When I tell people I’m a yoga teacher, they often respond with, “I’d love to do yoga, but I don’t have time.”
Really? You don’t have a spare five or ten minutes?
We all have the same 24 hours in our day. W get to make choices about how we spend a portion of that time. Keep reading to find out how to prioritize YOURSELF so that you can carve out a few minutes for yoga!
Am I a priority?
I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess that you have A LOT on your plate… a job, a family, a house, a pet or two, responsibilities, bills, etc. Now, consider what would happen to your family/job/responsibilities if you got sick. Yikes!
The first step to finding time for yoga is believing that YOU and your mental and physical health are a PRIORITY. There’s a saying that goes like this, “If you don’t make time for your wellness, you’ll be forced to make time for your illness.”
As women, we have been socialized to put everyone else’s needs first… the children, our spouse, the pets, our boss, friends, chores, the list goes on. Yes, those things are important. But, aren’t YOU important, too? Wouldn’t you like to feel happier/more focused/peaceful/calmer/healthier? You absolutely could if you allowed yourself a few minutes of yoga several days a week.
Finding the time
Grab a piece of paper or your phone and block out your typical day in thirty minute increments. Be sure to list everything you do from the moment you wake up until you go to bed at night.
For example:
- 6am > wake up, brush teeth, make coffee
- 6:30am > feed the dog
- 7am > get dressed
- 7:30am > leave for work
- Etc.
Then, take a look at your day with a critical eye. Highlight the tasks that are required (feeding your children, going to work, walking your dog), and then examine the other areas.
I’ve done this exercise several times, and I’m always amazed by how much time I waste on social media and reading the news on my phone. If I can scroll through Instagram for thirty minutes, I can certainly unroll my yoga mat. And bonus…I’ll feel a whole lot better about myself after I’ve moved and breathed mindfully in a 30 minute yoga class.
Yoga off the mat
Each day offers us new challenges and opportunities to practice yoga both on and off the mat. The goal of yoga is to quiet the fluctuations of the mind. We can put that into practice in a variety of ways that have nothing to do with taking a 75-minute class.
Perhaps you planned to take a lunch time yoga class, but your boss has other ideas about how you’ll spend your lunch hour. You can practice yoga at your desk! Try this… roll your shoulders up, back, and down a few times, inhaling as you lift, exhaling as you lower. Then, reach one arm up and lean to the side for a breath. Be sure to do the second side. Finally, stand behind your chair, cross your right ankle onto the left thigh, and sink your hips back (standing figure four). Take three slow breaths before you switch sides. When we include mindful breathing into the movements, we are practicing yoga!
While your child is at lacrosse practice, instead of sitting in the car and mindlessly scrolling facebook, we might go for a walk around the field, noticing sights and sounds so that you are present in the moment.
While you’re in line at the grocery store, you could stand in a mountain pose and feel your feet firmly on the floor, lifting up on your thighs, gently drawing the belly to the spine, and relaxing your shoulders.
There’s no place like home
After working all day, the last thing you want to do is get back in your car and drive to a yoga studio. Well, I’ve got the perfect solution for you!
Peace Yoga at Home offers both live virtual classes and a video-on-demand library!
You can practice with me live on Monday mornings at 7am (a quick 30 minute practice to start your week focused and calm) and/or Wednesday evenings at 5:30pm (an hour of flowing, breathing, and letting go of your day).
All classes are stored in the video-on-demand library, so you can practice with me anytime, anywhere!
Linda is a graduate of Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health and received her training under Brahmani Liebman and Jashoda Edmunds. She has also completed additional training in Trauma Sensitive Yoga Practices with David Emerson, E-RYT of the Trauma Center at Justice Resource Institute under the direction of Dr. Bessel van der Kolk. This mind-body approach provides techniques that have a positive impact on the physical and mental well being of those coping with anxiety, depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Linda also offers private instruction to help clients incorporate these techniques into a traditional class or design a personal yoga program that will address individual triggers and challenges. As a certified Dance Instructor for over 25 years, Linda uses yoga as a part of her training methods to help her students gain focus, strength, endurance, flexibility and self-confidence. On a personal level, Linda believes that yoga enriches her life physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually - on and off the mat - every day.
Being active and staying healthy have always been an integral part of Heather’s life. She grew up in Bel Air, was a competitive gymnast, and has continued to participate in exercise-related activities, including cycling and yoga throughout her adult life. The combination of mindful awareness and physical movement is what drew Heather to yoga in 2006. After teaching for several years and sensing a need for yoga in the community, Heather opened Peace Yoga in January 2011. She is an ERYT (Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher) with Yoga Alliance and holds a Masters of Education degree. Heather has studied with yoga teachers Stephanie Snyder, Judith Hanson Lasater, Jason Crandal, and Sage Rountree.
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