Some suggestions to keep your momentum going at home
Some suggestions to keep your momentum going at home…..
· If you are practicing at home, try to set up a dedicated yoga space- having to move furniture and de clutter each time is a powerful disincentive!
· When you are practicing at home, don’t feel like you need to commit to a long session. If you only have a spare 15 minutes in the morning, filling that time with yoga will make a huge difference to your day. If you are really tired, a short relaxing sequence of hip or shoulder stretches may be just what you need. You may find that once you start practicing, you feel more energised and inspired to do more!
· You can do many yoga poses from the comfort of your bed! Parvanamuhkasana (joint rotation sequence), seated shoulder stretches, legs up the wall and seated forward bends can all be done in bed and once you get started you may feel energised enough to hit your mat.
· If practice at home isn’t happening and you are only attending class sporadically. Book in for a course, many people feel more ‘commited’ that way and you will end up planning around your yoga class, rather than trying to squeeze it in.
· Find yourself a yoga buddy. Arranging to go with a friend, is another way to feel more committed to going to class and then you treat yourselves to a meal together after class.
· Treat yourself, sometimes a colourful new pair of yoga pants, and inspiring DVD (see further reading) or new music makes all the difference.
· Many yoga sequences are inherently motivating- core strengthening postures fire up Jathari agni- the ‘fire in your belly’. Surya Namaskar warms up the entire body (although you may want to go gently on the first few rounds) and it is easy to sequence standing and seated postures into it once you get moving. In winter especially inversions like sarsangasana (rabbit pose) and headstand (as long as it is already part of your practice) stimulate the pineal gland, helping to regulate our energy levels and ease the ‘winter blues’. Inversions and Back bends, that change our physical perspective on the world are a power way to shift us out of emotional ruts.
· Integrate your yoga into your daily life, you can do tadasana at the tram stop, your shoulder stretches at your desk, your pelvic floor strengthening (mulabandha) anywhere and many spine and hip stretches from a chair (http://www.yogajournal.com/practice/231)
· Your yoga practice goes way beyond asana, helping someone, gardening, walking and breathing, when done with a meditative awareness, and no expectation can all be yoga.
