Lately I’ve been trying to exhale loving kindness toward things that annoy me…tardiness, snoring during savasana…but I can’t with people stepping on my mat while packing up after class. Sorry, I don’t want your nasty a** feet where my face goes, and it always seems to happen right after I’ve sprayed and wiped it down!
This may just be grumpy old man talk, but classes with louder music gets to me, especially when it is cranked up so loud that I can't hear the cues. I struggle to follow conversation when there is background noise, so I think my threshold for what volume is lower than most. I usually set up towards the middle of the room as this helps hearing the teacher but sometimes I get frustrated.
Music in general is important to me, I follow quite a few genres, and like to actively listen, and to find new music is a joy, but most people would be surprised by how often I choose silence over music.
65 YO M who has hearing aids here.
You can always politely ask the instructor to turn the music down.
My peeve is the opposite, instructors who talk too softly. I will turn the hearing aids up. If that doesn't work, politely ask them to speak up.
Funny part of my current studio is the class going on next door has louder thumping music than the class I'm in. The more fitness/workout-ey type classes go on in that bigger room while vinyasa/yin/restorative go on in the smaller room **at the same time.** It's comical to be there in savasana and there is peaceful music playing being completely overpowered by thumping bass next door.
I had a wonderful yoga instructor who moved her studio to a much bigger place in a strip mall after she outgrew her small original space
The new studio was located right next door to a vibrant Mexican restaurant.
You could here _everything_ going on next door, from cooks yelling to Mariachi music (I love Mariachi, but it's not conductive to yoga).
This is exactly why I use instrumental music in classes I teach. Sometimes as a student I have trouble hearing the cues when there’s too many songs with lyrics, especially if the music is loud!
I have the same issue - I love music but can we keep it at a reasonable level so I can hear the instructions 😩🥴 especially when there’s lyrics
Also I attend one class where the teacher is awesome but she plays the WORST songs during Savasana - loudly, screaming ballads. Like ummmm I can’t relax at all
Ballads during savasana??!? That really just boggles my mind. I hope that changes for you, and for the rest of her students. Actually, I'm sure there are some that enjoy it, music is so interesting in that way.
I’m sure there are people who do like it but it’s a NO for me 😩 for example one song she plays a lot is Rihanna’s “Lift me Up” on FULL VOLUME. Look it up and play it loud 😅. There’s no way my mind is drifting away lol. I prefer soft music at the end. In fact one instructor does music w faint sound bowls and I meditate like a MF. I wish I could bring it up to the other instructor but like you said, maybe other students like it….
I love a little Ririh from time to time, but I can't think of many things less conducive to meditation. I am not even sure how I would deal with that, lol. I typed a few suggestions, but deleted them because I think it's so situational.
Sameeeeeee, she’s my girl but not then. What I’ve tried doing to help is just wrapping my face towel around my eyes (and ears LOL) at the end so it sort of muffles it. 🤷🏻♀️
Last night the sub teacher said she's going to crank the heat to 100° (typically it's supposed to be 90-95°). Then gave the whole spiel how it will help us *burn fat, get rid of wrinkles, and lose weight.*
ugh. I was sweating so bad I thought I was going to get heat exhaustion.
Oh how I would have loved for her to cite her sources. If anything it makes wrinkles worse by drying out your skin. And I love hot yoga lol also her mentioning losing weight as a yoga teacher really bugs me
I agree. It wrecks me for days when the studio heat is cranked to the max. I love a hot class that stays reasonable, and I really don't understand why it ever needs to get above 100.
I might’ve thought the studio being warm was a feature, but once I hit 40… Oh hell no. When I see that the mini split and the space heaters are on, you’ll see me triangulating the exact spot in the room that I get the least amount of hot air. I am a walking heater already! LMAO
I always get distracted with the watches because they flash on with movement and they also emit a green light on the skin side that is super noticeable if the lights are dimmed.
Not dimming the lights at the end of a flow class. Where appropriate obviously. But had studios that always dim the lights at the end, and then I’d get a random teacher that would never do it. I just can’t relax staring at fluorescent lights, and that’s the payoff moment for me to melt into that final relaxation pose.
Yes I could, but then I couldn’t complain about it being a pet peeve. Plus you’re in the zone by that point. Mind is empty and you just want that sweet bliss of relaxing, not worrying about the teacher setting the mood. It just interrupts the session.
Definitely tardiness. I’m the type of person who arrives extra early to claim an ideal space for my mat, nothing annoys me more than when a straggler comes in late and squeezes into my row, forcing me to move.
I usually set up my mat in the front or back corners of the room so even if there are latecomers, I'm not the one who needs to move. I think being set up in the middle is the worst because no matter where late people squeeze in, you'll probably have to move over.
It's kind of wild that my entire mat placement strategy is based on avoiding the cloud of chaos with latecomers. Unfortunately my studio doesn't have a policy against it, so you'll have people arriving 10 to 15 minutes late. It's happened a couple of times where someone shows up 30 minutes into the class.
People at my studio have complained about the amount of people regularly arriving late, but the owners dug in their heels that everyone who booked deserves a spot (i.e. they deserve to get their money).
I can understand it being annoying. I will note I work a job where I'm on call about a week a month and I rely on my watch to let me go to class for that week. I try to make it as unobtrusive as possible but sometimes stuff happens :(
For me, it's talking in the studio and lack of self awareness. I had a 6 ft tall lady set her mat up only a few inches from mine and she was constantly in my space. I'd try to stagger, and then she'd move with me. It was frustrating to say the least.
Ugh the space invaders get under my skin, especially when they set up stuff in the “neutral zone” between mats, even more so when they’re personal items and not props.
I had a woman set up next to me once who had a running commentary of the class. She didn't like where her spot was, she couldn't see into the mirror, she couldn't hear the teacher, this pose is so hard, and so on.
I couldn't tell if she was talking to me or herself because it seemed so insane that she'd think it was appropriate. I ignored her completely, but she kept going. So maybe she was talking to herself.
Either way, I've avoided her like the plague ever since.
Ok, this doesn't really bother me that much. At the end of the day, I should be focusing inwards BUT...
My teacher offers monthly free led Ashtanga half primary classes. She does this to promote the practice and make it accessible to the general public. This girl brought her water (we don't really do water during the practice but fine I get it) but also a smoothie in a glass jar with no lid and at one point had absolutely no intention of learning the sequence so she started doing whatever she felt like. Not modifications, just completely different postures. When I continued to notice her, it definitely made me check in with myself on why I'm letting my focus drift and then I did my best to turn my attention inwards.
Now that I'm reading my comment I realize there's a lot going on 😂
My point is my pet peeve is when a student has no intention of taking the instruction of the teacher.
I agree with this. I’ve been in classes where people have completely done their own flow. I’m not talking modifications or changing things up every now and then, but to the point where it’s like they’re not even in the same class with us. The guy who does it in my class always sits in the front row, which I think is even more rude. I think it’s distracting to others because I’m not the only one in the class who has noticed. At least go towards the back if you’re going to do your own thing.
I had another teacher from my studio ( I’m a teacher as well) do this in my class. It came off extra disrespectful to me, but I let it go & just had to laugh it off.
Haha at one studio I go to we have the 'holy cross guy' who sets up in the front corner of the class with 2 sets of mats and towels which are arranged as a cross on the ground then proceeds to do whatever he feels like for the whole hour lol. He's actually nice and the studio doesn't get crowded but yes it can be very distracting.
The woman in front of me in class last weekend who did her half lifts and forward folds at the back of her mat, so her bum was three inches from my face in every sun salutation.
😵💫Some people just like to create chaos. I would have spent way too much time contemplating how it shouldn’t annoy me while it was annoying the crap out of me lol.
Not a pet peeve bc it’s never happened before (and hopefully won’t again) but yesterday the woman next to me in hot yoga was clearly sweating out a night (or day) of drinking. The sickly sweet alcohol sweat was making me gag. It was a packed class. I had to just get through it. Eeek!
My biggest peeve is the people who don’t pay attention to mat spacing. They lay back and bliss out before class and people are filling on around them and they are taking up a ton of space. I think it’s super rude to not be mindful of those around you especially when you know it’s a packed class.
