How to practice yoga at home.

Convenient, inexpensive, empowering

Hi there,

How has your weekend been? Mine has involved lots of cooking, seeing friends, time at the beach and riding bikes with my children - so ideal really!

This week I wanted to write about practicing yoga at home and how to do it. For many people, a home practice ticks so many boxes. It’s convenient, free or inexpensive and time effective. Perhaps you live too far from a yoga studio, the class times don’t fit with your timetable, maybe you feel intimidated by the vibe of a yoga studio, or an in person class doesn’t fit into your budget. There are many reasons why establishing a home yoga practice is a good idea.

Most importantly, it’s all yours. It’s empowering and a powerful way to show yourself love.

Of course there are the downsides which include the absence of a teacher to guide or correct you. Many people also feel they don’t have the discipline to practice yoga alone - if they don’t go to a class it doesn’t happen. Or maybe you just love the ambience of a studio and that’s how you like to do yoga.

Me? I do both! And you can too, of course.

At this stage of my life I can just about get to one yoga class a week. I adore it and look forward to it all week, but I have to say that my own yoga practice over the years has been my saviour. When work, time, money or kids mean I can’t go to a class regularly, I know I always have my own practice and that is such a great feeling.

What does my own practice look like?

People sometimes ask me how often I do yoga, and when I answer everyday, I know they are envisaging a one hour vinyasa session. I quickly reassure them this is not the case! Instead, it’s actually about 10 or 15 minutes of whatever few postures, breathwork or stillness I am in need of. It happens as the sun is rising in the middle of my morning walk with my dog. I stop at a community hall veranda and move, breath and sit quietly. It’s fairly dark, very quiet, no one else is around, and it’s my favourite part of the day.

Here are some tips from me to get your own self practice going:

1. Find a time of your day that will always work for you.
   It’s kind of obvious I know, but schedule it in. As I mentioned earlier, for me, the morning is best. It’s what works with my family and lifestyle. This might look different for you.

2. Start before you feel ready.
   I wrote about this to my lovely members of my online studio recently. Procrastinating, feeling guilty about doing something as indulgent as yoga when you have a million things to do, or simply feeling distracted by other taks are common reasons we don’t stick to a practice. You might tell yourself that once you’re more organised, on top of housework etc etc, then you will start your practice. I don’t need to tell you that there will always be something else to do!

3. Just get to your mat and see what happens
   I often start with a few rounds of Nadi shodana. This grounds me and balances my nervous system which is a great start. Or I begin in child’s pose, rest there for a bit then perhaps move into cat & cow. From there, I might move more, or rest more. Self practice is self awareness.

4. Keep your mat nearby ready to roll out.
   It needs to be easy to make sure it happens. Especially when you’re starting out. Keep your mat beside your bed. If you have space leave it unrolled and ready for you.

5. Make a realistic commitment and show yourself you can stick to it.
   Keep to your word. The more often we tell ourselves that we are going to do something and then don’t, reinforces to ourselves that we are unable to stick to things. Keep it realistic, but prove to yourself that you can make a commitment. Remember tip number two, just lie on your mat and go from there.

6. Consider what you are wearing.
   This might sound vain but it really is a thing so let’s go with it! If you have clothes that you love to wear, make you feel good and are comfortable, then it’s likely you’ll want to put them on and get onto your mat. Also, if what you wear day-to-day is tricky to do yoga in, then you are less likely to practice in small amounts through the day. (Read this post!).

7. Meet yourself where you are.
   This is similar to the first point, but always remember that your yoga practice can look different each time. Sometimes you might just do some cat and cow and Nadi shodana, other times you’ll feel like a stronger vinyasa sequence. Be kind to yourself but keep your commitment of a regular practice. Rolling your mat out and taking a moment is showing up for yourself.

That is enough for now I think. If you need support then I’d love you to try my online yoga classes. I think it’s the perfect meeting point of practicing alone and practicing with a teacher! You can switch off and be guided by me from your phone or laptop at a time and place that suit you.

There is a free 14 day trial, then it’s $25 a month. There’s a whole library of classes there now, from 15mins to over an hour. Some are more mellow with plenty of yin, some involve a little more movement.

Here is the link

Please get in touch if you have any questions!

Love Sarah

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