Developing Your Own Yoga Practice
There are many different ways of starting your home yoga practice. It is best to have a consistent time for practice, such as the morning, for at least 5-10 minutes. To begin, sit on your yoga mat and tune into your breath. If you desire, state an intention to yourself or for your practice. An intention can be something you want to cultivate into your life or simply what you would like in your yoga practice today.
Intuitive Approach
You can begin by trying to recall several different yoga poses you have learned from classes and perform as they come to mind. Tune in to yourself and do the poses that feel good to you at the moment. Hold every yoga pose for a minute or longer, resting between each of the yoga poses.
Focus on a Type of Yoga Pose
Often, practitioners choose mostly one type of pose for a given session because you can progress to a greater degree and become more flexible by repeating similar poses. Work on getting into alignment and using your stamina to hold the yoga poses long enough on each side so that you feel the work. Work for a similar length of time on each side. Each yoga session is a time to learn through self-observation.
Forward bends are good when you feel like going inward or are fatigued. Spread a blanket on top of your mat and hold each forward bend for a few minutes at a time. You can loop a belt over your toes to reach them more easily.
If you want to feel uplifted, challenged, and invigorated, try some backbends. Start with small backbends which you can repeat again and again to open your spine. Do harder, more intense backbends after you are warmed up.
Standing balancing poses can be fun, and there are some such as Ardha Chandrasana (Half Moon Pose) and Vrksasana (Tree Pose) that will challenge your balance while you stand on one foot. If you find yourself falling over, try to do them against a wall.
A standing pose sequence is a good daily practice for anyone. If you aren’t sure what to practice, go through the standing poses you know, doing them for equal lengths of time on each side. Include the Triangle pose (Trikonasana) and Warrior poses if you know them.
Therapeutic Approach
Do you have some physical or health issues? Are you recovering from illness, travel, or a stressful day? Are you feeling fatigued? You might try restorative yoga using props, such as bolsters, yoga blocks, yoga straps, and folded blankets. These props can be used to support you in the poses as you hold them, preferably for more than a couple of minutes. Forward bends, gentle supported backbends and reclining poses are restorative which may seem easy but still deliver the benefits of yoga. Yoga DVDs featuring gentle yoga can be used to give you guidance. If you have mild back pain, there are Yoga DVDs available that alter the poses for your condition.
If you have health issues, consider consulting your teacher and even yoga books that offer sequences for specific health problems. Light on Yoga by BKS Iyengar has many sequences in the back of the book for various health conditions. If your problem is serious, consult your physician and/or a yoga expert. Everyday problems like occasional insomnia can often be improved with certain yoga poses added to your practice.
Yin Yoga Approach
Doing a series of classical yoga poses with each held for a longer time is called a Yin Yoga practice. You can slow your practice down and hold poses for 3 to 5 minutes or longer on each side of the body. This slow style can be intense and healing for those who practice it. Yin Yoga penetrates into the joints, tendons and connective tissues of the body, and goes deeper inside the body than other forms of yoga. Yin Yoga teaches you patience and how to enjoy stillness with a quiet practice. You may use props to make the poses more accessible, allowing you to hold them for a longer time.
Yoga DVD or Yoga CD Approach
If you are uninspired and need structure in your yoga practice, you may want to use a yoga DVD or a yoga instructional audio CD. With a Yoga DVD, you know what to expect and you don’t have to figure out poses to choose. Some newer Yoga DVDs have multiple routines to keep the practice interesting. Yoga DVDs are a wonderful way to bring structure your practice. Attending a yoga class periodically is advised as a teacher can give feedback for your body and increase your understanding of the poses. Once you know how to do yoga poses, a Yoga DVD or CD gives you a structure to follow each day.
Vinyasa Approach
Vinyasa yoga is a yoga practice that flows, like a dance, from one pose to the next. If you feel restless, have a need to move, or are energetic, do a vinyasa yoga session. If you have been sedentary for some time, a vinyasa practice will get your energy moving. During vinyasa classes, you may hold the poses for a couple of long breaths or you may move more quickly into the next pose. Dristi, or the practice of gazing at a point, is a way to hold your balance and attention in a pose. Vinyasa styles include a special breathing style to synchronize your breath to your movements. To learn how to do flowing yoga styles, try an Asthanga Yoga, Power Yoga or a vinyasa yoga class or DVD.
The Sun Salutation is the basis for much of vinyasa style of yoga. Intersperse poses you know into the Sun Salutation sequence of poses to various the routine. Alternatively, simply do the Sun Salutation sequence multiple times as your yoga practice session.
The Right Practice for You
Choose a yoga practice that appeals to you, and build on it. Experiment with different approaches in order to see what you like. The joy of yoga is revealed in the daily practice. You can experience a little of what yoga is about in a weekly class, but you will go much further and deeper if you practice daily.
A pleasant end every yoga practice is deep relaxation in Shavasana Pose. Lie down on your mat for 5 minutes or more. Cover yourself with a blanket to prevent you from becoming cold. You will feel the effects of your hard work come to fruition if you allow yourself this quiet time. Continue to observe your breathing and inner self as you relax and let go. Ending your practice with Shavasana provides a nice transition from a time devoted to yourself back to your “normal” activity filled life.
You may be inspired to sit in meditation at the end of your yoga session. Yoga is preparation for the stillness of meditation. Your body rests after exertion, allowing the mind to become quiet. There are many meditation techniques. A good place to start is to sit comfortably, become still and observe the breath in your body, which is what you have been doing in yoga all along.
Yoga and meditation practice can be a place to learn how to unwind and therefore live in a less pressured way, with more awareness and less self-imposed pressure. This is the true gift of yoga and meditation. Challenge yourself to avoid jumping right back on the treadmill of life after your yoga practice. Go back and live life fully, yet in a new way that is more balanced, relaxed, and aware.