10 Tips to Restart Yoga Practice

Close-up of attractive young woman rolling up blue yoga mat after working out at home in living room

The secret to longevity in yoga practice is a willingness to begin again.

If you’re ready to get back on your mat and recommit to a regular rhythm of practice, you’re in good company. Getting disconnected from, and subsequently coming back to your practice is something all longtime practitioners will do at one time or another.

As you continue down the road of yoga, the question isn’t whether you’ll get disconnected from your practice, it’s how will you bring yourself back? The good news is that you can always restart yoga practice.

Senior hispanic man practicing yoga in his living room doing Chair Pose or Utkatasana

Restart Yoga Practice with These 10 Tips

  1. Welcome yourself even more unconditionally than usual.
  2. Begin with something you love that feels great in your body and go from there. (Rolling around on the floor counts.)
  3. Be generous with yourself. Keep it slow and sweet and stay for as long as you want.
  4. Allow more space than usual for rest, breath, and simply feeling.
  5. Practicing in pajamas is totally okay.Healthy senior woman restart yoga practice, keeping herself relaxed and healthy and comfortable
  6. No mirrors allowed.
  7. Be more mindful than usual of the positive effects of the practice by noting how you feel afterward.
  8. Don’t try to get better at anything.
  9. No expectations. Whatever you do is enough.
  10. Consciously thank yourself for showing up no matter what your practice looked like.Young woman restarting yoga practice with child's pose on a mat, healthy, relaxing practice with gratitude.

 

Baxter Bell MD, IAYT, yoga teacher, YogaUOnline presenter, Yoga for Covid Long Haulers

 

Reprinted with permission from Barrie Risman.com
Barrie Risman writer, yoga teacher

Barrie Risman is an internationally recognized yoga teacher, teacher trainer, and author of Evolving Your Yoga: Ten Principles for Enlightened Practice. Download the first chapter of her book and learn more about her new livestream workshop series, Yoga for Turbulent Times: Building Strength, Resilience, and Compassion for a Changing World, at www.barrierisman.com.

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