Reddit reviews The Yoga Bible

To be honest mate (this is coming from a guy who's practiced yoga for +5 years) the strength gains you can get from yoga, unless you thinking of turning into a full time yogi, are only really complimentary.

If you want to get your strength back try every other day a few rotations of each sun salutation then spend 30-40 mins performing explosive calisthenics. 4 sets, 12 reps 1.5 mins between and at least one exercise per body part, I'd recommend push-ups dolphin push ups, burpees, russian twists, dips etc. After this start winding down into a continuous, gentle flow of each exercise and then performing a relaxed yogic sequence. If you do this every other day (or every third day) you'll see strength very soon!

But in terms of daily yoga, I found this book to be the book/pdf to get/download. But in all honesty, the internet is the greatest resource out there; search yoga sequences or the sun salutations and then look up each posture on youtube/ articles. Most branches of yoga share postures like hippies share love, if you focus on the postures at first and get a feel of them in a gentle and playful way and then experiment with the over-arching methods of each style (Ashtanga, Hatha and the such) you will soon find yourself tailoring your practice to your being, and not the other way around. But practicing a well rounded sequence for even 45 mins each day would serve most purposes, though more couldn't hurt!

For a mat, I swear by Manduka mats, they are a VERY solid brand. But having said this I practiced on the floor for a year using a rolled up vest for a belt without any problems. One thing I would suggest (and this might only be a personal suggestion!) if you do go for a mat I would advise against getting a 'sticky' starter mat, they distort yogis' posture more than should be happening - go with a normal mat and let your muscles build and strengthen into the pose.

Just some thoughts for you, Hope they help some. Please don't hesitate to pm me if you want anything else, the world of yoga can be a bit of an odd place to navigate! Either way have fun, peace!

One book that I refer to again and again ( a few years of practice but no formal background at all) is Yoga Bible