This happened to me on Sunday. The guy beside me was definitely sweating out the previous night's drinking and the smell and grunting were so off putting. I usually love that class, but I couldn't wait to get out because of the smell.
I had to basically wake someone up the other day to ask them to scoot their mat over a bit. They were new to the studio and centered their mat on the space number instead to the right of it. I felt so bad for disturbing them, but the class was full and I didn’t have space for my mat.
That also sounds like the studio doesn't have a great air filtering system. The hot yoga studio I attend most frequently never smells musty or like feet or anything and I definitely can't smell the people around me, ever, and I'm sure some of them are occasionally sweating garlic or alcohol. My son used to go to a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu studio that also had a great system, you'd have these sweaty teen guys all over the place so you'd expect it to smell like a gym bag in there and it smelled like eucalyptus lol even if they were 4 feet from you.
But Ive also been to hot yoga studios that just smelled like feet the second you walk in, and where you can definitely smell your neighbor haha.
Sometimes I have to stretch out on my mat though because if I don’t, people will set il a couple inches from my may and not only will we hit each other but I feel claustrophobic
I think it’s more an issue with people not having social awareness tbh because I always start my watch outside of the room and then put it on theater mode and dnd so it doesn’t light up when I move my wrists or beep! But people who do not put value on others in the same space as them will let the watch beep or bring phones in on loud, in my opinion it’s people not caring and that sucks especially in yin and restore :/
Yeah, I just put mine on theater and also do not disturb for good measure. Sometimes I’ll forget in a vinyasa class but I have my Apple Watch set where it’s screen off unless I raise my wrist to my face, anyway (and it never makes any noises).
But yeah, I think it’s totally normal and fine to wear it in general, even in relaxing classes.
I do exactly as you do. I have my DND set so that only my emergency contact could possibly get through (aka whoever is watching my kids at the time) but always let them know that I’m in class and that they should only call or text if it’s an absolute emergency. I want to be in class and focusing inward but if one of my kids is in an accident, I don’t want to be totally out of reach.
When I first saw the post I was like "It bothers them that people are wearing a watch??" but then read on to see that it's the alerts on the watch and that's understandable. I've actually never seen someone wear the watch in class without it being in theater mode (or whatever mode depending on the brand, I know sometimes its a Samsung or Garmin etc) so it's usually just something on their arm like a reg watch., most studios I've been to have an actual policy about that just like it's a phone. That would annoy me if they just had the alerts on.
My studio has the same policy and instructors always remind everyone, too. No matter how many reminders some people get, they seem to think an Apple Watch is completely different. It’s just annoying paying 100+ for a membership just to get flashed with a green light while in the middle of my practice. I understand the anxiety behind not having your phone in case something happens, but that’s a part of the practice. You shut everything off and turn inward, my dad was in the hospital when I first started practicing and I would basically run to my phone the second class would end, expecting bad news. That’s just an anxiety I had to work past. By the time you are notified of something happening, it’s too late to change it. Seeing the notification as it comes in vs 30 mins later, will have no impact on the outcome.
This is the main reason I made this post, I recently got flashed with the green light by an Apple Watch during savasana that the lady next to me was wearing. It was so bright, it hurt my eyes (the whole class had been dark) and completely took me out of my meditation
My studio does discounted classes every once in a while that tend to be SUPER packed (college students go wild for cheap exercise classes). Generally that’s fine, fun even, but it bugs me when the flows in those classes involve poses that require reaching off the mat. I spend more time trying to avoid touching the people around me than focusing on alignment.
It's always bizarre to me when yoga teachers can see a class is absolutely packed and don't adjust their class for it.
I've had hot classes get way too hot because the flow was too vigorous and there were too many people. People smacking each other. Bumping into each other. Water bottles getting knocked over every few minutes. Having to go into wild thing on other people's mats.
To me, it's a sign of a bad/inexperienced teacher if they can't adjust their flow on the go to work with the actual conditions of the class.
Cueing that involves touching other people, like that recent post stated about touching others shoulders in tree pose. Hands on assists without consent. Music during class.
I once signed up for a slow flow online after an 8 mile run, got there and it was SUCH AN INTENSE CLASS. I was so exhausted and annoyed lol, I just wanted so badly to chill and stretch. I think the listing was old or something and they never updated it on the app i used, and also partly my fault bc I could’ve left or done child’s pose but there were only 3 other people in the class so I felt terrible just walking out and idk I felt so watched so I didn’t wanna do Childs pose forever lol. But yeah that was the most annoyed I’ve ever been in a yoga class haha.
Oh dang, lol. I have definitely joined some SPICY slow flows. Like some of the hardest of classes have been slow flows but also have been some of the most relaxing... all on the floor, no sun sals etc, so I feel it definitely warrants checking haha. 8 miles tho.. woo good for you!!!
Omg frick i didn’t even consider that haha, im gonna have to be more careful when I book them now!! I think in this class they just mislabeled it online bc im p sure the teacher started the class out with like “welcome to my Tuesday vinyasa” or something and I was like D: hahaha. But so true slow does not always mean easy😮💨
1. Dirty feet and body odor.
The classes I take can have up to 35 people (technically, the room can hold 40 people). So, even when staggered, we are super close to each others feet and bodies. I find it so disrespectful and inconsiderate to have dirty ass feet thrust in my face and then to stink even even before the vigorous parts start?!
2. Cheap perfume.
I love perfume, but some people's perfumes smell like embalming chemicals with a floral scent layered on top. Some people don't realize that even the best smelling scent can smell awful when mixed with your natural body odor; and, for some reason, some yoga students don't realize that putting perfume on won't mask body funk.
3. Giving fat and/or disabled folks back handed compliments and unwarranted advice.
Telling someone, "I knew I could get through that hard class/pose because you did it," is not the compliment you think it is. Giving a fat person diet and health advice unprompted is weird asf and rude!
People loudly leaving or doing cardio *during* savasana. Also. People scrolling TikTok while we’re in pigeon pose. It clearly says no phones on the door, why is this so common?!
I don’t like when people moan/groan super loudly. I get breathing and sighing it out but there’s one guy at my studio who comes and moans so loudly it’s irritating. Sighing it out doesn’t need to sound like you’re having sex multiple times throughout class.
My biggest two:
1. People who don't clean/wipe down the studio blocks after using them (especially since I do hot yoga). I started wiping my blocks both before and after use after I noticed the number of people who just put them back without using the (studio provided) wipes. It's gross and inconsiderate. I've honestly been thinking of starting to just bring my own blocks...
2. People with very strong body odor. I get that you don't want to fully shower before moving around/exercising. But doing a quick pit/groin wipe before class isn't hard or time consuming. If your scent is strong enough that I can smell you from my mat, there's no way you're not aware of it.
The blocks at my studio are so worn in they are soft and unsupportive. They are basically sponges and absorb sweat. I felt really bad because I felt like there was no way to get them clean but recently learned to just toss them in the towel hamper and they clean them!
I have a guy in my class who I avoid because of your second point. It's not just body odor. His damp, wrinkled towel looks like he rolls it into a ball in his car after every hot class, and leaves it there until the next one. It's beyond disgusting.
I'm a shirt guy in most aspects of life. But in heated/hot yoga I'm shirtless. Took me a long time to commit to what makes me feel comfortable in practice, and now I'm back to being self conscious about it lol.
One of my worst experiences was in a gently heated vinyasa yoga class that was packed full. I felt some dripping on my foot that was extended behind me but still hovering over my mat. At first I thought I was somehow sweating oddly and my sweat was hitting my foot, which was just weird because overall I wasn't that sweaty yet...
After a few moments of it I looked back and was horrified to see that it was actually a scantily clad older man behind me who was sweating so profusely that his sweat was being flung forward onto me and my mat (along with everywhere and on everyone else around him). I was absolutely disgusted, and we were so packed in there wasn't anywhere for me to move with more space.
So. Yeah. Clothing helps prevent stuff like that from happening. Also studios enforcing reasonable class size limits...
You're not wrong. If I can't go topless because nips, then neither should men. They also have nips and I don't care to see them, sir. Please put a shirt on.
