Eleven months ago, I wrote an e-mail to Marianne Elliot asking about her 30 Days of Yoga program (psst..this is an affiliate link). Among other things, it said:
One of my goals for the year is to establish a daily yoga practice, because, frankly, my body is stuck. I work at a desk all day and blog at night. All while chasing my own dream of setting up shop. Oh, and…then there’s the chronic neck issue.
And then I went on to present my concern: namely that I was leaving for Peru in the middle of the program.
Luckily, Marianne wrote a compelling response, and I signed up. Not only that, but I’ve since practiced on every trip I’ve taken since. Sometimes I get in 40 minutes (which is my mental cut off for a “full” practice). Others, I only have time for a few relaxing asanas (poses).
But there’s no doubt that yoga has become a part of my routine.
I want to practice daily.
When I compare my energy levels, my creative output and my general feeling of happiness in the times I’m practicing (nearly) daily to the week (or more) stretches without yoga, getting on the mat is a no-brainer.
And there’s all sorts of science to back it up. I just read Victoria Klein’s 27 Things to Know About Yoga. In Thing 5, Victoria writes about yoga’s “benefits galore.”
Ready for the list? Yoga can help with:
- Asthma
- Arthritis
- Back Pain
- Blood Pressure
- Cancer
- Depression & Anxiety
- Diabetes
- Flexibility
- Insomnia
- Memory & Concentration
- Menopause
- Nutrition
- Posture
- Your Sex Life
- Stress
It doesn’t take a huge leap to imagine the ripple effects into my creative life. More concentration? Yes, please! Less anxiety? Sign me up!
And yet, I fall off the wagon every few months or so. I get sucked into deadlines and pressures and commitments.
So why do I keep stumbling on my practice?
There’s all sorts of news out right now about a study showing that daily exercise is probably not enough for most of us. By us, it means people like me. People who sit at a computer for 10 working hours, only to go home and log more time blogging and writing and trying to set up a business.
In the coverage, Dr. Toni Yancey, a professor in the health services department is quoted, “We just aren’t really structured to be sitting for such long periods of time, and when we do that, our body just kind of goes into shutdown.”
Ah. That’s it.
Simple inertia. Luckily, inertia works both ways.
Inertia: The property of matter by which it retains its state of rest or its velocity along a straight line so long as it is not acted upon by an external force.
The undeniable power of small measures.
I always come out of a slump. That neck problem I e-mailed Marianne about is the external force demanding my attention.
But it’s not as though I dive right back into my practice.
No, I’ll maybe do 45 minutes one day. It’ll feel good. My body starts waking up.
And so the next morning, I’ll do a few cat/cow poses. Just 3-5 minutes of stretching.
That feels good, too. But maybe I’m too busy later for a full practice. And the following day, I have dinner plans.
But my body remembers what it feels like to move. So it won’t let me go more than a day without some form of yoga.
And, without premeditation, I’m back on track.
There’s this tendency to view goals with an all-or-nothing approach.
But whether it’s yoga, or something else entirely, you can find power in just one small step.
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Thank you SO much for mentioning my book :) It is a pleasure to be mentioned in such a great post.
Victoria Klein recently posted..2-Month Hiatus Update – Doing Well -
I learned a lot reading it — and bookmarked several of your sources for future reading. It was a fantastic jumping off point for me.
I can definitely relate to this principle. About two months ago, I started using 750words.com and have been writing daily since. The target is low (about half an hour’s worth of writing), and there is no pressure to make it perfect. Doing it every day (however small it is) has been powerful.
Joshua recently posted..A Letter to Myself – and Maybe to You Too
Oh I’ve never heard of 750 words — what a cool concept! I’ve been terrible at writing my morning pages…maybe this would help. Thanks!
Karibu sana (most welcome). You can thank Mari Huertas and Chris Guillebeau for recommending it to me. I hope it helps.
Joshua recently posted..A Letter to Myself – and Maybe to You Too
I love this post and it nudges me back to the simple, small measures that I know keep me well!
Marianne recently posted..Self-care when you’re too busy to take care of yourself
What a perfect way to state something so “small” yet so powerful. I love love love yoga and have fallen off the wagon for far too long.
You’ve motivated me. Thank you.
This makes me so happy!
What funny timing for me to read this! I just got done with 20 mins of yoga (via the Biggest Loser Wii game but it’s something!) as the doctor has told me that I need to do at least 10 mins of exercise a day for my issues. Needless to say I haven’t been very good at it but I did find that yoga today but nice and easy on my body. It’s something that I would try again. Thanks for sharing this Brigitte! :-)
This looks really interesting. Yoga is something I’ve always wanted to get into. Unfortunately I have a lower back problem that’s caused me to shy away from it. But one of her home courses where I can work at my own pace sounds very doable. Thanks for posting Brigitte!
Hi Laura – If you have a back problem, I highly recommend you run it past Marianne. She’s incredibly responsive.
Not knowing what your problem is, I can say yoga is excellent in general for back issues. My mom has herniated discs, and she’s on a customized yoga program as part of her recovery. And yoga is the only thing that reliably keeps my neck out of spasm from sitting on a computer all day.
But this may also be a situation where you should consider going to some classes to ensure you have proper alignment.
Brigitte, I tried Yoga once, but having hip problems at the time and doing a 45 minute non-stop yoga session with a young energetic instructor was not my brightest move! I only ended up in a heap of pain and have never been in a hurry to try Yoga again since.
I love to walk though, and know exactly what you mean when you say “My body remembers what it feels like to move”. The past few days, my back has been getting quite sore from too much sitting at the computer, driving etc. But despite the pain I got out and walked today, and it was exactly what I needed.
One of these days, I might even try yoga again – maybe just me and the Wii Fit, and for 5 minutes, not 45!!
Brigid | The Inspired Notebook recently posted..So When Does Oprah Get the Housework Done
What a horrible experience! But I want to repeat what I said to Laura. If you have any kind of injuries or limitations, I strongly urge you to find an instructor for your first few rounds of yoga. They will help you modify poses and avoid further injury.
I have to ask — was this round of yoga at a gym? I HATE “gym yoga” as I call it.
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Brigitte, yep it was “gym yoga”, at a local YMCA. I was under the impression that if I went to a yoga class, I’d have a chance to speak to the instructor about my hip and back problems. But obviously that doesn’t happen with gym yoga. I just did the whole routine along with everyone else – and paid for it later!
Brigid | The Inspired Notebook recently posted..So When Does Oprah Get the Housework Done
I’m guilty of the all-or-nothing approach, especially on a week by week basis — it’s too easy to say I’ll get back on track next week. But of course, once I get started again, I wonder why I didn’t just get started in some way to begin with. I think “small measures” will have to be my mantra for a little while — lots of things I need to get back on track with. Thanks for the reminder!
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