If you're into doing some yoga stretching exercises, chances are you've probably looked into getting some of the usual accoutrements – special shirts, leggings, socks or mats. While it's fine to be interested in such things, it is also important to be aware ahead of time that none of them is necessary.

Mats in particular have no real place in Dahn Yoga exercises. This isn't a reaction to current yoga culture – instead, Dahn Yoga simply pre-dates the use of mats or any other sort of specialty yoga product.

If you use a mat, you may have already noticed that they have certain limitations. For instance, FitSugar recently listed three things that you absolutely can't do with a mat: You can't clean it with soap (which can cling to the plastic), you can't roll it up immediately after a class and you can't loan it to others.

All three of these limitations have to do with sweat, which makes yoga mats unbearably dirty sometimes. Dahn Yoga has the perfect remedy for this: Ditch the mat.

Yoga is best performed on the floor. To avoid getting overheated, you can wear loose, long-sleeved shirts and pants, which cool the body and wick away sweat.

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Every year, it seems like more people decide to get in shape by running, or improve their mind-body connection with yoga. But did you know that these two exercise regimens can be mutually beneficial? That's right – with yoga stretching for runners, everyone from the casual jogger to the hardcore marathoner can improve their stride and avoid injury.

The latter yoga stretching benefit – namely, reducing the risk of strains or sprains – is pretty important, at that. According to an article published in the Regina Leader-Post, holistic poses and gentle stretches may significantly extend a runner's career.

The news source explained that small injuries, like pulled muscles, can take joggers off the road for weeks at a time, which can in turn affect their ability to stay fit.

Of course, larger injuries – such as worn-out joints or torn tendons – can leave runners out of commission for months. While yoga cannot necessarily prevent such problems, it can certainly reduce the everyday wear and tear that runners are prone to.

On the flipside of things, jogging can increase leg and core strength, giving yoga practitioners better endurance for those tough-to-hold poses.

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Four out of five Americans suffer from back pain at some point in their lives, according to the National Institutes of Health. This makes back pain one of the most common medical conditions in existence. It also underscores the need for effective pain management techniques.

If you use yoga stretching for back pain, you're in luck: According to a newly released medical review, the holistic mind-body system is provably effective for lower back aches.

The author, an expert in preventative medicine from the University of California, San Diego, explained that several studies published in 2011 have bolstered the idea that yoga can ease back pain.

In particular, two large, randomized, UK-based investigations determined that weekly yoga classes can reduce lower back pain even as they improve flexibility and quality of life. As a bonus, these studies found that this alternative treatment for back pain entails very few adverse side effects.

So if you're on the fence about trying a Dahn Yoga class, especially one that's dedicated to spinal or neurological issues, hop off it already! At your local community center, there's a free slot – and a good teacher – and a pleasant group – and a calming class environment – all waiting for you.

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You can purchase the best yoga books, mats, DVDs and uniforms that money can buy, but none of it necessarily makes your mind-body experience any better. That's the message we consistently try to get across at Dahn Yoga: you shouldn't have to shell out in order to bliss out.

A good example of unnecessarily pricey yoga meditation supplies can be found in a new line of yoga clothing released by the apparel company Garnet Hill.

Called the Zinni^TM collection, it includes the standard sort of pants, shirts, shorts and wraps that you'd expect these days. Nearly all items are made with synthetic fibers, and many of the top-and-bottom sets have a clingy, restrictive fit.

The company's vice president of merchandising, Joanne M., called the line an "exclusive collection," which is pretty accurate, considering that even a simple pair of Zinni^TM pants costs north of $80.

Now, it's certainly fine to wear any kind of clothing you like while doing yoga. However, you don't have to spend a bundle to be comfortable and stylish. Essentially, all you need in order to regulate your body temperature is a good pair of loose, natural-weave pants and a long-sleeved top.

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New stories about yoga meditation techniques appear in the headlines every day, thanks in part to the holistic system's many positive effects for the body and mind. Yoga can do everything from relieving muscular tension to helping the body maintain an even temperature – but that doesn't mean you need to strip down to your skin to get the full effect.

Yet, that's exactly what one studio in Park Slope, Brooklyn, encourages its enthusiasts to do. According to the Huffington Post, the center in question teaches nude yoga stretching poses for men. Just men, apparently.

So why do yoga in your birthday suit? On its website, the studio explains that it "reveals a wealth of information about the alignment of both teacher and student, which is otherwise hidden from view. The naked practice also fosters commonality and community, which can lead to a deeply supportive experience for everyone involved."

That's fine if it's your thing, but generally speaking, it's unnecessary to be nude in order to bond with a yoga community.

And as for improving your alignment and regulating your body heat, wearing a loose-fitted, organic-weave, long-sleeved shirt and pants is all you need. So get excited about yoga, sure, but keep your pants on!