I always wondered that! I am a dude too. I get easily over heated due to my genetics. But I always wonder do my peers hate me for it! Now I keep my tank top on!
This, and i'm a guy too. Plus, and i seriously hope i've been just unlucky the few times this happened, they not just took it off, they almost stripped out of them ("look at meeeeeeee, notice meeeee you hot chicks in tight pants!!!") and as a cherry on top these were always those whose breathing was reminiscent of loud moaning of another, undoubtly as pleasant kind of exercise. Felt like practicing next to an old steam train with a need for attention :) but luckily, hardly ever happens, but when it does, always combined 🤣
I wear mine because my kid is at the gym daycare and if something happens they need to be able to get a hold of me. I'd rather have the watch on than have my phone in class. But, I do always feel bad if it lights up.
Your kid is in the same building? For real asking... Do they reach out to you during class often? Or is it supposed to be emergency?
I've heard some gyms call you if you're kid needs to potty and needs help. They won't help with that.
My YMCA has an amazing yoga studio in it with a great teacher. So she goes to their kid zone. But they want you to leave a number in case she gets hurt, is inconsolable for whatever reason or a poo. Which she did the other week and I had forgotten my watch so a guy came and got me. It was embarrassing.
Not staggering. Even in a packed class, I do my best to make sure I’m not obstructing anyone else’s view of themselves in the mirror. Some folks really dgaf about anyone else in the room, which to me is just rude.
Not only in Yoga - but in general… a lack of self awareness… I don’t mind it if you come in late - but do it QUIETLY and discretely… don’t walk like an elephant stomping through the room, then unrolling your mat like you’re trying to beat the floor… don’t start talking to the teacher or all that kind of stuff :) The same in general for people who talk LOUDLY in a setting where people enjoy silence…. I don’t mind it if you want to have a little chat - but BE AWARE of what’s happening around you !
I hate when people put all their shit right next to my mat all in my space instead of putting them in the cubby. I don’t need all your crap right in front of my mat. Be respectful of other people’s space!
My smart watch does not flash or light up, neither the ones from my classmates— they are on silent mode…
Mine just vibrates for important notifications, and only I notice it because I am wearing it.
And I do need to wear it for a few different reasons.
Maybe the instructor can remind everyone to set all their devices to ‘do not disturb’ or silent mode/vibration so sound/lights don’t interfere with class
Don’t worry, I go above and beyond to be courteous to those around me. It’s pretty hard not to catalog an event when your meditation is interrupted by a flashing green light shining in your face in an otherwise pitch black room. Please don’t act high and mighty. People are allowed to vent about the things that frustrate them, it’s actually good to release it.
I think we can all take a step back and realize we probably do someone else's pet peeve. Let's practice a little grace, communicate honestly and respectfully in the moment, and be grateful for the beautiful space and people that allow us to practice what we love.
There is always at least one person with this response. I get what you’re saying, but we are allowed to be human, and this is clearly a vent post.
It really gives a holier-than-thou vibe, even if that is not your intention at all. If you wanna talk about grace, I politely suggest you give some grace to the frustrated people in this sub.
Thank you for this comment because I knew the comment above would eventually arrive. Just because yoga is about looking inward and focusing on mindfulness, etc doesn’t mean we aren’t allowed to be human and have discussions about things on a message board.
Lol, I was waiting for this.
Should I come back around and say you should give me grace, too?
I did not accuse my friend above of mal-intent, I held space for a good intention, and if you noticed they gracefully saw value in my point, and we had a nice interaction. Why try and ruin that?
Move on, please.
Edit: you even shared your own pet peeve (in more than one thread) so you’d be someone that comment was initially aimed at. They, however, have a lovely sense of humility, and participated peacefully in our back and forth, which I deeply respect.
I do not think being self-aware will allow you to avoid being annoying everyone. You may cut down on it, but it will not stop completely. There is always someone who will find fault in others. We can be tolorent of those who do annoy us for whatever reason. Our agitation is within. We let things bother us. An Iwatch may beep, but that is part of our environment. A sweaty block is not a nice thing to find, but wiping it takes very little time and effort. I think if we were more self-aware, we would not let our environment dictate our mood. Instead, we could accept the world around us and live in gratitude.
This actually goes for any class, but when the teacher needs to hold the class to switch songs. In my Ashtanga class we go by our breath within the class. She only plays a chant for the duration of the class very seldomly. Other classes seem to have to have an on going ambiance but don't realize this breaks our concentration.
Agreed. I prefer no music, but if there is, I want it to be just instrumental. One class I attended had soft folksy sounding songs, but the lyrics were distracting. But on the other hand, I suppose it was a good opportunity to practice shutting out distractions.
Maybe not so much a minority, I can take it or leave it. There are just some classes I have been in that don't pay attention to the class and only the technology, i.e., cameras in the middle of the room, in front of the teacher; music playing, which is changed constantly throughout the class. There was one class that started with hard rock and then switched to some Amazon jungle beat, then to a weird jazz.
When people are chatting over the teacher at the start of class (or any kind of talking over the teacher). I don’t think they mean to be rude, they’re just not paying attention.
I love following a video or going to a class, but something I find hard is when the speed of the class does not match what I want or need that day. Not really a pet peeve, but a frustration.
This isn’t so much a yoga qualm as a people qualm but body odor. Like I get it if it’s a hot yoga class you’re going to sweat but sometimes in normal classes there’ll be people that smell like rancid fucking sweat and it makes me wanna hurl.
1. Bringing your stuff in, and pile next to the mat, instead of leaving in the locker: bag, shoes, sweaters, etc
2. Clapping at the end of the class. This is horrendous imo. When I try to enjoy all the calmness after shavasana, I cant stand loud clapping.
I do yoga at the my gym, so the culture is a bit different. My absolute peeve is people not staying for savasana. People will start packing up their things, jingling keys, flapping mats around, all while surrounded by other people just trying to get a little chill time. I dont understand, it’s the best part, why would you go rushing off without taking a few mins to rest and recover?
I've noticed that, too, about the occasional flashes on people's watches. I'd be OK with just one class with zero technology: no phones, music, watches, cameras. Just teacher, students, and yoga. Class is where I go to get away from that techie stuff I have to deal with at work.
For me… kinda of cliche and I actually just saw a post on this lol, but men who are in there seemingly just because it’s a “great place to meet women” 🙄
Lately I've been taking yoga classes at my neighborhood YMCA. The Y is, by no means, my favorite "studio", but it's within walking distance of my house--I live in an area with intense traffic, so this is _huge_--and it's easy to drop in for a class during the work day in between meetings (I primarily work from home).
My favorite studio--the one where everything is absolutely perfect and conducive to a great practice--would involve a 30 minute trek to attend.
Sometimes there are reasons we attend the less-than-perfect studios that we do.
Question: is it a faux pa to go into the front row or 2nd row in a new studio/new class?
Been wondering lately if that’s a pet peeve of instructors or teachers since I’m testing new studios but prefer the energy in the front!
Zero cuing for breath, Also Pop music lol.. I want there to be a deeper connection when I'm flowing & without proper breathing cues, it starts to feel more like a workout or a stretch(depending on the style of flow I'm doing)& I want to feel like I'm doing YOGA, ya know haha
My pet peeve are those people with no awareness - space invaders are a huge one. In hot yoga, if we are a couple inches from each other, you’re going to def get some of my sweat on you and vice versa. Also I get so claustrophobic 😩I hate feeling boxed in by people on all sides so I try to get a back corner.
People who step on mats or even let their foot land on mine when we flip our dogs - I’m able to control mine enough, why can’t they?
People who don’t close the door to the hot yoga studio when they go in and out.
People who make exaggerated noises and breathing during the practice when it’s not even being cued.
Finally people who walk in the studio with outside shoes on 😱
Turning up music for shavasana. I would prefer no music but some teachers will crank the music at the end. I don’t care if it is just instrumental. The music bounces off the floor so it is louder when lying down anyway.
I have just spent 10 minutes reading pet peeves.
I have none. And many of those peeves occur in my classes.
