There are so many reasons to practice yoga regularly: to relieve stress, to relax, to do physical activity, to feel good about yourself and your body, and so much more. But the hardest part is undoubtedly getting started! So, here are some tips on how to incorporate yoga into your daily routine.
Find a place to practice
Whether it’s on the carpet in your living room or in your bedroom, the most important thing is to feel comfortable and to have enough space to do the movements. If you plan to practice regularly, I would advise that you invest in a yoga mat. There are hundreds of types available for all budgets. They are really practical and you can take them everywhere you go!
Schedule the frequency and time of your sessions
No more procrastination and “I don’t have time” excuses. A yoga session can last from 10 minutes to an hour. You can begin with short sessions and extend their duration gradually. One of my favourite things about doing yoga at home is that I can do it whenever I want. Straight away when I get up or after a long day at uni. But most of the time, I like to plan it around my schedule to be sure I won’t miss it because of time or lack of motivation.
Use an app
There are a lot of applications that can help you to get started with yoga. These applications can explain the basic postures in a limited time. You can find apps such as ‘5 minutes of yoga each day’ or ‘Daily Yoga’. It’s good for beginners that don’t really know where to start. The bonus with these apps is that they send you notifications to keep you motivated.
Find tutorials and challenges online
There is a lot of free resources online that can help you to get into some challenging practices or basics postures. One of my favourite resources is YouTube videos, especially those of Yoga with Adrienne. Each week, she publishes a free yoga video on different subjects such as “stress”, “self-love” and even “yoga for writers”. Each year she also creates a 30-day challenge which consists of a video a day for a month. This year the theme was “Home”!
Get some yogi friends
It can quickly become difficult to keep the motivation to practice at home whilst alone. So why not invite a friend round to practice with you or go to a class in a studio? There are a lot of offers for students and it’s a great way to meet new people. The University of Nottingham has its own yoga society which offers yoga classes each evening during the week in the Portland Building.
I hope these little tricks made you want to get into more yoga!