The major styles of yoga

A studio schedule is a list of style names with no explanation, and the names are doing several different jobs at once. Some denote a genuine lineage with a defined method. Some describe a pace. Some are essentially studio branding. Here is what you can actually infer from each.

Vinyasa

The most common style on most Western schedules. Postures are linked in continuous sequences, one movement per breath, so the class flows rather than stopping between shapes. Expect to be warm and somewhat out of breath. Sequences are usually improvised by the teacher, which means two vinyasa classes at the same studio can feel entirely different. Moderate to vigorous. Good general entry point if you like to move.

Hatha

Historically, hatha is the whole physical tradition — vinyasa is a descendant of it. On a modern schedule, though, "hatha" almost always means something more specific: a slower class where you hold postures for several breaths with pauses between them. Less continuous than vinyasa, more time in each shape. Frequently the gentlest genuinely all-levels option a studio offers.

Ashtanga

A fixed sequence, practised in the same order every time, developed by K. Pattabhi Jois in Mysore in the twentieth century. Physically demanding and quite rigorous. Comes in two formats: led classes, where a teacher calls the sequence, and Mysore-style, where everyone practises the sequence at their own pace in a shared room while a teacher circulates. Mysore looks intimidating and is actually rather good for beginners, because you are taught individually and only given as much of the sequence as you can handle. Ask before dropping in.

Iyengar

Founded by B. K. S. Iyengar. Precision-focused, with long holds, extensive use of props — blocks, straps, bolsters, chairs, wall ropes — and detailed alignment instruction. Slower than it is easy; holding a well-aligned posture for two minutes is not restful. Iyengar teachers undergo unusually long and standardised training, so the label is a genuine quality signal. Particularly useful if you have an injury or want to understand what your body is actually doing.

Yin

Mostly seated and lying postures held for three to five minutes, sometimes longer, with muscles deliberately relaxed. The target is the denser connective tissue rather than muscle. Physically passive and mentally demanding — long holds leave you nowhere to go but your own head, which is part of the design. Often paired with meditation instruction. Slow does not mean easy.

Restorative

Fully supported postures, heavily propped, held for long periods with no effort at all. Perhaps four to six shapes in an hour. The aim is to do nothing, thoroughly. Distinct from yin, where you are still under tension. Excellent when you are exhausted, unwell, or recovering.

Hot yoga and Bikram

Practised in a heated room, commonly around 32–40°C. Bikram specifically refers to a fixed sequence of twenty-six postures in a hot room; "hot yoga" more loosely means any heated class, often hot vinyasa. Many studios that once used the Bikram name have dropped it and teach the same sequence under another label.

Kundalini

Quite different from the rest. Repetitive movements, vigorous breathing techniques, chanting and mantra, held postures, and specific sequences called kriyas. Explicitly aimed at energetic and mental effects rather than physical conditioning. Some people find it transformative and some find it deeply strange; very few find it neutral. Worth knowing that the organisation which popularised it in the West has been the subject of serious and substantiated abuse allegations against its founder, which many practitioners and teachers are still working through publicly.

Power, sculpt, flow, slow flow

These are descriptions rather than lineages. Power is vigorous vinyasa. Sculpt adds light weights. Slow flow is vinyasa with longer holds. Flow is vinyasa. Treat them as pace indicators from that particular studio, not as methods.