Ideas to become closer with your practice for 2021!
Starting from where you are right now!
The classic New Year’ Resolutions are actually a very un-yoga like approach to change. It is not sustainable or manageable to institute dramatic change to your daily life, regardless of positive impact, and expect yourself to just accept it... 2020 taught us that! It is human nature to seek consistency, not change. We can use this idea of consistency to create a shift in our way of being that will institute change.
First, think small. Change works best when we approach it like braces on your teeth or the movement of glaciers...slow and steady. If you are new to yoga and want to develop a regular practice try starting at home;
Unroll your yoga mat next to the bed or in a room your are comfortable in and take these 5 poses daily: Child Pose, Dangling or Rag Doll, Mountain Pose, Chair, and Constructive Rest. Check out our video library for foundational demo!
Do this small change first thing in the morning, in your office at work before lunch, or before you settle into bed, but do it everyday. NO MATTER WHAT!
And here’s what makes it yoga, your breath…stay in each of theses poses for at least 5 deep breaths, add a little pause at the top of the inhale and feel that split second of emptiness at the bottom of the exhale, and that’s all you have to do start your daily yoga practice!
If you miss a day, just start again tomorrow. You won’t lose any ground or erase your development. There is no winning and no points in yoga. Yoga is not an all or nothing practice.
After a few days you will crave the time you spend in these 5 poses, you may even want to add on, follow a video, or take a class. Listen to your body and do It! We have a ton of options here at the Jade Integrated Health Studio and we are here to answer any questions you have regarding the next right thing for your body.
Already a consistent yogi, but feeling a little plateaued or stuck in a yoga rut... How does one have a yoga break through?
Try leaving your comfort zone! Try a class at a new studio, or maybe a totally different style of yoga. Take a workshop. I practice at a local studio every time I travel! I realize this is a little difficult right now, but doing this has opened me up to a global yoga community and kept me in the loop as to interesting events that may be coming to a studio within a reasonable drive from my house!
Shake up your practice by simply practicing at a different time of day or trying a totally different type of yoga. Experience is our best teacher and trying something new gives you the opportunity to be a beginner again
Invite a family or friend. This may be something total new to them and you get to recall how it was to be in their shoes in those early days of practicing. It’s humbling to recall our beginnings, but you may also be rewarded by seeing the light come to their eyes. Seeing that the effect yoga is having on them is the same joy that has brought you back to your mat time and time again. Jade Integrated Health Studios has memberships with family and friend perks!
And finally if 2021 is the year you truly want to immerse yourself in yoga!
Try reading the sutras. The yoga sutras are beautiful, ancient words of wisdom that steer your physical practice toward a true way of being. No need to undertake translating the original sanskrit for yourself, there are plenty of translations and interpretations out there; The Path of the Yoga Sutras by Nicolai Bachman, or How Yoga Works by Michael Roach are both approachable interpretations of Patanjali’s great work, and have been required texts in my training.
Consider a 40 day yoga challenge group. If you are a being of action then a 30, 40, or 90 day yoga challenge might be the thing that helps directs the path yoga will take in your life. When I was flirting with the idea of becoming a yoga teacher, I started the investigation by taking on the relatively smaller commitment of a 40 Days To A Personal Revolution challenge group. Based upon the work of Baptiste Power Yoga founder Barron Baptiste, this type of challenge is not for everyone, but it was the act of getting on my mat every day for 40 days, adopting a regular meditation practice and then processing the effects with a group of peers that led me to the decision to further my yoga education and sign up for a 200 hour yoga teacher training.
Jump into a teacher training. A training is not a commitment to redirect your life and dedicate it to teaching, instead it’s a commitment to be willing to take a deep, thorough look at yourself, and remap the routs you take around the obstacles you encounter in living an authentic life. Again, this is not for everyone, but without my training I would not be as effective as a teacher, friend, partner, daughter, parent, coworker, etc. as I am today!
Starting from where you are right now, whether you are a total beginner, yoga regular, or student for life, I hope these approaches to move you closer to your practice and help you find a compassionate, and sustainable way to create the shift you’re looking for in 2021!