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Talk about yoga stretching for beginners: According to Easy Reader News, children in Pennekamp Elementary School's developmental kindergarten class have begun doing holistic exercises in their homeroom – and they love it!

Teacher Amy McConnell recently asked the news source's Alene Tchekmedyian to sit in on a class, in which 18 excited boys and girls did creative yoga poses to the sounds of '60s surf music.

"Are you guys ready to go surfing?" she asked her class. "Yeah!" they responded.

Then, with the Surfaris' "Wipe Out" playing in the background, the kids did poses that tested their ability to balance and stretch.

Tchekmedyian explained that all this posing and yoga meditation for beginners was made possible by an artists-in-residence program that is funded by proceeds gathered by the school's Parent-Teacher Association.

And why do the kindergartners love posing and meditating so much?

"I make it fun and I'm silly, I'm not afraid to make mistakes," MacConnell told the newspaper. "Kids like when you mess up."

Apparently so, since more than 1.5 million children practice yoga each year, according to a survey conducted buy the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

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If you're tired of racking up tons of frequent flier miles only to have to blow them at lackluster inns or motels, there may soon be a new, holistic option out there for you. According to the Financial Times, InterContinental Hotels will soon be offering rooms that are essentially individualized yoga meditation retreats for one!

These accommodations will be available in 2013, when the chain's first EVEN Hotel is completed. The news source noted that each room will be furnished with exercise balls, chin-up bars, yoga mats and wellness supplies – perfect for doing your yoga meditation poses while on the road.

Richard Solomons, the CEO of the hotel corporation, noted that while a few of the typical temptations – like the minibar – will not be available, "[there is] not going to be some guy in a tracksuit at reception demanding you go for a run each morning."

Instead, the hotel chain will be dedicated to helping travelers attend to their physical health. To that end, each room will be large enough to accommodate yoga routines, meals will be healthy and organic, and receptionists will be able to provide nutrition tips at a moment's notice.

Not bad for all you yoga lovers out there!

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Sure, you need to wear a certain style of pants into a job interview, at work or in church, but is there any other situation in which a special style of slacks is helpful? There sure is. In holistic mind-body classes, loose-fitting workout pants are an indispensable addition to anyone's yoga meditation supplies.

Just how essential are they? According to the Essex-Middle River Patch, a mini-firestorm of Twitter posts recently followed the suggestion that students at Eastern Technical High School might not be able to wear yoga pants to school.

However, they evidently have not been banned. Instead, the school has merely decided to limit the snugness of such clothing.

"Don't believe everything you read on Twitter," principal Tom Evans told the news source. "We have concerns about tight and form-fitting pants, but yoga pants are allowed at Eastern Tech. It was all just a big misunderstanding."

Of course, there's another good reason that yoga pants should be loose and nonrestrictive: When doing yoga meditation poses, clingy, synthetic clothes can limit a person's comfort and range of motion.

And perhaps more importantly, loose, natural-fiber pants and a long-sleeved top are the best uniform for any yoga enthusiast who wants to maintain a steady body temperature.

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It's not always easy to figure out the etiquette that comes with a new pursuit. In yoga, for instance, you may come to your first class without much idea of how to behave or what to bring. Rather than reading though an entire yoga books for beginners, though, just follow these simple tips for new practitioners.

1. Talk to your instructor before class. If you have big questions or concerns, now is the time to voice them, instead of during quiet meditation.

2. Turn off your cellphone. Just do it. It will never be a part of your essential yoga meditation supplies. A ringing phone can break everyone's calm.

3. Take off your shoes as you enter the studio. It's good etiquette, and it will relax your feet to get them back in a more natural state.

4. Make friends! You're not just going to yoga class to decompress after a long day, but also to meet other people and make social connections. Don't be an isolationist. Say hi!

5. Be open to new things. Some meditation exercises may seem silly at first, but chances are good that you'll quickly learn to love them.

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The students at Boston University's School of Medicine are under some serious strain. Between test prep, lecture classes, labs, clinical practice, studying and…well, more studying, the med students at this storied university could certainly use some yoga stretching benefits.

And according to NPR's affiliate in Boston, WBUR, many of them are doing just that. In a story cheekily titled "Downward-Facing Docs," the news radio station described how the students are now taking a weekly half-hour yoga course.

Lest you think that only the holistically-minded are trying out yoga stretching poses at BU, it may help to know that these classes are mandatory. They are part of the school's effort to teach med students about de-stressing through deep breathing, meditation and the "relaxation response."

The classes couldn't have come at a better time:

- A study published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine found that, due to depression and stress, as many as 11 percent of med students contemplate suicide in a given year.

- In the same report, 50 percent of respondents described having experienced academic burnout.

- And another study, this one appearing in the journal Sleep Medicine, found that the average med student receives just under 2.5 hours of sleep education during their entire academic trajectory.

Somebody get these kids into a yoga class, stat!

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