I truly believe that everyone can benefit from stretching and strengthening their muscles through yoga. I must admit it saddened me to read a recent article [1] stating that in 2006, nearly 4,500 people ended up in the ER after suffering from injuries during a yoga class. It wasn't just beginners, but also yogis who've been practicing consistently for years. Common ailments included pulled muscles, torn rotator cuffs, exacerbated carpal tunnel syndrome, torn cartilage in the knees, and neck injuries such as herniated disks.

This statistic may come as a surprise to you since yoga is meant to heal not harm. The thing is, if you don't learn the basics from a good instructor, you try to do too much, or you don't pay attention to what you're doing, you could end up hurting yourself.

So how can you prevent an injury in your next yoga class? To find out .

• Make sure to take class at a reputable studio from an experienced teacher.
• Learning proper alignment is key, and a good teacher will use verbal commands, and demonstrations to let you know how to do poses correctly.
• Sometimes teachers do adjustments (where they use their hands to move you), to help with your alignment or to get you deeper into a pose. Watch out though because an inexperienced teacher can end up pushing you beyond your body's limit. Students have this idea that the teacher knows best, but if the instructor is causing you pain, you have every right to tell her to stop. If you're worried about getting a bad adjustment, tell the teacher before class that she doesn't need to adjust you.
• Listen to your own body, rather than to that little competitive voice inside you. If they see Patty Pretzel doing Lotus [2] pose, don't think, "I know I just had knee surgery, but if she can do it, so can I." Do yourself a favor and be true to your abilities.

After hearing this news, I was wondering if you've ever hurt yourself in yoga class. Share your experiences in the comment section below.

Source [3]