Yoga brick

{{Short description|Block used as yoga prop}} {{good article}} {{use dmy dates|date=June 2025}} {{use British English|date=June 2025}} [[File:Uttitha Trikonasana.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|A yoga brick under the supporting hand to encourage correct alignment in Trikonasana (triangle pose) according to the individual's needs. This usage is common in Iyengar Yoga.]]

A '''yoga brick''' or '''yoga block''' is a smooth block of wood or of firm but comfortable material, such as hard foam rubber or cork, used as a prop in yoga as exercise.

The use of wooden bricks to assist in alignment was introduced by B. K. S. Iyengar, founder of Iyengar Yoga, and has spread to practices such as Restorative Yoga and Yin Yoga.

==History==

B. K. S. Iyengar, who founded Iyengar Yoga in the 1970s, introduced the use of yoga props including bricks and straps to assist his students towards correct alignment in the asanas. He recommended that yoga bricks be similar in size to a house brick, 9 x 4.5 x 3 inches (22.5 x 11 x 7.5 cm) in size.<ref name="Burgin 2014">{{cite web |last1=Burgin |first1=Timothy |title=How to Choose the Perfect Yoga Block |url=https://www.yogabasics.com/connect/yoga-blog/how-to-choose-the-perfect-yoga-block/ |publisher=YogaBasics |date=2 October 2014 |access-date=27 July 2019 |archive-date=1 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220601153330/https://www.yogabasics.com/connect/yoga-blog/how-to-choose-the-perfect-yoga-block/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Norberg 2016">{{cite book |last=Norberg |first=Ulrica |title=Restorative Yoga: Reduce Stress, Gain Energy, and Find Balance |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YGeCDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT138 |year=2016 |publisher=Skyhorse |isbn=978-1-5107-2744-1 |pages=138–140}}</ref> Iyengar yoga institutions sell unbranded yoga bricks.<ref>{{cite book |last=Jain |first=Andrea R. |author-link=Andrea Jain |title=Selling Yoga: From Counterculture to Pop Culture |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C2q6BAAAQBAJ&pg=PA85 |year=2015 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-939024-3 |page=85}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=About Us {{!}} Shop |url=https://iymv.org/iyengar-yoga-london-iyengar-yoga-shop/ |publisher=Iyengar Yoga Institute |access-date=28 July 2019 |archive-date=12 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190712210753/https://iymv.org/iyengar-yoga-london-iyengar-yoga-shop/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

== Considerations ==

[[File:Cork yoga blocks.jpg|thumb|upright|Cork yoga blocks]]

Yoga bricks are manufactured in a variety of materials, sizes, and colours. Lydia Willgress, writing for ''The Independent'', states that the key considerations are the hardness of the material, which influences the comfort and support they provide; size and weight; and appearance.<ref name="Willgress 2018">{{cite news |last1=Willgress |first1=Lydia |title=7 best yoga blocks |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/extras/indybest/outdoor-activity/yoga/best-yoga-blocks-reviews-beginners-equipment-straps-a8453266.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220507/https://www.independent.co.uk/extras/indybest/outdoor-activity/yoga/best-yoga-blocks-reviews-beginners-equipment-straps-a8453266.html |archive-date=2022-05-07 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |work=The Independent |date=20 July 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Some brands, such as Lululemon, provide "motivational messaging"<ref name="Willgress 2018"/> on both the packaging and the actual block.<ref name="Willgress 2018"/>

Practitioners may choose to own only a single block, but some asanas require a block under each hand, or a stack of two blocks, so purchasing a set of two may be practical and economical on shipping costs.<ref name="Burgin 2014"/>

==Materials==

[[File:Legs constained Iyengaar Yoga.jpg|thumb|upright=0.6|A foam plastic block in a therapeutic use of yoga]]

The earliest yoga bricks were made of wood, providing excellent support and durability but relatively little comfort. They are hard, often heavy, expensive, and tend to become slippery when wet. These considerations led to the development of yoga bricks in other materials, and to the marketing of hollow wooden blocks, which are lighter but more costly and less durable.<ref name="Burgin 2014"/> Woods used include hardwoods like birch and maple, and softwoods like pine; hardwood blocks are heavier (up to about 2.5 pounds or 1.1 kg) and more durable than those made of softwood.<ref name="Norberg 2016"/> Lightweight wooden blocks made of balsa are available from some manufacturers.<ref name="Crawford"/> Bamboo blocks are durable, but relatively expensive.<ref name="Moore 2013"/>

Cork is a natural material, making it an attractive choice for yoga practitioners concerned about ecological impact. It provides good grip, and since it is naturally waterproof, it usefully resists absorbing sweat.<ref name="Willgress 2018"/> All the same, it does eventually absorb odours, and it tends to crumble with use.<ref name="Burgin 2014"/>

