Laurie from Girl and Tonic shares her tips on enjoying your home yoga practice. Her tips are inspiring to keep you moving day by day.
Four weeks ago I moved from Hackney, London, to rural Norfolk. My closest gym is 11 miles, or a 20-minute drive, away and the nearest yoga studio means a 40-minute drive each way minimum. An hour class turns into an almost three hour adventure – fun once a week, but not productive daily when you’re trying to set up a new business!
In London, I’d dabbled with home practice; as a (new) yoga teacher I’d plan my classes at home and run through them but struggled to motivate myself to do more than that.
I looked to senior teachers for inspiration and motivation and took for granted that there were plenty of great yoga studios within walking or cycling distance.
At the beginning of my move, I was struggling to get my bum on the mat (yep I’m a yoga teacher who struggles with motivation too!) but I’ve recently discovered how much there is to gain from a home yoga practice and how fun it can be.
Here are my top 4 tips for how you can embrace and enjoy a home yoga practice:
Get excited about your home yoga practice!
One of my favourite things to do is sit down on a Sunday and browse through the Movement for Modern Life library. I look through all of the classes and think about which ones interest me and which classes I’d like to take! I look at any new additions and then I …
- Plan your home yoga practice into your life.
It’s really easy to think about doing a home yoga practice, and to talk about a home yoga practice, and then to not actually do the home yoga practice … (I’m guessing it’s not just me!) On Sunday, or whatever day you choose, look at your diary for the upcoming week and see where you can fit your yoga practice in.
Get your bum on the yoga mat!
So we’re excited about our yoga practice, we’ve planned our yoga practice into our busy lives – but then the time comes and we think oh I’ll just check Facebook one more time, or clean the bathroom, or do some of the kids washing …
Real emergencies aside, don’t let yourself negotiate away from doing the yoga class you’ve planned. Our minds are very good at talking ourselves out of things but notice when your mind starts to do it and get yourself on your yoga mat anyway. Load up the Movement for Modern Life class you’ve planned, put your phone away. You will feel so much better once you’ve done it, I promise.
- Take a few minutes after your home yoga practice to notice how you feel.
After savasana, when the class finishes or you come to a natural close in your practice, take a few moments to reflect on the experience of your home yoga practice. How did the class feel? How do you feel?
I like to write this down, along with a few gratitude’s: to myself for getting on the yoga mat, to the teacher whose class I’ve followed and anything else that pops in to my head.
<<Laurie was practising this class with Graham Burns which is all about finding balance>>
Laurie McAllister has been practicing yoga for eight years, and started teaching hatha and flow yoga in 2017. She is passionate about physical and mental wellbeing and is working to make not drinking cool. Laurie runs the alcohol free lifestyle blog Girl & Tonic where she shares stories on yoga, not drinking and much more.
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