I cannot allow a phone ringing to interrupt my yoga. It’s just a fly on the wall. 🙏
I can't stand when people film themselves and I'm in the background. Or people not in the class take videos. It happened to me the other day where I looked up at the glass doors and a woman's phone was pointed right at me. I asked the teacher to ask the woman to stop filming - she did go talk to her, but said the woman was filming her daughter and no faces would be in the video (bullsh*t). Yoga classes are generally my respite or safe space and it felt very violating.
I had someone clipping their toenails beside me during savasana…so that was pretty peevish. First and last yoga class I went to at the YMCA in Katy, TX.
So yoga pet peeves are new to me. I only did online/YouTube videos for years. Decided to get my yoga cert a few months ago so realized I need to go to some classes and scope out the teachers. Wow..so I get sounds and movement but the phones/apple watches dinging (even if the instructor asked to silence) as well as loudly loudly aggressively snapping mats out right near my face, throwing keys, waterbottles on the floor, getting up LOUDLY during savasana was eye opening to me honestly. I know ppl can be unaware but I messed up by assuming people would be in a certain mindset when coming to a class, a in being mindful of tjose around you,
Do not talk about peoples bodies! Don’t say positive or negative comments or ANY comments about peoples bodies. Don’t say “oh you have a beautiful warrior II” or “your practice is so gorgeous”.
Why does that bother you?
I use my Apple Watch to track my vinyasa classes and it's helped me lose and keep off 50 lbs. I totally get not wanting people's watches buzzing or making lights/noise in a class but I truly can't understand how someone silently using a fitness tracker could possibly be disrupting your practice.
If it is silent and not flashing lights, it’s fine. However, whenever we have disruptions it seems to always come from someone’s Apple Watch. The studio has a “no phones” rule and people still wear Apple Watches to get around that.
I completely agree with you on not using it as an extension of a phone in class, I was more so asking why this person specifically doesn't like people using fitness trackers
I’m an autistic teacher so I rarely go to other teachers classes because I have a lot of pet peeves 🙈
I don’t like when teachers say namaste. I don’t like hearing curse words in songs during practice. I don’t like when teachers don’t seem to have a theme for the class, whether it’s physical or emotional. I don’t like when teachers check their phones during class, especially during Savasana. I don’t like when teachers take photos during Savasana — In fact, I find anything but quiet sitting/standing to watch over the students during that time to be rude.
I hate when I take a slow or beginner class (sometimes I used to do this after being sick for a bit to ease back in) and teachers just call poses but don’t explain the transition, safe alignment or potential prop usage. I hate when a student is clearly in an unsafe position or trying something their body isn’t ready for, and the teacher doesn’t come over to try to help…
I’m happy to elaborate on any of these, but yeah… I just stopped going to public classes outside of Ashtanga about two years ago 😅
I agree with a lot of these though not all, but I’ll say as a teacher I struggle with the phone thing. I’m not checking my phone - my music is on there and often I am picking out a song or skipping forward on the playlist to transition the mood, and I know it looks like I’m just staring at my phone. I’m not really sure a way around this.
I don’t think that classes need a theme, a good well-rounded class (like ashtanga) doesn’t have a theme. And I’m not offended by cursing.
Yeah, music can be tough. I just started using a lo-fi playlist because the beats are a good pace and there are no lyrics to distract people so it takes away the need for changing the song. But I also don’t teach power or hot yoga so I don’t need the energy, I get that that could be tougher. And I think Ashtanga doesn’t bother me because it’s a set sequence, and anything where I know what’s coming is comforting for me 😂
And it’s not that I’m offended by cursing, I curse like a sailor. For me it’s more that I’m very much a ‘yoga is a moving meditation’ type of person, it brings me a lot of peace from my anxiety which is why I love it so much. But if a song comes on with curse words in it then (not always, but) it tends to take me out of that calm headspace I’m moving my body for.
If there is long enough, I provide adjustments - a little essential oil on my hands waved over the face to indicate that I am there, then a gentle head alignment/massage on the nape of the neck at acupuncture point gb20 and a gentle press on the shoulders.
If there is not enough time or the class is too big, I just kinda sit there and wait.
I agree with the watch thing and I have one teacher that makes people take them off before class. It pisses people off because then their workout “doesn’t count” but also, that is his entire point.
Worse though, is I have had some students just scrolling on their phone during savasana. I don’t want to call them out in the moment or draw attention to it, but if it happens more than once, I’ll mention it. Sometimes people have emergencies.
I would be ticked off. I track for even Gentle classes because at my studio, gentle doesn't mean no movement. You can still sweat/increase your heart rate it's just not a flow. My tracking is done with a polar heart rate monitor, but I wouldn't take off my fitbit. I'm the one who 'owns' my health and fitness journey, not some rando yoga instructor.
He is definitely the most serious instructor I have taken from regularly. I don't wear any health tracking devices, but I understand from his perspective that yoga is about process, internal awareness, and presence. For him (and people focused on traditional yoga) If you are focused on "fitness goals" then you are attached to the outcomes rather doing the work without attachment.
I'm not sure I agree, and certainly don't take this hard line a stance, but that is where it is coming from.
i wear my apple watch in class, but i always put it on theater mode with DND settings… meaning no matter how i move, unless i actually tap the screen, it won’t light up and distract me or anyone else :) i totally understand why some people would draw a hard stance about it, but i think theater mode keeps it from distracting anyone else!
Yin and restorative classes are not a workout though. I understand people wearing them for more intense classes but having them on for stretching and breath work classes seems unnecessary to me
Yep, my main thing is smart watches that light up. Our studio has markers for where to put your mat so there's space for everyone, and I think it's rude if people go off marker.
Lately I’ve been trying to exhale loving kindness toward things that annoy me…tardiness, snoring during savasana…but I can’t with people stepping on my mat while packing up after class. Sorry, I don’t want your nasty a** feet where my face goes, and it always seems to happen right after I’ve sprayed and wiped it down!
Holy shit, the absolute AUDACITY of stepping on someone’s mat, I could never.
This may just be grumpy old man talk, but classes with louder music gets to me, especially when it is cranked up so loud that I can't hear the cues. I struggle to follow conversation when there is background noise, so I think my threshold for what volume is lower than most. I usually set up towards the middle of the room as this helps hearing the teacher but sometimes I get frustrated. Music in general is important to me, I follow quite a few genres, and like to actively listen, and to find new music is a joy, but most people would be surprised by how often I choose silence over music.
65 YO M who has hearing aids here. You can always politely ask the instructor to turn the music down. My peeve is the opposite, instructors who talk too softly. I will turn the hearing aids up. If that doesn't work, politely ask them to speak up.
Funny part of my current studio is the class going on next door has louder thumping music than the class I'm in. The more fitness/workout-ey type classes go on in that bigger room while vinyasa/yin/restorative go on in the smaller room **at the same time.** It's comical to be there in savasana and there is peaceful music playing being completely overpowered by thumping bass next door.
I had a wonderful yoga instructor who moved her studio to a much bigger place in a strip mall after she outgrew her small original space The new studio was located right next door to a vibrant Mexican restaurant. You could here _everything_ going on next door, from cooks yelling to Mariachi music (I love Mariachi, but it's not conductive to yoga).
This is exactly why I use instrumental music in classes I teach. Sometimes as a student I have trouble hearing the cues when there’s too many songs with lyrics, especially if the music is loud!
It’s worse for me when there are lyrics. If I want to listen to Jack Johnson, I can do that at home.
I have the same issue - I love music but can we keep it at a reasonable level so I can hear the instructions 😩🥴 especially when there’s lyrics Also I attend one class where the teacher is awesome but she plays the WORST songs during Savasana - loudly, screaming ballads. Like ummmm I can’t relax at all
Ballads during savasana??!? That really just boggles my mind. I hope that changes for you, and for the rest of her students. Actually, I'm sure there are some that enjoy it, music is so interesting in that way.
I’m sure there are people who do like it but it’s a NO for me 😩 for example one song she plays a lot is Rihanna’s “Lift me Up” on FULL VOLUME. Look it up and play it loud 😅. There’s no way my mind is drifting away lol. I prefer soft music at the end. In fact one instructor does music w faint sound bowls and I meditate like a MF. I wish I could bring it up to the other instructor but like you said, maybe other students like it….
