How much Jewellery should you wear to yoga class
“What was that sound?” thought Alice. There it was again! A rhythmic clunking sound coming from some where nearby. It was quite distracting. At last she finally spotted the source.
One of the ladies off to the side was wearing several loose bracelets. They were sliding up and down her arms and clunking together as she moved into and out of her yoga poses.
Not only can jewelery be distracting it can also pose a safety risk as well. Should you avoid all jewelery or just particular kinds.
What jewellery should be avoided
There are several kinds of jewellery that should be avoided. Among them are pendants; bracelets and rings.
Pendants
A pendant hanging around your neck can suddenly hit you in the forehead or eye when you are doing a standing pose that results in you lowering torso towards the floor with your hips above your head. This whack in the head can be quite painful and could even injure your eye.
A pendant swing back and forth as you move through your yoga poses can be quite distracting to the people near you as well.
Bracelets
Bracelets are another type of jewellery that can cause both distraction and injury. Bracelets that slid up and down your arm can distract people near you. Both the movement of the bracelet and the noise they make as they come together on your arm can be quite distracting.
Not only can bracelets be distracting but they can also result in injury to your elbow or wrist. A bracelet could get stuck in the joint as you go to apply weight on the joint or try to close the joint. A bracelet jammed into the joint can be quite painful in this situation.
Rings
Rings on your fingers especially rings that have large angular parts that stick out can be dangerous and distracting to you more so than anyone else.
If you are doing a pose that requires you to place your hands under your feet for example it will be necessary to either rearrange your rings on your fingers or remove them completely so that you do not injure your feet or your fingers. This rearranging will cause you to loose the focus that you are trying to develop while you are doing your yoga poses.
Hoop earrings
Large hoop earrings or other large dangling earrings can be a distraction to others as they watch them swing back and forth.
They can also be a danger to you as you move through various poses. There is a possibility that you could get your earrings caught in your clothing or your limbs as you move into and out of a yoga pose.
As you can see there are all kinds of jewellery that can cause you and the people around problems during a yoga practice. Now the question is what should you do about it.
What should you do with your jewellery
You have a couple of choices about what to do with your jewellery.
Choice 1 – Leave your jewellery at home
Leave the pendants, bracelets, rings and large earrings at home. Wear only small earrings and simple smooth rings. Your experience during a yoga practice will tell you if a particular piece of jewellery is safe to wear.
Choice 2 – Take the jewellery off when you get to the studio
So what do you do if you get to yoga class only to discover that you forgot take your bracelets off before you left home. You know from past experience that the bracelets make a clanking noise while you practice.
Take the dangerous or distracting jewellery off when you get to the studio. You can store the jewellery in your yoga bag or beside your yoga mat.
A surprising example
I wear a very simple and small wedding ring. It had never caused me any problem in the past during my yoga practice.
When I started learning headstand, I found that I was gripping my hands together so tightly that my wedding ring was cutting into the fingers above and below my ring finger and causing a great deal of discomfort.
I had to remove my wedding ring during my practice until I was more comfortable in headstand and I was gripping my hands less tightly.
Summary
Jewellery can be a distraction to yourself and your neighbors during your yoga class. Some kinds of Jewellery can cause you personal injury.
Either leave your jewellery at home or take it off when you get to class. Alice and the other people in your class will appreciate it when the clunking of your bracelets is absent from the class.
Next Steps
Before going to yoga class, check out the jewellery you have on. Consider the effect your jewellery will have on your neighbors and on yourself. Leave your jewellery at home if at all possible. You will have a much more enjoyable yoga class.
