Quote Originally Posted by OakLeaf View Post
...In a gym setting, a lot of the teachers just don't even know enough to make good corrections. That's not limited to yoga - but yoga is one of those things where there ARE good, dedicated studios in addition to junky gyms. It's a lot of why I got away from group fitness. Too many people want to just go and sort of put their bodies in ways that sort of look like what the instructor is sort of doing, and don't care whether they're injuring themselves or just not getting the benefit of what they're doing. Too many authorities will certify instructors without any kind of proof that they can see and correct a student's alignment. Bleh.
You nailed the reason I don't do gym group anymore. Injuries I live with today, were probably caused by over-doing some moves for such a long time, the wrong way.

Knowing now what I did not know then (so easy to say with some knowlege now) I would have taken a personal trainer like the one I have now instead of the hundreds differents classes of steps, aerobics, military cardio, you name it. She's a physiotherapist/kinesiologist and the trainer for the elite triathlon team we have in town. Every move she makes me do is shown to prevent injuries or alleviate what I must live with now. If I can't do one move (ie, proper squats due to lack of knee cartilage), there are other options that are safer in such situations. Rarely you'll see this in group class as they have no time to watch all students. Some will...but most stay in front and shout! And because we do not want to look like a "fail" to others, we just push ourselves but the wrong way. Just to do the same. Which we should not be doing.