WEB BLAMED FOR YOGA INJURIES.

Originating in India more than 5,000 years ago, yoga is believed to be one of the first forms of exercise created, bringing physical and psychological benefits to those who practise it.

But today’s Instagram-conscious instructors are falling victim to injuries because they are attempting challenging poses that will look good on social media, experts have warned.

The desire to teach the discipline “purely for esthetic reasons” is leading to a rise in the number of yoga teachers suffering injuries, particularly in their hips.

Benoy Mathew, a physiotherapist who works at Harley Street Physio in London, and specializes in hips and knees, said the practice had become over-commercialized, resulting in inexperienced people being attracted into teaching it and pushing themselves too far.

“When I first started seeing patients eight years ago, I would see around one yoga teacher every six months. But now I am seeing four to five every month,” he said.

“Social media has definitely contributed to this feeling of having to take it to the next level and that’s purely for esthetic reasons. Just because you can get your head to touch the floor, you might manage to get an ego boost, but it doesn’t necessarily mean you are going to have a huge health boost. You are just leaving yourself with more problems.”

Teaching the ancient practice, which is popular with celebrities including Victoria Beckham and the Duchess of Sussex, does not require any specific qualifications, according to the U.K.’S governing body. Mathew believes this is a contributing factor to the increase in injuries.

“There is a big variation in the experience of yoga instructors,” he said. “Some people who teach the sport come from a fitness background with a lot of knowledge of the body, whereas others come from a purely esthetic background. It has been over commercialized and I think that is what is causing a lot of the problems.”

According to a study published in the British Medical Journal last year, 64 per cent of injuries acquired doing yoga occur in the lower half of the body including the hip, hamstring and knee.

Poppy Pickles, who teaches yoga in southeast London, said that people rushing into advanced poses that look good on social media risked injury.

“We are much more impatient in the West and many people want to be able to do the poses they see on posters which will look good on their Instagram,” she said.

Pickles, 38, who has been teaching for two years, said yoga teachers often experience nasty injuries because there is a “pressure” to prove that they are better than their students.