Practice Makes Perfect - How to Keep a Consistent Yoga Practice

A yogic lifestyle is something that requires persistent effort. And yet one of the biggest struggles we as yogis have is that consistent effort. We want and need to practice daily in order to keep ourselves strong in those benefits we practice for. We might be able to get on our mat most of the time but there are times when it just doesn’t happen. Life gets in the way, laziness settles in, or the mood just doesn’t come and suddenly it’s been a week, a month, or even a year or more. Keeping your yoga and meditation practices consistent is a major challenge but not to worry, we are all in that same boat. Here are some of my best tips to keep your yogic practices and lifestyles consistent and daily:

1. Turn words in to action and fight the apathy. — The ‘Just Do It!’ phrase is very apropos here. Regardless of any excuse you may have for yourself, find the time, schedule, and commit to it regardless of what’s going on in your life. Find that motivation and come back to why you started practicing yoga in the first place. Use it as your main weapon when that little voice comes in to your head that says you’re not in the mood for it. The hardest part is making that step in to your practice each day. With all that being said, there are some things that we can do to make this easier on ourselves.

2. Be creative and do you. — Vary your practice a little bit each day or each week so you don’t become bored or stale with it. Find a theme for the week or a given number of days to focus on in your practice. Maybe just let yourself go with no set intention or flow. Let yourself just be in the moment with your poses and see what happens. And remember that a yoga / meditation practice doesn’t have to involve being on the mat. Many a time I find myself practicing in my office chair or in my car or even in bed. While a practice on the mat is definitely preferred, sometimes life doesn’t give us that option and thus it is up to us to find that time and motivation elsewhere. Let your creative juices flow and see what you come up with. However when your mind just isn’t feeling that creative…..

3. Find an easy sequence to come back to. — Have a set sequence that you can always come back to when you just need to be on your mat for a while. Whether it be for time, energy, or motivation, having this kind of a backup sequence will let you find a way to get your practice in so you can just be and not have to think about it. Sun Salutations and vinyasa flows are absolutely perfect for this.

4. Set up a designated place in your home specifically for yoga and meditation. — This is something that I’m personally working towards myself. Have a place set aside purely for yoga and nothing else if possible. A separate room, corner, or place will allow that mindset to come easier and change as well as give you that safe haven with no distractions. If a separate space isn’t possible as it is for a lot of people, a trick for that is to have something in the room that reminds of your yogic practices. A figurine, a symbol, a candle or something like that is a wonderful reminder that this is what this space is used for and even scattering these things throughout your home is a great remind of who you are as a yogi and a potential poke to get on your mat at some point in the day.

5. Bust out your inner Jnana yogi. — Jnana yogis are knowledge seekers and constantly seeking for ways to improve their practice through wisdom on and off the mat. While not quite the same as a physical practice and being on the mat, I feel that it’s OK to simply bring out a yoga book, text, or site and scan through some knowledge when a physical practice just won’t happen. It’s a different way to practice yoga sure but it allows for new ideas and thoughts to flourish as well as for self-realization to occur that you may not have discovered otherwise. As the very nature of Jnana Yoga states, this search allows you to train your mind for a deeper practice and lets you use your mind as a tool for self-discovery that you can later bring to a physical practice.

6. Work with your yoga community. — For the most part, the yogic community is a wonderfully supportive one. Talk to your mentors, teachers, and colleagues and see what they have to say. Ask for support and they will whole-heartedly give it to you. Attend outside classes and see what works, what doesn’t, and what you can take away to enliven your own personal practice. There is always something to be gained from a conversation with a fellow yogi and that’s what we are all here for.

7. Track your progress or sign up for / follow a yoga challenge. — I always keep a journal on me at all times not just for writing down great ideas but also to keep track of my practices and where I am in a given time period with my yoga. It also allows me to remember concepts that strike me so I can try them out in a practice and thus gives me much more of a sense of the journey. I would also recommend trying a yoga challenge formal or informal. There are tons of them out there and they bring a sense of motivation and progress as you follow each day and each movement.

8. Practice your Aparigraha. — Non-attachment is one of the Yamas of the Eight-Limbed Yoga Path for a reason. A great thing to remember to do is let go of any attachment to your practice. I mean that in the sense that any practice is a good practice regardless of the variables (time, content, effort) of it. There’s no such thing as a perfect practice so just show up and let whatever happens happen. Sometimes all we can get in is an 5 minute practice and other days we can get in our full hour of all sorts of qualities and that’s perfectly fine. Regardless of what a practice looks like in our day, accept it and be content with it.

9. Accept that you aren’t perfect. — Nobody is perfect. There are always going to be days when you don’t feel up to practicing and that’s OK. Listening to that inner feeling and what your inner voice / body is telling you is another wonderful way to practice yoga and we need to learn to accept that. Practice in your own and accept the rest / missed days when they come.

About the Author: Michael Joseph Goleniewski

Michael is a 200 Hour Certified Yoga Teacher (CYT) and is RYT 200-hr through Yoga Alliance. He is the founder of Regen Yoga, a Jnana (Knowledge-Based) Vinyasa style with major elements of Hatha, Yin, and Ashtanga and minor elements of Kundalini, Iyengar and Power Yoga. The primary goal of this style is to allow us as yogis to get to know, accept, and regenerate our bodies through physical, mental, and spiritual yoga practices with an energetic awareness.

Find more about Michael and Regen Yoga at www.michaelgoleniewski.com