A yoga studio is an incredible place to start your yoga journey but sometimes can be intimidating, fast-paced, expensive, too far away or not convenient with your current schedule.
This is why practising at home can be the solution. You can practice at your own time, at your own pace, in a comfortable environment that is your home.
On the other hand, the extra comfort of your home can be a distraction. If you are like me, I’m sure you can find plenty of excuses to skip the yoga practice like:
“I’m hungry now, going to eat and practice later.”
“I rather have a cup of tea now and watch TV”
“Oh I have to do some work”
And when you realise…
“Oh shit it’s time to pick up children from school, walk the dog in between, prep the dinner…”
and the day passed and you haven’t dedicated time on the mat.
I get it.
So I wrote this post with some of my tips to make your home yoga practice stick!
Schedule in advance
Choose times that work best based on your schedule. If you want to attend classes more often, either in a studio or at home, plan what, when, where and how. Schedule your week, be prepared to overcome obstacles that are likely to get in your way but also be flexible. Don’t beat yourself up if you miss a practice and just try to make it up.
Be Realistic
Don’t over-commit yourself and don’t try to stuff everything in. A daily practice with 90 minutes length may be a great ideal, but maybe not so realistic to start with. Start small, two to three times a week, remembering that 15 to 20 minutes is so much better than zero. When you have that crafted, build from there.
Prepare ahead
Pick out your yoga clothes the day/night before. Roll your mat out, have your clothes ready, props if you’re using them and let it serve as a reminder.
Set up your yoga space at home
This space can be anywhere in your home. You literally just need a space large enough to hold you and your yoga mat. If you can dedicate a room to it, that’s awesome but the little space at the foot at the bed can be just enough. Check my tips on How To Set Up A Yoga Space at Home.
Do things that you want to do
Like gentle opening. Even if you really want to work on advanced poses, sometimes that’s not what you’re really looking forward to doing. The choices people are making is between their yoga practice and not their yoga practice, this is usually their yoga practice or lye down on the sofa watching TV or checking the phone because they are too tired. So start easily, perhaps on the ground, especially if you are tired. Lie down on your back, knees bent, feet on the ground hands on your belly, tune to breath and from there maybe happy baby, Supta Padangustasana, supported backbend, reclined twist are some examples.
Commit as if your life depends on it
For many people, the ideal time is early in the morning, so you don’t have to think about it anymore. For me, it worked for a few years, but now with the new routine of having a baby, what works best is before lunch. That's when I have time for myself. If you have the opportunity, early morning is really excellent time. If you can't, commit to doing it at night and don't go to bed without practising.
Play your favourite music
This can be a bit of a controversial topic as some people find that music can be a distraction in their yoga practice. For me, somedays the soundtrack of the breath is enough, other days I need a little bit of a boost and inspiration. Whatever sets you in the mood go for the tunes you like and that doesn’t have to be necessarily the traditional “yogi music”.
Check out my playlists on Spotify for some inspiration
Yoga Online
If you’re not sure about where to start and what to do on your own, there are plenty of tutorials and videos available online that can guide you. Lucky us, it’s either free or incredibly inexpensive!
Do your own research online, find someone that resonates with you and inspires you.
If you have the budget you can always opt for a monthly paid subscription and have access to great yoga teachers from around the world. Online programs are usually £10 – £30 a month, providing unlimited access to yoga classes with the length you want, yoga tutorials, lectures, meditations, nutrition tips, etc.
With the COVID-19 situation going on at the moment, studios are offering livestream classes for a much affordable price and some teachers are offering their own livestream yoga classes. This is also a great way to support them in these difficult times.
See my favourites bellow:
Cat Loves Yoga – this is me! Check my livestream yoga schedule!
Movement For Modern Life – online platform with the best teachers from the UK
Marcus Veda - great Rocket Yoga inspired classes, lot's inversion opportunities and also Yin Yoga
Liz Jacobs - Vinyasa Yoga, Mandala inspired vinyasa flow, great morning meditation.
Yoga Girl – online platform created by the famous Yoga Girl (Rachel Brathen)
Once you start cultivating a consistent yoga practice you will see that becomes natural to you and easier to sustain it over time.
Keep reminding yourself about the results that you desire. Don’t think about what you SHOULD do, think instead about how you want to feel and how your practice will help you feel that way.
Make your practice enjoyable and always make time for the practices you love the most.