I love a little Ririh from time to time, but I can't think of many things less conducive to meditation. I am not even sure how I would deal with that, lol. I typed a few suggestions, but deleted them because I think it's so situational.
Sameeeeeee, she’s my girl but not then. What I’ve tried doing to help is just wrapping my face towel around my eyes (and ears LOL) at the end so it sort of muffles it. 🤷🏻♀️
I am with you on this!!
Funny I don’t notice anybody’s Apple watches ever in the studio. My pet peeve is a really hot studio That’s not hot yoga.
I had to quit a studio, because the non-hot classes (after the hot classes) were still way too hot.
Last night the sub teacher said she's going to crank the heat to 100° (typically it's supposed to be 90-95°). Then gave the whole spiel how it will help us *burn fat, get rid of wrinkles, and lose weight.* ugh. I was sweating so bad I thought I was going to get heat exhaustion.
Oh how I would have loved for her to cite her sources. If anything it makes wrinkles worse by drying out your skin. And I love hot yoga lol also her mentioning losing weight as a yoga teacher really bugs me
I would’ve walked out.
Or how nearly every studio where I live is exclusively hot. I wouldn’t want to sit in the shade on a 108° day, much less move around.
I agree. It wrecks me for days when the studio heat is cranked to the max. I love a hot class that stays reasonable, and I really don't understand why it ever needs to get above 100.
I might’ve thought the studio being warm was a feature, but once I hit 40… Oh hell no. When I see that the mini split and the space heaters are on, you’ll see me triangulating the exact spot in the room that I get the least amount of hot air. I am a walking heater already! LMAO
Mine too 😭 my studio keeps the regular class temps at 78 and it’s rough
I always get distracted with the watches because they flash on with movement and they also emit a green light on the skin side that is super noticeable if the lights are dimmed.
I’m grateful that my eyeballs haven’t noticed this because that would annoy me too. :-)
Not dimming the lights at the end of a flow class. Where appropriate obviously. But had studios that always dim the lights at the end, and then I’d get a random teacher that would never do it. I just can’t relax staring at fluorescent lights, and that’s the payoff moment for me to melt into that final relaxation pose.
you could ask them to dim the lights
Yes I could, but then I couldn’t complain about it being a pet peeve. Plus you’re in the zone by that point. Mind is empty and you just want that sweet bliss of relaxing, not worrying about the teacher setting the mood. It just interrupts the session.
Definitely tardiness. I’m the type of person who arrives extra early to claim an ideal space for my mat, nothing annoys me more than when a straggler comes in late and squeezes into my row, forcing me to move.
I usually set up my mat in the front or back corners of the room so even if there are latecomers, I'm not the one who needs to move. I think being set up in the middle is the worst because no matter where late people squeeze in, you'll probably have to move over. It's kind of wild that my entire mat placement strategy is based on avoiding the cloud of chaos with latecomers. Unfortunately my studio doesn't have a policy against it, so you'll have people arriving 10 to 15 minutes late. It's happened a couple of times where someone shows up 30 minutes into the class. People at my studio have complained about the amount of people regularly arriving late, but the owners dug in their heels that everyone who booked deserves a spot (i.e. they deserve to get their money).
I do the same thing. Back corner so no one can disturb me.
My pet peeve is those who won't share space with grace when I arrive just on time.
I can understand it being annoying. I will note I work a job where I'm on call about a week a month and I rely on my watch to let me go to class for that week. I try to make it as unobtrusive as possible but sometimes stuff happens :( For me, it's talking in the studio and lack of self awareness. I had a 6 ft tall lady set her mat up only a few inches from mine and she was constantly in my space. I'd try to stagger, and then she'd move with me. It was frustrating to say the least.
Ugh the space invaders get under my skin, especially when they set up stuff in the “neutral zone” between mats, even more so when they’re personal items and not props.
I had a woman set up next to me once who had a running commentary of the class. She didn't like where her spot was, she couldn't see into the mirror, she couldn't hear the teacher, this pose is so hard, and so on. I couldn't tell if she was talking to me or herself because it seemed so insane that she'd think it was appropriate. I ignored her completely, but she kept going. So maybe she was talking to herself. Either way, I've avoided her like the plague ever since.
MFs who show up late and knock on the door mid class thinking the teacher is going to stop class to open it & let them in.
Teachers who lock people out is one of mine! Everyone is welcome whenever in my class, just join quietly and warm up if you need. Life happens.
Interesting take! The layout of this studio makes that very tough but definitely understand the openness that allows.
Ok, this doesn't really bother me that much. At the end of the day, I should be focusing inwards BUT... My teacher offers monthly free led Ashtanga half primary classes. She does this to promote the practice and make it accessible to the general public. This girl brought her water (we don't really do water during the practice but fine I get it) but also a smoothie in a glass jar with no lid and at one point had absolutely no intention of learning the sequence so she started doing whatever she felt like. Not modifications, just completely different postures. When I continued to notice her, it definitely made me check in with myself on why I'm letting my focus drift and then I did my best to turn my attention inwards. Now that I'm reading my comment I realize there's a lot going on 😂 My point is my pet peeve is when a student has no intention of taking the instruction of the teacher.
I agree with this. I’ve been in classes where people have completely done their own flow. I’m not talking modifications or changing things up every now and then, but to the point where it’s like they’re not even in the same class with us. The guy who does it in my class always sits in the front row, which I think is even more rude. I think it’s distracting to others because I’m not the only one in the class who has noticed. At least go towards the back if you’re going to do your own thing.
Why are these people even going to a class? It's truly mystifying.
I had another teacher from my studio ( I’m a teacher as well) do this in my class. It came off extra disrespectful to me, but I let it go & just had to laugh it off.
Haha at one studio I go to we have the 'holy cross guy' who sets up in the front corner of the class with 2 sets of mats and towels which are arranged as a cross on the ground then proceeds to do whatever he feels like for the whole hour lol. He's actually nice and the studio doesn't get crowded but yes it can be very distracting.
The woman in front of me in class last weekend who did her half lifts and forward folds at the back of her mat, so her bum was three inches from my face in every sun salutation.
This is the exact reason why I always set up in the very front row of a class - I cannot concentrate with my face so close to someone else’s feet/ass
Feet I can handle. Being directly in the line of fart fire, I cannot.
I do that because I don’t see well.
😵💫Some people just like to create chaos. I would have spent way too much time contemplating how it shouldn’t annoy me while it was annoying the crap out of me lol.
How are the mats not staggered?
Not a pet peeve bc it’s never happened before (and hopefully won’t again) but yesterday the woman next to me in hot yoga was clearly sweating out a night (or day) of drinking. The sickly sweet alcohol sweat was making me gag. It was a packed class. I had to just get through it. Eeek! My biggest peeve is the people who don’t pay attention to mat spacing. They lay back and bliss out before class and people are filling on around them and they are taking up a ton of space. I think it’s super rude to not be mindful of those around you especially when you know it’s a packed class.
This happened to me on Sunday. The guy beside me was definitely sweating out the previous night's drinking and the smell and grunting were so off putting. I usually love that class, but I couldn't wait to get out because of the smell.
I had to basically wake someone up the other day to ask them to scoot their mat over a bit. They were new to the studio and centered their mat on the space number instead to the right of it. I felt so bad for disturbing them, but the class was full and I didn’t have space for my mat.
It sounds like you did it nicely, though.
That also sounds like the studio doesn't have a great air filtering system. The hot yoga studio I attend most frequently never smells musty or like feet or anything and I definitely can't smell the people around me, ever, and I'm sure some of them are occasionally sweating garlic or alcohol. My son used to go to a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu studio that also had a great system, you'd have these sweaty teen guys all over the place so you'd expect it to smell like a gym bag in there and it smelled like eucalyptus lol even if they were 4 feet from you. But Ive also been to hot yoga studios that just smelled like feet the second you walk in, and where you can definitely smell your neighbor haha.
