Getting started with your home yoga practice
Sometimes I spend so much time thinking about doing something that it feels like I’ve already done it.Even after all these years of practicing & teaching yoga, I can think myself out of getting started with the first pose on the mat.
Planning to do some yoga can take up so much time, there’s no time do actually do the yoga.Maybe it’s pathological — some form of procrastination or resistance, but that’s a story for another day.
3 tips to overcome overthinking & get going:
1. Unroll your yoga mat.
2. Get on it.
3. Do a pose.
How’s that for simple?
Most of the time I put my mat down at the front door. It’s the most un-cluttered spot in the house.
Here’s a list of what NOT to do before you practice:
Do not try to organize your yoga space.
Do not make a list of all the poses you are terrible at, and plan to do those.
Do not call anyone (including a long-winded friend, your mother or customer service.)
Do not weigh yourself.
Do not thumb through your ipod looking for the perfect playlist.
Do not worry that you won’t do the pose like we did it in class.
Do not think that you have to do this perfectly.
Follow the sage advice of that ancient sage, Nike, and…
JUST DO IT!
Yoga In Action:Preliminary Course by Geeta Iyengar (pictured right): a great resource for yoga at home. Available at EYC.
Stay tuned for details about my special upcoming 3-class series on practicing on your own!
Namaste!
