How are we able to fit yoga in around our busy lives? For the past few years I have developed a home practice which works for me. Sharing this may help you find a few moments in your busy life to move more and listen to your body and what it needs!
Being a yoga teacher and travelling around teaching the question I do get asked most is ‘how do you find time for yoga’ ? In a nutshell: it is really hard to commit to.
Lots of people start yoga and begin to realise the benefits quite quickly, but when work, kids, family commitments all take up so much time in the day getting to a class can become tough. For me the practice keeps me grounded, centred. Without it, I notice that I seem to let small things worry me and I can get stressed about that small stuff! My home practice consists of setting a timer to 15 minutes and – see what happens. Sometimes that is all I do: 15 mins of what I need most at that time. However it often proves to be much longer on the mat and this is the real gem: if I say to myself I’ll take a 90 minute class, I realise quickly the thoughts I haven’t got time I have to respond to emails, walk the dog, do the washing, prepare for a workshop, cook something…. But 15 minutes is all I tell myself I need to create: this 15 minutes of space in my day. And guess what?! It becomes a bigger space – I often spend at least an hour and I have extra time. What a relief!
One of the great things about MFML online is you can take a class anywhere. If your day is like mine, I cannot always commit to the same time for practice so I don’t worry about that – the main thing is I practice every day and I feel the difference because of it. We have classes online that are 10 minutes to 90 minutes so you get to choose, but you could start the 90 minute class with just 15 mins in your head, and who knows what will happen!
It’s so easy to put so much pressure on ourselves. Yoga should not be another big stick to beat yourself up with: it’s a joyful and personal discovery of you, what you need on any given day. Sometimes my practice is strong and I’m in asana heaven, but often it is soft with restoratives, yin and meditation – and I’ve realised that is what I need to balance my life.
So why don’t you join the “just 15 minutes ” club and learn the mantra – find the space in your day and you will be surprised by what happens… Come on join the revolution. How do we find time for yoga in our life? Well we realise that yoga is life, how we can ease our way through it is the practice, with ease and joy. Just 15 minutes is the beginning.
Namaste,
Andrea
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I have mats at work, home and in the car…I struggle for physical and mental space and time, but if I can do nothing else I can meditate, that takes no space and gives me space!
Such a sound idea to start with a manageable amount of time and see what happens – a principle for life, I’ll give it a go!
I know the feeling, Mel. Andrea is so wonderful in her teachings and recommendations. Makes me take a deep breath and actually roll out that mat and get practicing!!!
A great teaching that opens up the potential of a sustaining and sustainable home practice for even the most time-pressured of us all.
interested in the 15 minute mantra