This guide is a simple tool to introduce yoga props or deepen your understanding of them. Use it, share it, have fun playing around!

Alignment (and breath) is everything in yoga, and tools help get us there. If you're new to yoga or new to using props — the reason why we use blocks, straps and other objects is to help make postures accessible.

Take a comfortable seat, as an example, queued so often in yoga and meditation. Our body’s natural inclination is to sink back. But when we do this, we block the flow of energy in the spine (our central energy channel) making it a lot more difficult to get into a meditate state. A quick fix is to sit on top of a pillow or block or blanket to lift the heart directly over the hips and straighten the spine without having to fight gravity. In this way, props set us up for success. Yay.

When we find alignment in every posture, we begin to unblock the energy channels in our body. This deepens the poses themselves, and more importantly, starts to shift our mind and perception. Which is way cool.

Here’s to your alignment!