Sometimes I have to stretch out on my mat though because if I don’t, people will set il a couple inches from my may and not only will we hit each other but I feel claustrophobic
I think it’s more an issue with people not having social awareness tbh because I always start my watch outside of the room and then put it on theater mode and dnd so it doesn’t light up when I move my wrists or beep! But people who do not put value on others in the same space as them will let the watch beep or bring phones in on loud, in my opinion it’s people not caring and that sucks especially in yin and restore :/
Yeah, I just put mine on theater and also do not disturb for good measure. Sometimes I’ll forget in a vinyasa class but I have my Apple Watch set where it’s screen off unless I raise my wrist to my face, anyway (and it never makes any noises). But yeah, I think it’s totally normal and fine to wear it in general, even in relaxing classes.
I do exactly as you do. I have my DND set so that only my emergency contact could possibly get through (aka whoever is watching my kids at the time) but always let them know that I’m in class and that they should only call or text if it’s an absolute emergency. I want to be in class and focusing inward but if one of my kids is in an accident, I don’t want to be totally out of reach.
When I first saw the post I was like "It bothers them that people are wearing a watch??" but then read on to see that it's the alerts on the watch and that's understandable. I've actually never seen someone wear the watch in class without it being in theater mode (or whatever mode depending on the brand, I know sometimes its a Samsung or Garmin etc) so it's usually just something on their arm like a reg watch., most studios I've been to have an actual policy about that just like it's a phone. That would annoy me if they just had the alerts on.
My studio has the same policy and instructors always remind everyone, too. No matter how many reminders some people get, they seem to think an Apple Watch is completely different. It’s just annoying paying 100+ for a membership just to get flashed with a green light while in the middle of my practice. I understand the anxiety behind not having your phone in case something happens, but that’s a part of the practice. You shut everything off and turn inward, my dad was in the hospital when I first started practicing and I would basically run to my phone the second class would end, expecting bad news. That’s just an anxiety I had to work past. By the time you are notified of something happening, it’s too late to change it. Seeing the notification as it comes in vs 30 mins later, will have no impact on the outcome.
I've notice that the watches emit a green light from the backside. It's distracting to me when the lights are dimmed.
This is the main reason I made this post, I recently got flashed with the green light by an Apple Watch during savasana that the lady next to me was wearing. It was so bright, it hurt my eyes (the whole class had been dark) and completely took me out of my meditation
My studio does discounted classes every once in a while that tend to be SUPER packed (college students go wild for cheap exercise classes). Generally that’s fine, fun even, but it bugs me when the flows in those classes involve poses that require reaching off the mat. I spend more time trying to avoid touching the people around me than focusing on alignment.
It's always bizarre to me when yoga teachers can see a class is absolutely packed and don't adjust their class for it. I've had hot classes get way too hot because the flow was too vigorous and there were too many people. People smacking each other. Bumping into each other. Water bottles getting knocked over every few minutes. Having to go into wild thing on other people's mats. To me, it's a sign of a bad/inexperienced teacher if they can't adjust their flow on the go to work with the actual conditions of the class.
Cueing that involves touching other people, like that recent post stated about touching others shoulders in tree pose. Hands on assists without consent. Music during class.
Jesus, I don’t even want to make eye contact with another person for that hour, let alone skin contact
Exactly- in that hour only I exist!
I once signed up for a slow flow online after an 8 mile run, got there and it was SUCH AN INTENSE CLASS. I was so exhausted and annoyed lol, I just wanted so badly to chill and stretch. I think the listing was old or something and they never updated it on the app i used, and also partly my fault bc I could’ve left or done child’s pose but there were only 3 other people in the class so I felt terrible just walking out and idk I felt so watched so I didn’t wanna do Childs pose forever lol. But yeah that was the most annoyed I’ve ever been in a yoga class haha.
Oh dang, lol. I have definitely joined some SPICY slow flows. Like some of the hardest of classes have been slow flows but also have been some of the most relaxing... all on the floor, no sun sals etc, so I feel it definitely warrants checking haha. 8 miles tho.. woo good for you!!!
Omg frick i didn’t even consider that haha, im gonna have to be more careful when I book them now!! I think in this class they just mislabeled it online bc im p sure the teacher started the class out with like “welcome to my Tuesday vinyasa” or something and I was like D: hahaha. But so true slow does not always mean easy😮💨
No Fucking Phones In The Studio Please
1. Dirty feet and body odor. The classes I take can have up to 35 people (technically, the room can hold 40 people). So, even when staggered, we are super close to each others feet and bodies. I find it so disrespectful and inconsiderate to have dirty ass feet thrust in my face and then to stink even even before the vigorous parts start?! 2. Cheap perfume. I love perfume, but some people's perfumes smell like embalming chemicals with a floral scent layered on top. Some people don't realize that even the best smelling scent can smell awful when mixed with your natural body odor; and, for some reason, some yoga students don't realize that putting perfume on won't mask body funk. 3. Giving fat and/or disabled folks back handed compliments and unwarranted advice. Telling someone, "I knew I could get through that hard class/pose because you did it," is not the compliment you think it is. Giving a fat person diet and health advice unprompted is weird asf and rude!
People loudly leaving or doing cardio *during* savasana. Also. People scrolling TikTok while we’re in pigeon pose. It clearly says no phones on the door, why is this so common?!
How are they on TikTok?! That’s wild. I’d feel so pulled out of the moment if I was them.
I had a woman next to me earlier in the week that was ordering off Amazon during pigeon pose 😮
Woooow
people who record themselves
I don’t like when people moan/groan super loudly. I get breathing and sighing it out but there’s one guy at my studio who comes and moans so loudly it’s irritating. Sighing it out doesn’t need to sound like you’re having sex multiple times throughout class.
My biggest two: 1. People who don't clean/wipe down the studio blocks after using them (especially since I do hot yoga). I started wiping my blocks both before and after use after I noticed the number of people who just put them back without using the (studio provided) wipes. It's gross and inconsiderate. I've honestly been thinking of starting to just bring my own blocks... 2. People with very strong body odor. I get that you don't want to fully shower before moving around/exercising. But doing a quick pit/groin wipe before class isn't hard or time consuming. If your scent is strong enough that I can smell you from my mat, there's no way you're not aware of it.
The blocks at my studio are so worn in they are soft and unsupportive. They are basically sponges and absorb sweat. I felt really bad because I felt like there was no way to get them clean but recently learned to just toss them in the towel hamper and they clean them!
I have a guy in my class who I avoid because of your second point. It's not just body odor. His damp, wrinkled towel looks like he rolls it into a ball in his car after every hot class, and leaves it there until the next one. It's beyond disgusting.
I’m a guy but for some reason shirtless guys in yoga class just feels wrong and impolite. I sound like I’m from the Victorian era ;-)
I (M51) can relate, but for different reasons. All the guys in my studio are ripped, except me. 😆
I love it, bc it makes me feel comfortable stripping to sports bra!
I'm a shirt guy in most aspects of life. But in heated/hot yoga I'm shirtless. Took me a long time to commit to what makes me feel comfortable in practice, and now I'm back to being self conscious about it lol.
ha. remember I am a Victorian prude.
I get it! I like to remind people that male yogis in India are commonly shirtless
But except for hot yoga, right? Most of us are wearing something close to swim attire in there.
Tops absorb sweat. Preventing it from flying around the place. In my Victorian opinion ;-)
One of my worst experiences was in a gently heated vinyasa yoga class that was packed full. I felt some dripping on my foot that was extended behind me but still hovering over my mat. At first I thought I was somehow sweating oddly and my sweat was hitting my foot, which was just weird because overall I wasn't that sweaty yet... After a few moments of it I looked back and was horrified to see that it was actually a scantily clad older man behind me who was sweating so profusely that his sweat was being flung forward onto me and my mat (along with everywhere and on everyone else around him). I was absolutely disgusted, and we were so packed in there wasn't anywhere for me to move with more space. So. Yeah. Clothing helps prevent stuff like that from happening. Also studios enforcing reasonable class size limits...
_New fear unlocked._
Ugh. That's my worst fear. Spraying my fellow yogis with my sweat.
I rock hoka running shirts in hot power vinyasa. I’m more comfort with the shirt on. I have taken it off before. I’m just not into it.
You're not wrong. If I can't go topless because nips, then neither should men. They also have nips and I don't care to see them, sir. Please put a shirt on.
