants and those practicing longer than 5 years at the time of the survey were more likely to have reported a different current primary reason for yoga practice than that for which they started practicing. Conclusions: These results shed light on yoga's appeal to novices and regular practitioners, with important implications for making yoga appealing to beginners as well as promoting the practice as a long-term lifestyle behavior.

Adverse effects of yoga: a national cross-sectional survey.

BACKGROUND: While yoga is increasingly used for health purposes, its safety has been questioned. The aim of this cross-sectional survey was to analyze yoga-associated adverse effects and their correlates. METHODS: A cross-sectional anonymous national online survey among German yoga practitioners (n = 1702; 88.9% female; 47.2 ± 10.8 years) was conducted from January to June 2016. Participants were queried regarding their yoga practice, i.e. yoga styles used, length and intensity of yoga practice, practice patterns, and whether they had experienced acute or chronic adverse effects of their yoga practice. Independent predictors of acute or chronic adverse effects were identified using multiple logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: Ashtanga yoga (15.7%), traditional Hatha yoga (14.2%), and Sivananda yoga (22.4%) were the most commonly used yoga styles. 364 (21.4%) yoga users reported 702 acute adverse effects, occurring after a mean of 7.6 ± 8.0 years of yoga practice. The most commonly reported yoga practices that were associated with acute adverse effects were hand-, shoulder- and head stands (29.4%). Using Viniyoga was associated with a decreased risk of acute adverse effects; practicing only by self-study without supervision was associated with higher risk. One hundred seventy-three participants (10.2%) reported 239 chronic adverse effects. The risk of chronic adverse effects was higher in participants with chronic illnesses and those practicing only by self-study without supervision. Most reported adverse effects concerned the musculoskeletal system. 76.9% of acute cases, and 51.6% of chronic cases reached full recovery. On average 0.60 injuries (95% confidence interval = 0.51-0.71) per 1000 h of practice were reported, with Power yoga users reporting the highest rate (1.50 injuries per 1000 h; 95% confidence interval = 0.98-3.15). CONCLUSIONS: One in five adult yoga users reported at least one acute adverse effect in their yoga practice, and one in ten reported at least one chronic adverse effect, mainly musculoskeletal effects. Adverse effects were associated with hand-, shoulder- and head stands; and with yoga self-study without supervision. More than three quarters of of cases reached full recovery. Based on the overall injury rate per 1000 practice hours, yoga appears to be as safe or safer when compared to other exercise types.

Associations of yoga practice, health status, and health behavior among yoga practitioners in Germany-Results of a national cross-sectional survey.

BACKGROUND: While yoga can improve health-related variables and health behavior, different yoga styles and practice components appear to be associated with specific health outcomes. The aim of this study was to explore the connection between yoga use, health, and health behaviors across different yoga styles. METHODS: A cross-sectional anonymous online survey (n = 1,702; 88.9% female; 93.3% German nationality; mean age 47.2 ± 10.8 years; 58.2% yoga teachers) assessed yoga practice characteristics, health-related variables and health behavior. The survey was distributed in Germany only but not limited to German participants. RESULTS: Ashtanga yoga (15.7%), Hatha yoga (14.2%), and Sivananda yoga (22.4%) were the most commonly practiced yoga styles; participants practiced for a mean of 12.7 ± 10.0 years. Most participants had good to excellent (96.1%) overall health; 87.7% reported improved health since starting yoga. Controlling for sociodemographic and clinical factors, health-related variables were mainly associated with frequency of yoga postures practice (p < 0.05), health behaviors also with yoga philosophy study (p < 0.05). The various yoga styles were associated with specific health-related variables (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Yoga practitioners generally have a good overall health and a healthy lifestyle. While health variables are mainly associated with practice of yoga postures, health behaviors are also associated with the study of yoga philosophy. Yoga interventions targeting prevention or health promotion should include yoga philosophy to modify health behaviors. The specific yoga style employed may also influence health outcomes.