Foam plastic or rubber blocks (often EVA foam) are lighter than cork, ranging between 200 and 400 grams (7 to 14 ounces), so are convenient to carry around, and they are often inexpensive, so they are widely used by yoga studios.<ref name="Willgress 2018"/><ref name="Burgin 2014"/><ref name="Norberg 2016"/> Those of relatively soft foam are comfortable to sit on, but provide less support for other parts of the body as may be needed in the more advanced asanas.<ref name="Willgress 2018"/><ref name="Burgin 2014"/>

Manufacturers such as Manduka make recycled foam blocks, offering the combination of a light and strong prop with a low ecological impact.<ref name="Olewitz 2019">{{cite web |last1=Olewitz |first1=Chloe |title=The best yoga blocks you can buy |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/best-yoga-blocks?r=US&IR=T#the-best-eco-friendly-yoga-block-4 |publisher=Business Insider |date=18 June 2019}}</ref>

==Size and shape==

The yoga teacher Benna Crawford notes that brick and block are usually synonyms for the same yoga props, but that manufacturers sometimes use "brick" for a slim one, about 2 inches (5 cm) thick, and "block" for a thicker one of 3 inches (7.5 cm) and above.<ref name="Crawford">{{cite web |last1=Crawford |first1=Benna |title=How to Use a Yoga Brick |url=https://yoga.lovetoknow.com/types-yoga/how-use-yoga-brick |publisher=Love to Know |access-date=27 July 2019}}</ref>

Most yoga bricks are cuboidal blocks, often with chamfered edges for comfort. Well-designed blocks have unequal length, width, and thickness, offering three different heights for different uses in the yoga class. Some manufacturers have explored other shapes; for example, Yogamatters make an oval block, comfortable for sitting but less versatile as a support.<ref name="Willgress 2018"/>

==Applications==

[[File:Eyal Shifroni in Vasisthasana with props.jpg|thumb|The use of props including a thin yoga block, yoga mats, and a folding chair, demonstrated in Vasisthasana ]]

The yoga teacher and author Candace Moore writes that yoga bricks can be useful for both beginners and advanced practitioners. Beginners can benefit from supporting their hand in asanas such as Trikonasana, Triangle pose, sitting on a block in a forward bend such as Paschimottanasana, or supporting one buttock in Eka Pāda Rājakapotāsana (King Pigeon pose), giving a beneficial forward tilt to the pelvis.<ref name="Moore 2013">{{cite web |last1=Moore |first1=Candace |title=How to Use Yoga Blocks |url=https://www.yogabycandace.com/blog/2013/10/28/how-to-use-yoga-blocks |publisher=Yoga by Candace |date=28 October 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Swanson |first=Ann |title=Science of Yoga: Understand the Anatomy and Physiology to Perfect your Practice |publisher=DK Publishing |year=2019 |isbn=978-1-4654-7935-8 |oclc=1030608283 |page=120}}</ref> Moore suggests that a pair of blocks can be used to support the knees in the seated Baddha Konasana, Cobbler's pose,<ref name="Moore 2013"/> while practitioners can work towards more advanced poses using a block under each hand to practice arm balances such as in preparation for Astavakrasana.<ref name="Moore 2013"/> Similarly, in Iyengar Yoga, a pair of yoga bricks can be used under the feet in Urdhva Dhanurasana (Upwards Bow pose) to enable the lower trunk to lift better, or the hands can be placed on yoga bricks.<ref>{{cite book |last=Mehta |first=Silva |last2=Mehta |first2=Mira |author2-link=Mira Mehta |last3=Mehta |first3=Shyam |date=1990 |title=Yoga: The Iyengar Way |publisher=Dorling Kindersley |isbn=978-0863184208 |page=139}}</ref>

Yin Yoga (founded c. 1975) uses props such as blocks to help get sensation into whichever area is of concern; the purpose may be to increase stress in an area, to reduce stress where it is not wanted, to make some poses accessible to the practitioner, to provide enough support to allow the muscles to let go, and to make poses more comfortable, permitting them to be held for longer. The Yin Yoga teacher Sarah Powers explains that "When the bones feel supported, the muscles can relax;"<ref name="YY"/> an example is the use of blocks to support the knees in Butterfly pose, the Yin equivalent of Baddha Konasana.<ref name="YY">{{cite web |last1=Clark |first1=Bernie |author-link=Bernie Clark (yoga teacher) |title=Using Props in Yin Yoga |url=https://yinyoga.com/using-props-in-yin-yoga/ |publisher=Yin Yoga |access-date=28 July 2019}}</ref>

Restorative Yoga (founded c. 2007) uses blocks extensively, for example arranging them under a bolster to create a ramp or to raise a part of the body.<ref name="Norberg 2016"/>

==See also==

* Yoga mat * Yoga pants

==References== {{reflist|30em}}

Category:Exercise equipment Brick