Practice yoga regularly

That’s why this is called a practice…you have to start over again occassionally. I’ve started doing 30 of yoga on Saturday mornings. Until I find a class to go to this will have to do. At least it’s something and I know I’ll get benefits from it.

I found a yoga podcast that I use to stretch out afterward (Sage Yoga Training). Most of them are from 1om 10-15 minutes long…just enough to stretch either before or after a workout so it’s ideal for me. And because I’ve been doing them at least 2-3 times a week after workouts this has has become regular. I’ll keep this one on the list until I’ve done this for a full month before I consider it a regular practice.

So as an early birthday present, I gifted myself with a 30 GB Ipod video and as I went through all the wonderful podcasts what did I find? Yoga of course! So for the last week and a half I’ve been doing short and sweet yoga sessions either right before my daily walk or right afterward. FINALLY! I’m getting a regular yoga practice!

but this morning I woke up 45 minutes early…I guess my body was done resting. Anyway, I turned on the Oxygen channel and did about 20 minutes of yoga. I can hardly believe the difference in how I feel. I’ve got to find a yoga class. I like being with people focused on the same activity and I think if I had some place I had to “go” to do yoga, I’d be more commited to my practice.

I haven’t been practicing yoga at all. Occasionally I look at my poor neglected mat and I say “I promise to get you out soon.” and that’s about it. I think my biggest problem is I don’t have a class to go to. Even with regular exercise, if I can go someplace to do it, I get into a regular habit because 1. I’m paying for it and 2. it’s something to do for myself. If the current demands on my time (my hubby in Iraq, home schooling our daughter, nuturing our baby son, going back to college, packing for a move in 6 months), it’s very hard for me to keep a scheduled yoga time in my house and not hear the millions of other things I need to get done. I love the moving meditation yoga gives me…I miss it.
But having said all of this, I have found a way to bring more of the moving meditation into my daily life until I can find a yoga class to escape to. I’ve found an out door 11 circuit labyrnth at a local church so when I take our daughter to one of her hour long activities instead of sitting in the waiting area, I drive to the labyrnth, and the baby and I walk it. Sometimes he walks with me, other times he plays in the sandpit not far from view…and so far, it’s given me exactly what I felt I was missing without yoga.

because I haven’t been practicing at all. I kinda replaced this with TaeKwonDo. But I’m not sleeping well again so I really need to do this at least once a week again.

In my pursuit of Tae Kwon Do and going to Curves, I let this one fall to the way side but I plan to practice on Saturday and Sunday because now that I’ve started to get toned up, I’m loosing some flexibility.

With going to Curves and taking up Tae Kwon Do, I’ve been putting this one off for the last couple of weeks. Though I do some stretches after both of the other classes, it’s not the same as focusing on just the yoga postures.

yesterday I had my first Tae Kwon Do class and although I am sore in some places, I firmly believe I’m not as sore as I could be because of my flexibilty. Even in just practicing once a week it has helped.

so I’ve only been doing very few poses which do seem to help.