Starting yoga with no background can feel intimidating mostly because of assumptions about flexibility, spirituality, or difficulty that don't actually apply to gentle, back-focused practice.
You don't need flexibility to start
Flexibility is a result of consistent practice, not a prerequisite for beginning — every pose has an accessible entry point regardless of current mobility, and gentle back-focused sequences are specifically built with this in mind.
Start shorter than feels necessary
A 5-minute session is a completely legitimate starting point — consistency at a small, sustainable duration builds a habit far more reliably than an ambitious long session that's hard to repeat daily.
Skip the spiritual framing if it's not for you
Yoga's poses and their physical benefits stand entirely on their own — you can approach this purely as gentle movement and breathing without needing to engage with any spiritual or philosophical framing that doesn't interest you.
Do you need any equipment to start?
No — a completely bare-minimum start needs no mat, no props, and no special clothing; a carpeted floor or bed and comfortable clothes are enough to begin with gentle seated or supine poses.