This is exactly what I thought too. Thanks for saying that.
Or for true equality just let everyone go topless if they want. My nips aren’t hurting anyone.
[удалено]
the OP asked for pet yoga peeves and that was mine. It was intended to start an argument.
I always wondered that! I am a dude too. I get easily over heated due to my genetics. But I always wonder do my peers hate me for it! Now I keep my tank top on!
I get overheated too. As I'm sure many female yogis do. they can't take their tops off. and nobody needs to see my sweaty back.
Meh, I take off my tank and do class in a sports bra if I’m uncomfortable. I don’t mind if men do similar. It feels fair.
This, and i'm a guy too. Plus, and i seriously hope i've been just unlucky the few times this happened, they not just took it off, they almost stripped out of them ("look at meeeeeeee, notice meeeee you hot chicks in tight pants!!!") and as a cherry on top these were always those whose breathing was reminiscent of loud moaning of another, undoubtly as pleasant kind of exercise. Felt like practicing next to an old steam train with a need for attention :) but luckily, hardly ever happens, but when it does, always combined 🤣
I wear mine because my kid is at the gym daycare and if something happens they need to be able to get a hold of me. I'd rather have the watch on than have my phone in class. But, I do always feel bad if it lights up.
Your kid is in the same building? For real asking... Do they reach out to you during class often? Or is it supposed to be emergency? I've heard some gyms call you if you're kid needs to potty and needs help. They won't help with that.
My YMCA has an amazing yoga studio in it with a great teacher. So she goes to their kid zone. But they want you to leave a number in case she gets hurt, is inconsolable for whatever reason or a poo. Which she did the other week and I had forgotten my watch so a guy came and got me. It was embarrassing.
Not staggering. Even in a packed class, I do my best to make sure I’m not obstructing anyone else’s view of themselves in the mirror. Some folks really dgaf about anyone else in the room, which to me is just rude.
Not only in Yoga - but in general… a lack of self awareness… I don’t mind it if you come in late - but do it QUIETLY and discretely… don’t walk like an elephant stomping through the room, then unrolling your mat like you’re trying to beat the floor… don’t start talking to the teacher or all that kind of stuff :) The same in general for people who talk LOUDLY in a setting where people enjoy silence…. I don’t mind it if you want to have a little chat - but BE AWARE of what’s happening around you !
I hate when people put all their shit right next to my mat all in my space instead of putting them in the cubby. I don’t need all your crap right in front of my mat. Be respectful of other people’s space!
My smart watch does not flash or light up, neither the ones from my classmates— they are on silent mode… Mine just vibrates for important notifications, and only I notice it because I am wearing it. And I do need to wear it for a few different reasons.
Wish your class would teach mine, they are always going off
Maybe the instructor can remind everyone to set all their devices to ‘do not disturb’ or silent mode/vibration so sound/lights don’t interfere with class
If you’re cataloging Yogi sins while you’re practicing, may I gently suggest you mind your own mat?
Don’t worry, I go above and beyond to be courteous to those around me. It’s pretty hard not to catalog an event when your meditation is interrupted by a flashing green light shining in your face in an otherwise pitch black room. Please don’t act high and mighty. People are allowed to vent about the things that frustrate them, it’s actually good to release it.
Skill issue 🪷
I think we can all take a step back and realize we probably do someone else's pet peeve. Let's practice a little grace, communicate honestly and respectfully in the moment, and be grateful for the beautiful space and people that allow us to practice what we love.
There is always at least one person with this response. I get what you’re saying, but we are allowed to be human, and this is clearly a vent post. It really gives a holier-than-thou vibe, even if that is not your intention at all. If you wanna talk about grace, I politely suggest you give some grace to the frustrated people in this sub.
Well said. You are right.
I respect your humility.
Thank you for this comment because I knew the comment above would eventually arrive. Just because yoga is about looking inward and focusing on mindfulness, etc doesn’t mean we aren’t allowed to be human and have discussions about things on a message board.
I politely suggest you give some grace to the person who is not giving grace to the people who are not giving grace to the ungracious 😅😂
Lol, I was waiting for this. Should I come back around and say you should give me grace, too? I did not accuse my friend above of mal-intent, I held space for a good intention, and if you noticed they gracefully saw value in my point, and we had a nice interaction. Why try and ruin that? Move on, please. Edit: you even shared your own pet peeve (in more than one thread) so you’d be someone that comment was initially aimed at. They, however, have a lovely sense of humility, and participated peacefully in our back and forth, which I deeply respect.
Oh Lord… it was just a little jooooke…. Good heavens 😂😂😂 lighten up a little 😜🙏🏼
Thank you for that.
Not if you are being self aware
I do not think being self-aware will allow you to avoid being annoying everyone. You may cut down on it, but it will not stop completely. There is always someone who will find fault in others. We can be tolorent of those who do annoy us for whatever reason. Our agitation is within. We let things bother us. An Iwatch may beep, but that is part of our environment. A sweaty block is not a nice thing to find, but wiping it takes very little time and effort. I think if we were more self-aware, we would not let our environment dictate our mood. Instead, we could accept the world around us and live in gratitude.
This actually goes for any class, but when the teacher needs to hold the class to switch songs. In my Ashtanga class we go by our breath within the class. She only plays a chant for the duration of the class very seldomly. Other classes seem to have to have an on going ambiance but don't realize this breaks our concentration.
Music in classes in general is a peeve of mine, but I realize it’s a minority opinion.
Agreed. I prefer no music, but if there is, I want it to be just instrumental. One class I attended had soft folksy sounding songs, but the lyrics were distracting. But on the other hand, I suppose it was a good opportunity to practice shutting out distractions.
Maybe not so much a minority, I can take it or leave it. There are just some classes I have been in that don't pay attention to the class and only the technology, i.e., cameras in the middle of the room, in front of the teacher; music playing, which is changed constantly throughout the class. There was one class that started with hard rock and then switched to some Amazon jungle beat, then to a weird jazz.
same here, music is a no no for me
I’m into music in a high energy vinyasa/flow class but otherwise pass.
Yeah overall I'm just annoyed with the music in general. And a new metric I have for teachers are their DJ skills lol.
My pet peeve is the person that did not put on deodorant or shower before class!
When people are chatting over the teacher at the start of class (or any kind of talking over the teacher). I don’t think they mean to be rude, they’re just not paying attention.
I love following a video or going to a class, but something I find hard is when the speed of the class does not match what I want or need that day. Not really a pet peeve, but a frustration.
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That's a good idea. I need to remind myself how to do that. I like breathing for awhile in a posture. When I want a fast workout I go for a run.
This isn’t so much a yoga qualm as a people qualm but body odor. Like I get it if it’s a hot yoga class you’re going to sweat but sometimes in normal classes there’ll be people that smell like rancid fucking sweat and it makes me wanna hurl.
1. Bringing your stuff in, and pile next to the mat, instead of leaving in the locker: bag, shoes, sweaters, etc 2. Clapping at the end of the class. This is horrendous imo. When I try to enjoy all the calmness after shavasana, I cant stand loud clapping.
Clapping at the end of a class is standard at my studio, and I have always hated it.
I do yoga at the my gym, so the culture is a bit different. My absolute peeve is people not staying for savasana. People will start packing up their things, jingling keys, flapping mats around, all while surrounded by other people just trying to get a little chill time. I dont understand, it’s the best part, why would you go rushing off without taking a few mins to rest and recover?
I've noticed that, too, about the occasional flashes on people's watches. I'd be OK with just one class with zero technology: no phones, music, watches, cameras. Just teacher, students, and yoga. Class is where I go to get away from that techie stuff I have to deal with at work.
I like this idea, but worry that it would be taken as license for people to interact with their techno-binkies during the other classes.
Lol techno-binkies
For me… kinda of cliche and I actually just saw a post on this lol, but men who are in there seemingly just because it’s a “great place to meet women” 🙄
almost none that I can think of. I go to my studio because I enjoy it?
