Full Name:

Address 1:

Address 2:

City:
State:
Zip Code:
Email (required):

If I like it and decide to continue, I'll pay just $16.95, and receive a full one-year subscription (9 issues in all), a 62% savings off the newsstand price!

Today's Daily Tip

Surround Sound

Drop in on a yoga class anywhere in America, and chances are good that you'll hear a melody wafting from a ... (continued)

Multimedia

Video Channel:
From the Magazine

Behind the Scenes at a Yoga Journal Photoshoot

See the work and dedication of our editorial and art teams as we create the images to illustrate Chaturanga.

Watch Video



Print Print Email Email Comment Comment Add to Favorites
Log in to save to My Yoga Journal!
Add to Favorites
Bookmark Bookmark

Bringing Your Practice Home

Many yogis don't practice at home because they simply don't know where to start. Here's how to create sequences that will keep you engaged, curious, and dedicated.

By Judith Hanson Lasater

Bringing Your Practice HomeWhat's your hardest yoga pose? If you and your yoga friends were to compare notes, you'd likely come up with a wide variety of answers. But virtually all practitioners will tell you that a greater challenge lies in developing and maintaining a home practice. Beginners face the task of remembering poses to practice; more experienced students face the dilemma of deciding what emphasis to choose during any particular session. Even teachers and students with decades on the mat can be daunted by the difficulties of maintaining and renewing a home practice. Illness, family obligations, boredom, travel, and that universal bugaboo, a perceived lack of time: All these obstacles, and more, will inevitably appear.

Even if you've established a strong desire and commitment to practice regularly, knowing which poses to do right now, for today's session, is one of the most concrete challenges of a home practice. This challenge can be met by choosing a specific sequence of poses that will meet your needs, in this moment, for health and wholeness. Some systems of asana practice, like the Ashtanga Vinyasa of Pattabhi Jois, use set groupings or series of poses, so sequencing is not an issue. But many systems do not designate the order of poses; within limits, choosing the sequence is left to the student. And even students who prac-tice set sequences like the Ashtanga series can benefit by working especially diligently on different poses on different days.

Even with years of regular class attendance under your belt, if you don't have the technical knowledge to create a well-rounded and well-organized home practice, that practice may very well remain spotty. It probably won't sustain itself-and you-over the long haul.

Planning Your Practice Sessions

To create a satisfying practice that you approach with enthusiasm, at least on most days, requires two basic kinds of knowledge. The first kind is gained by answering this next question for yourself: What do you really need from your practice today? If you are very tired from a long airplane trip, for example, you might choose a restorative practice to replenish your energy. At the least, you might start with resting poses and then see where the practice leads you; if you find your energy is increasing, you can always move into more dynamic asanas. On the other hand, if you feel energetic at the beginning of your practice, you might use a more vigorous session to channel that energy. For example, you could choose to emphasize standing poses or arm balances, making challenge and strength your focus.

Regardless of what you actually do, if your practice is an expression of what is alive in you now, that practice will help you stay present during your time on the mat. That experience can serve as a model for practicing presence all day long. It will also satisfy you and thus help give you the impetus to practice again tomorrow. If you force yourself to practice because you think you should, because you didn't yesterday, or for any other more external reason, even the most technically polished poses will not answer your inner need for ease and wholeness.

Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

See All Practice Articles »

Print Print Email Email Comment Comment Add to Favorites
Log in to save to My Yoga Journal!
Add to Favorites
Bookmark Bookmark

Subscribe to Yoga Journal Magazine

Reader Comments

alice

I really love this article too, as home practice is so important, fun, and beneficial. As for beginners videos, try one from Gaiam, they are very good.

As for where to practice, it doesn't really take much space, as long as you can comfortably stretch out in all directions. I have an enclosed porch now, that faces east, isn't huge, but is perfect with windows and french doors and my dvd player & tv for dvd workouts. I don't very often burn incense, depends on the mood, but I do like candles, which I scent myself.

However, when I lived in Florida my favorite spot was out on the front porch, amid all the flora and fauna, before the afternoon rains came. There I almost always burned incense, two sticks at a time to keep the little no-seeums away. I absolutely love practicing outside, it is very freeing and refreshing. Just pick a comfortable spot, and put out a picture, or candle, book, keep your mat ready, whatever it takes to lure you back regularly, and just enjoy yourself. Really, make it your own, don't worry about following a "yoga space" blueprint. Enjoy.

Paul Mouradian

I am quite new to Yoga and found your article quite interesting and enlightening. I have just started my Yoga lessons and really am enjoying it but I also need some good basic beginner dvds with good explanations and not too fast moving for me to learn the moves correctly. I am 62 years old and my profession is a music band director and performer with very little flexibility in Yoga. I am finding Yoga quite beneficial to my injuries and I am quite excited learning this new skill. Can you recommend fairly easy dvd's to start for someone like myself with limited flexiblity. thanks

Andrea

Thank you thank you thank you! This is exactly the article I've been needing to help pull it together for my home practice. I've been doing DVDs for years, but I'm getting bored with them and would rather move at my own pace, go with the flow of what feels right at the moment, and switch it up as needed. I've been struggling for weeks to figure out how to structure a home practice, and this article is a perfect guide for that. I am inspired - thank you!

See All Comments »      Add a Comment »

Your Name:

Comment:

Join Yoga Journal's Benefits Plus

Liability insurance and benefits to support teachers and studios.

Learn More »

Enter to Win Great Prizes!

Enter to Win Great Prizes! Enter to Win Great Prizes! Prizes include a Yoga Journal conference pass, yoga mats, clothes, books, jewelry, energy bars, Yoga Journal DVDs, and more...

Enter Now »

Get 2 FREE Trial Issues and 2 FREE Gifts!

FREE Gifts! Your subscription includes
2 FREE GIFTS:

Yoga for Neck & Shoulders

A digital guide to 11 postures that relieve neck, back and shoulder tension.

Yoga Remedies for Everyday Ailments

A digital guide to 8 postures that relieve common health problems such as stress, backache, wrist strain, and insomnia.

Yes! Please send me 2 FREE trial issues
of Yoga Journal and my 2 FREE GIFTS

Full Name:
Address 1:
Address 2:
City:
State:
Zip Code:
Email (req):

If I like it and decide to continue, I'll pay just $16.95, and receive a full one-year subscription (9 issues in all), a 62% savings off the newsstand price!

Offer valid in US only.
Canadian subscriptions | International subscriptions

Save 62% off the cover price Pay Now and Get 2
Bonus Issues
Pay now and get
TWO EXTRA ISSUES FREE!
That's 10 issues for the
same low price!
Click Here to PAY NOW!