Melbourne

Pros of Yoga - flexibility, bit of strength building, balance, relaxation, core strength.

Cons of Yoga - realizing that you're shit at all of the above at the start.

Vinyasa and Ashtanga yoga are based on 'positional flow'. You go from one position to another and it can be taxing.

Start with yin or hatha, which are a bit generic and you tend to hold poses for longer.

Any begineer yoga program will be sufficient (even the vin and ashtanga) to get an understanding of it.

I did a fair bit over lockdowns and it was great. Really looking at getting back into it again in the new year.

If you don't want to try a studio, I used the Down Dog app (free trial and the subscription wasn't that pricey). Very customisable and you can taylor your experience to suit your needs.

I'm a big fan of sound meditation. Or any meditation. You can download an app that can give you repetitive beat based meditations than should simulate the beat of your foot falls. Or swimming can provide a similar repetitive beat that you can focus on.

Second swimming. Nice beach, a few waves, nice view, not many people (but some for safety). Completely changed my stress levels.

Dance? Maybe a course of swing dance or classic rock & roll - excellent for balance, timing as well as aerobic/cardio. Quite a few short courses around - and most you don't need to bring a partner. Plus there's the music aspect. And its a whole lotta fun.

I've never done yoga, but there are a lot of different kinds - some are pretty extreme physically and some are more meditative. Pilates is popular and there's a lot of places around.

swimming?

Reformer pilates is strength-based and gives you a full body resistance workout with plenty of variety. I love it. Not competitive at all, very beginner friendly.

Yoga is more mind and body together. I do Yin yoga, which barely qualifies as exercise. You lie in one pose for a few minutes at a time and get into deep tissue or fascia or something- you feel all tingly afterwards, and nice and relaxed.

Vinyasa yoga is far more active and has lots of movement and active poses flowing into each other- it builds flexibility and some strength.

Other yoga forms are somewhere in between- hatha, slow flow, etc. All are accessible for a beginner, and not at all competitive.

From my limited experience:

Pilates is better if you’re hypermobile or prone to injury, you’re more stable and supported. The downside is the cost is higher and places are fewer/may be less conveniently located.

Yoga is cheaper and more plentiful but you have to watch more that you don’t overextend or twist funny.

Pilates can be done without equipment but it is good to have an exercise band and a mat for use at home. There may be other simple cheap pieces of equipment like a dumbbell, kettlebell, you could even buy an exercise ring from Kmart. But if you did it at a place (as I did for physio) they have equipment.

Yoga requires much less equipment if you don’t need any aids like blocks or extension bands. Mostly just the mat.

For both you would probably want a soft thick mat with plenty of grip. Kmart is fine for this too. I have both a soft thick mat and a thinner one that’s more for grip, but the thinner one on a hard floor is uncomfortable on my knees and spine.

If you want to suss out yoga, have a look at Yoga with Adrienne. It ranges from beginner to experienced and you can do it in your lounge room

https://m.youtube.com/user/yogawithadriene

Look for beginners yoga. Pilates is a bit more involved. Beginners yoga is really good for people who want to start off slow and build their way up.