What’s the best time of day for yoga? It depends on what kind of yoga. No, this is not a joke; it’s serious advice offered in the Wall Street Journal
by Andrew Tanner, a serious Framingham, Mass., yoga instructor and chief spokesman for the yoga teacher association, Yoga Alliance. Tanner points out that the philosophy of yoga is rooted in Ayurveda, an ancient Indian healing tradition that divides the day into blocks of time, some of which are better for exercise than others. Take the under-utilized block of time between 2 a.m. to 6 a.m., a spiritual time known as Vata. That, says Tanner, is actually a very good time for a meditative practice, and, unsurprisingly, a bad time for intense physical exercise. Next up is the the time between 6 a.m and 10 a.m., known as Kapha. This, says Tanner, is the best time to move your body. Following Kapha is Pitta, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and not recommended for movement, because, Tanner says, “your engines are already running” and you are probably digesting food. Now things get easy, because the blocks of time repeat, with Vata revisiting between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. followed by Kapha and Pitta. Finally, a practical note: if, like most people, you exercise when you get home from work at 6 p.m. you should do it vigorously, and you should stop by 8 p.m. or your buzzing body could keep you up at night.