Using Props In Yoga: Are They Cheating Or Teaching?

Using props in yoga: cheating, or teaching?

“I once thought they were a crutch for those not capable of completing a yoga posture. I was wrong.” Those are the words of Gary, a former elite athlete who resisted yoga for years. His story is why this note asks whether using props in yoga is cheating. In Iyengar yoga the answer is no. A prop lets you do the right action in a pose before your body can do it alone, and that is how the pose is learned.

This note in short form

• The short answer: props are tools for learning a pose, not a way of cheating.
• Where they came from: Mr BKS Iyengar developed them from his own practice and his teaching.
• What students say: a prop lets a stiff body keep the pose correct and still make progress.
• What research says: we found no trial that compares yoga with props to yoga without.
• The other side: Mr Iyengar said props need not be used for ever.
• Next step: try props in a class, in the studio or LIVE online. Your first class is free if you’re new.

Back to our Props notes.

Are yoga props cheating?

No. A prop (a block, a belt, a bolster, a blanket or a chair) lets you keep the pose correct while you make progress. Doing a pose badly without one gives you less. Chris Lalor says it is not a sign of weakness to take a prop. It is “a sign of intelligence to know when you need a prop”.

Gary puts it from the stiff side. “Without the props, my old and stiff body would distort and curl in an attempt to reach the unreachable.” Then he says, “The prop is not a crutch. It is a support, guide and tool that helps me stretch towards a better posture.” That is one student’s account, and it is a common one in our classes.

Iyengar yoga is the style developed by Mr BKS Iyengar. In the 20th century he did more than anyone to set down traditional Indian yoga, through his books and his teaching, and he pioneered the use of props. It is sometimes called modern classical yoga, and it’s the style we teach at Flametree.

Who invented yoga props?

Mr Iyengar pioneered props in modern yoga, but he did not start from nothing. An Iyengar Yoga UK page, reproducing an article by Sallie Sullivan, notes that yogis used simple props long ago, such as a strap (yogapatta) or a stick (yogadanda) tucked under the armpit. Light on Yoga even shows a pose named after the stick, Yogadandasana. Mr Iyengar made props a method.

The same article says he used everyday things such as chapatti rolling pins, bolsters and house bricks. Eyal Shifroni, an Iyengar teacher who has written books on props, cites Mr Iyengar saying he used to pick up stones and bricks lying on the roads and use them as supports and weight bearers. So the props grew out of one man’s practice and his students’ needs.

Chris has been in classes in India where Geeta Iyengar spoke about this. As Chris recalls it, Geeta said props were not meant to make yoga easy. They were meant to give you time in a pose, so its effects could unfold, and to wake up awareness through touch. That is Chris’s recollection of a teacher, and we have not found it in print.

What does the other side say?

The caution is fair, and it comes from inside the tradition. Shifroni writes that practitioners “should be careful not to develop a dependency on props”. He also quotes Mr Iyengar on props: “But I never say that they should be used on a permanent basis.”

So a good teacher moves you towards less support when you are ready. That might mean a lower stack of blankets, or a block in place of a chair. Chris still uses props in her own practice. Using one on purpose is the opposite of leaning on it.

What does research say about props?

Research on using props in yoga is thin. We did not find a trial that compares yoga with props to yoga without them. Props do appear in research on Iyengar yoga as part of a whole program. A 2011 pilot study (Bower and colleagues, Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine) taught 12 women with long-lasting fatigue after breast cancer an Iyengar program with inversions and backbends done with props. Fatigue scores improved, but there was no comparison group, and the authors asked for a bigger trial.

That tells you props can be part of a gentle program. It does not tell you what the props added. So the case for props rests on known from practice for now, and not yet tested is not the same as wrong.

Which props will you meet in a class?

You will meet blocks, belts, bolsters, blankets and chairs, and sometimes a wall rope or a sandbag. Our notes cover three of them in detail: how to use a yoga strap, the yoga sandbag and rope yoga. For buying and improvising props at home, see our page on yoga props.

A chair is a good example of why props are not only for beginners. For a beginner it takes away the fear of wobbling. For a long-time student it lets them stay longer and notice finer points. In class, a chair in a standing pose such as Triangle Pose can help you keep the pose long and even.

Who should check first?

Props are there to make poses safer and more doable, but some supported poses are head-down. Talk to your yoga teacher, yoga therapist, and your doctor if you wish, if you have glaucoma, high blood pressure that is not under control, or a neck or heart condition. Tell your teacher about any injury so the props can be set to suit you. If you feel pain, numbness or dizziness, come out and rest.

Practise this at Flametree

Your first class is free if you’re new to Flametree. New students, and anyone who has been away three months or more, can also get a half price 10 class pass with 2 extra classes free, to use online, in the studio, or both. We teach in the studio at Woolner in Darwin and LIVE online. For the studio, just come along. For an online class, click the class time you want and we email you the link to join.

• Beginners: see the half price 10 class pass for new and lapsed students
• Not a beginner: see the half price 10 class pass for new and lapsed students
• The timetable, including online classes

Questions people ask about using props in yoga

Are yoga props cheating?

No. In Iyengar yoga a prop helps you do the right action in a pose before your body can do it alone. Gary, a former elite athlete, once thought props were a crutch and says he was wrong. We found no trial comparing yoga with props to yoga without.

Who invented yoga props?

Mr BKS Iyengar pioneered their use in modern yoga, using everyday items such as bricks, rolling pins and bolsters. Older yogic traditions also used simple props, such as a strap, so the idea is not new.

Did Mr Iyengar say props should be used for ever?

No. Eyal Shifroni, an Iyengar teacher who writes about props, quotes him saying he never meant them for permanent use. Shifroni adds that students should not become dependent on them.

Can props become a crutch?

They can if you use them without a purpose. A good teacher changes the setup as you improve, with a lower stack or one prop fewer. Chris still uses props in her own practice.

Do experienced students still use props?

Yes. A chair, for example, lets long-time students stay longer, breathe more deeply and notice finer points. Chris says even advanced students use props, and she does too.

What props do beginners need for yoga?

At the studio, everything is provided. For online classes, a belt, a couple of blankets and a chair are a good start, and our yoga props page shows how to improvise them. Block, belt, bolster, blanket and chair are the usual five.

Are chairs only for beginners?

No. A chair helps a beginner feel steady in poses such as Triangle Pose, and it helps experienced students stay longer and look at the fine points. Using a chair never makes you less of a yogi.

Where can I learn to use props in Darwin?

Flametree Yoga Studio teaches Iyengar yoga with props in the studio at Woolner in Darwin and LIVE online. The studio has the chairs, blocks, belts, bolsters and wall ropes, so you can just come along. Your first class is free if you’re new to Flametree.

Flametree Yoga Studio, Darwin NT, teaching Iyengar yoga in the studio and LIVE online. This note is general information, not medical advice.

Sources

• Shifroni E. About the use of props. Eyal Shifroni’s blog. eyalshifroni.com/blog/about-the-use-of-props
• Sullivan S, article reproduced as Remembering BKS Iyengar. Iyengar Yoga UK, from Yoga Magazine. iyengaryoga.org.uk/remembering-bks-iyengar
• Bower JE, Garet D, Sternlieb B. Yoga for persistent fatigue in breast cancer survivors: results of a pilot study. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2011. doi:10.1155/2011/623168