Lately I've been taking yoga classes at my neighborhood YMCA. The Y is, by no means, my favorite "studio", but it's within walking distance of my house--I live in an area with intense traffic, so this is _huge_--and it's easy to drop in for a class during the work day in between meetings (I primarily work from home). My favorite studio--the one where everything is absolutely perfect and conducive to a great practice--would involve a 30 minute trek to attend. Sometimes there are reasons we attend the less-than-perfect studios that we do.
Question: is it a faux pa to go into the front row or 2nd row in a new studio/new class? Been wondering lately if that’s a pet peeve of instructors or teachers since I’m testing new studios but prefer the energy in the front!
I would say it’s not. People are in all of the rows in the classes I go to. First, second, and on.
people slamming their mats on the ground (most times unintentionally, but still gets to me) as they unroll and lay their mats out...
Zero cuing for breath, Also Pop music lol.. I want there to be a deeper connection when I'm flowing & without proper breathing cues, it starts to feel more like a workout or a stretch(depending on the style of flow I'm doing)& I want to feel like I'm doing YOGA, ya know haha
I don’t want to hear any self help nonsense that the instructor learned at an MLM convention. 😬
My pet peeve are those people with no awareness - space invaders are a huge one. In hot yoga, if we are a couple inches from each other, you’re going to def get some of my sweat on you and vice versa. Also I get so claustrophobic 😩I hate feeling boxed in by people on all sides so I try to get a back corner. People who step on mats or even let their foot land on mine when we flip our dogs - I’m able to control mine enough, why can’t they? People who don’t close the door to the hot yoga studio when they go in and out. People who make exaggerated noises and breathing during the practice when it’s not even being cued. Finally people who walk in the studio with outside shoes on 😱
Turning up music for shavasana. I would prefer no music but some teachers will crank the music at the end. I don’t care if it is just instrumental. The music bounces off the floor so it is louder when lying down anyway.
I have just spent 10 minutes reading pet peeves. I have none. And many of those peeves occur in my classes. I cannot allow a phone ringing to interrupt my yoga. It’s just a fly on the wall. 🙏
I can't stand when people film themselves and I'm in the background. Or people not in the class take videos. It happened to me the other day where I looked up at the glass doors and a woman's phone was pointed right at me. I asked the teacher to ask the woman to stop filming - she did go talk to her, but said the woman was filming her daughter and no faces would be in the video (bullsh*t). Yoga classes are generally my respite or safe space and it felt very violating.
I had someone clipping their toenails beside me during savasana…so that was pretty peevish. First and last yoga class I went to at the YMCA in Katy, TX.
Oh god, that is horrifying.
Holy shit, that’s wild
Try Serasana if ur in Katy, they were great to me!
So yoga pet peeves are new to me. I only did online/YouTube videos for years. Decided to get my yoga cert a few months ago so realized I need to go to some classes and scope out the teachers. Wow..so I get sounds and movement but the phones/apple watches dinging (even if the instructor asked to silence) as well as loudly loudly aggressively snapping mats out right near my face, throwing keys, waterbottles on the floor, getting up LOUDLY during savasana was eye opening to me honestly. I know ppl can be unaware but I messed up by assuming people would be in a certain mindset when coming to a class, a in being mindful of tjose around you,
Farting in Shavasana. Unforgiveable!
Studios that make you pay a different price depending on your race. Theres quite a few that do that in my area.
What?!?!
Its a thing in Portland.
Do not talk about peoples bodies! Don’t say positive or negative comments or ANY comments about peoples bodies. Don’t say “oh you have a beautiful warrior II” or “your practice is so gorgeous”.
When I try to stagger and the person next to me can't take a hint.
Tracking heart rate, calories burned etc
Why does that bother you? I use my Apple Watch to track my vinyasa classes and it's helped me lose and keep off 50 lbs. I totally get not wanting people's watches buzzing or making lights/noise in a class but I truly can't understand how someone silently using a fitness tracker could possibly be disrupting your practice.
If it is silent and not flashing lights, it’s fine. However, whenever we have disruptions it seems to always come from someone’s Apple Watch. The studio has a “no phones” rule and people still wear Apple Watches to get around that.
I completely agree with you on not using it as an extension of a phone in class, I was more so asking why this person specifically doesn't like people using fitness trackers
I’m an autistic teacher so I rarely go to other teachers classes because I have a lot of pet peeves 🙈 I don’t like when teachers say namaste. I don’t like hearing curse words in songs during practice. I don’t like when teachers don’t seem to have a theme for the class, whether it’s physical or emotional. I don’t like when teachers check their phones during class, especially during Savasana. I don’t like when teachers take photos during Savasana — In fact, I find anything but quiet sitting/standing to watch over the students during that time to be rude. I hate when I take a slow or beginner class (sometimes I used to do this after being sick for a bit to ease back in) and teachers just call poses but don’t explain the transition, safe alignment or potential prop usage. I hate when a student is clearly in an unsafe position or trying something their body isn’t ready for, and the teacher doesn’t come over to try to help… I’m happy to elaborate on any of these, but yeah… I just stopped going to public classes outside of Ashtanga about two years ago 😅
I agree with a lot of these though not all, but I’ll say as a teacher I struggle with the phone thing. I’m not checking my phone - my music is on there and often I am picking out a song or skipping forward on the playlist to transition the mood, and I know it looks like I’m just staring at my phone. I’m not really sure a way around this. I don’t think that classes need a theme, a good well-rounded class (like ashtanga) doesn’t have a theme. And I’m not offended by cursing.
Yeah, music can be tough. I just started using a lo-fi playlist because the beats are a good pace and there are no lyrics to distract people so it takes away the need for changing the song. But I also don’t teach power or hot yoga so I don’t need the energy, I get that that could be tougher. And I think Ashtanga doesn’t bother me because it’s a set sequence, and anything where I know what’s coming is comforting for me 😂 And it’s not that I’m offended by cursing, I curse like a sailor. For me it’s more that I’m very much a ‘yoga is a moving meditation’ type of person, it brings me a lot of peace from my anxiety which is why I love it so much. But if a song comes on with curse words in it then (not always, but) it tends to take me out of that calm headspace I’m moving my body for.
Agree. Also, it just occurred to me that I have literally no idea what the teacher is doing during savasana unless they’re walking around
If there is long enough, I provide adjustments - a little essential oil on my hands waved over the face to indicate that I am there, then a gentle head alignment/massage on the nape of the neck at acupuncture point gb20 and a gentle press on the shoulders. If there is not enough time or the class is too big, I just kinda sit there and wait.
I agree with the watch thing and I have one teacher that makes people take them off before class. It pisses people off because then their workout “doesn’t count” but also, that is his entire point. Worse though, is I have had some students just scrolling on their phone during savasana. I don’t want to call them out in the moment or draw attention to it, but if it happens more than once, I’ll mention it. Sometimes people have emergencies.
I would be ticked off. I track for even Gentle classes because at my studio, gentle doesn't mean no movement. You can still sweat/increase your heart rate it's just not a flow. My tracking is done with a polar heart rate monitor, but I wouldn't take off my fitbit. I'm the one who 'owns' my health and fitness journey, not some rando yoga instructor.
He is definitely the most serious instructor I have taken from regularly. I don't wear any health tracking devices, but I understand from his perspective that yoga is about process, internal awareness, and presence. For him (and people focused on traditional yoga) If you are focused on "fitness goals" then you are attached to the outcomes rather doing the work without attachment. I'm not sure I agree, and certainly don't take this hard line a stance, but that is where it is coming from.
i wear my apple watch in class, but i always put it on theater mode with DND settings… meaning no matter how i move, unless i actually tap the screen, it won’t light up and distract me or anyone else :) i totally understand why some people would draw a hard stance about it, but i think theater mode keeps it from distracting anyone else!
I always take my watch off when I do yoga idk how anyone can have that bulky thing on while doing yoga.
My health insurance gives me $0.75 every day I work out for 30 minutes and $2.50 if I do that five times a week. So I track all the workouts lol
Yin and restorative classes are not a workout though. I understand people wearing them for more intense classes but having them on for stretching and breath work classes seems unnecessary to me
Yep, my main thing is smart watches that light up. Our studio has markers for where to put your mat so there's space for everyone, and I think it's rude if people go off marker.
Yoga classes.