Makeshift Props, Making Peace with Dirt, and More: 13 Tips for Doing Yoga While Camping

Summertime is pretty much synonymous with camping. The endlessly sunny weather and vacation mindset tend to find outdoor lovers heading for the hills—or lakes, beaches, rivers, mountains, and deserts—to pitch a tent, explore, and take in some very deep breaths.

Fortunately, you don’t have to leave your yoga practice behind. Practicing outdoor yoga while camping can serve to deepen this relaxation—but it does come with some considerations.

Although car campers are able to pack their favorite travel mat, backpackers or those who simply prefer lightened loads may need to embrace a makeshift mindset by repurpose existing camping items. It’s all about working with, rather than against, your environment—all the better to honor your surroundings and your practice.

The following tips can help you make the most of your outdoor yoga experience.

13 Tips for Practicing Outdoor Yoga

Incorporating yoga into your camping trip is all about preparedness and an open mind.

1. Your Sleeping Pad Is Also a Mat

Camping yoga is all about making the most of what you’ve got. Chances are you have a sleeping pad at your camp. Blow-up pads make effective mats pre-inflation, while foam or cushioned pads can be used just as they are.

2. …And a Bolster!

Deflated and/or folded or rolled, a sleeping pad moonlights as a supporting bolster, welcome padding for knees, or both. A rolled up sleeping bag, whether in a sack or not, also makes a lovely bolster, and is a little larger and cushier than a pad.

3. Try a Towel

Yoga towels make for helpful props in studios and campgrounds alike, but any towel will do when you’re outdoors. Just lay your bathing or beach towel over a flat(ish) surface for a mat alternative.

4. Rise with the Sun

Sleeping outdoors means being one with nature, a privilege that includes waking with the light. If you’re hoping to incorporate your yoga practice into your camping trip, make it happen first thing in the morning, before activities commence and temperatures rise. It’s an great time to hit your mat (or towel or patch of grass) sans explanations or distractions.

5. Leverage Your Environment

That tree over there? A perfect option for Legs Up the Wall. Floating flat atop still lake water? Savasana. Even if you don’t make time for a full practice, the potential for poses is everywhere.

6. Try Trataka

The practice of trataka, which has roots in ancient yogic traditions, involves focusing your gaze for several minutes at a time, typically by training it on flickering candlelight. Take a moment in between s’mores and ghost stories to try it out at the campfire and you may experience the best sleep of your excursion.

7. Practice in Your Tent Footprint

Backpacker associate editor Emma Veidt confirmed, following a recent camping trip, that a tent footprint can serve as a designated space for your practice. So, whether you’re setting up your site, in the process of breaking things down, or feeling inspired to briefly displace your tent, take a moment (or several) to make use of the foundation as your makeshift studio.

8. Prepare to Get Dirty

When practicing yoga outdoors, getting a little dirty is pretty much inevitable. Maintain your sense of peace post-practice by shaking out your towel or other makeshift mat and rinsing the bottoms of your feet before reentering your tent.

9. Use Your Water Bottle for Myofascial Release

Looking to release cramped feet? Or maybe the entire backside of your body? Place your water bottle horizontally on the ground (perhaps on a towel) and roll each foot over it for some quick and accessible myofascial release. If you’re already laid out on a makeshift mat, a bottle can be used to roll out stiff post-hike hamstrings and tight shoulders, too.

10. Welcome the Darkness

Ever practiced without a mirror? What about without light? Doing yoga without relying on your sight to confirm alignment (or how cute your outfit looks) allows you to feel deeply into your breath and body—and flowing under a guard of stars isn’t too bad, either. 

11. Stay Silent

Camping can be a great time to STFU. If you find yourself craving the peace of a silent retreat, or simply a respite from notifications, scrolling, or having to have an opinion, take this time to quiet your world in all ways. Start by designating a sliver of your trip to complete, unadulterated silence.

12. Enjoy the Outdoors

The sounds, smells, and tranquility of the environment are what make camping so great. Use your yoga practice—the part that extends beyond the mat and into life—as an opportunity to sink even deeper into the experience.