In some yoga purists' eyes, there is not much different between the older ashtanga yoga and its best known offshoot, ashtanga-vinyasa yoga. However, your body will probably detect the difference. The point of ashtanga yoga is to work up a sweat but doing very complicated positions as fast as possible. You still have to do difficult positions in ashtanga-vinyasa yoga, but you don't have to do them as fast. The goal is to do them as elegantly as possible, flowing from one to another.

Finding Instruction

No matter which branch of yoga you want to do, it is vitally important that you receive your doctor's permission to begin yoga instruction. Some branches of yoga – like laughing yoga – are not as physically demanding as ashtanga-vinyasa yoga. There are many people who could severely injure themselves trying to do ashtanga-vinyas yoga, such as this writer. My old gymnastics injury prevents me from joining an ashtanga-vinyasa class.

There are far more instructors who classify themselves as hatha yoga instructors or ashtanga yoga instructors who are certainly more than qualified to give you ashtanga-vinyasa yoga instruction. When you contact a community college, health spa or ashtanga yoga center about their classes, feel free to ask about all of the branches of yoga the instructors teach.

Whatever you do, don't try and teach yourself ashtanga-vinyasa yoga. Although there are some excellent videos and DVDs of yoga routines or "yoga 101" instructions available, they are not suitable for learning ashtanga-vinyasa yoga safely. If you are looking forward to doing yourself a sever injury, then by all means, ignore getting a real instructor and attempt the positions yourself.

Breath Synchronized Movement

So, what does "vinyasa" mean? It means "breath synchronized movement". It's not enough learning where to put your body parts in a yoga position, you also need to learn how to properly breath throughout it. Knowing when to inhale, hold your breath and exhale actually makes doing the exercises a lot safer. It seems like it shouldn't, but it does.

Some people are more attracted to ashtanga-vinyasa yoga because of the emphasis on how you move rather than on how quickly you move. There's more personal style involved and more of a chance to express your own creativity. In comparison to many other branches of yoga, ashtanga-vinyasa yoga looks like a very complex slow dance. For spectators, ashtanga-vinyasa yoga is usually more entertaining and appealing than other more athletic branches of yoga.