During this pandemic situation, we may have no choice but practice at home. Join online class is one of the best choice. However sometimes we may just want to move our body in our own pace. This is an easy-to-follow guide for you to plan your home practice. I’m not going to touch up specific yoga drill but providing a concept / method to help you cultivating your own flow.

To start your journey by asking yourself these 3 questions :

1/ What’s my intension of the practice?

Knowing your intension means know how and what to practice. To relax, to keep fit, to achieve an particular asana or to keep general health etc. The purpose leads our practice into a specific way. For example, if you going to relax through the practice, properly more steady hold in a comfortable stretching posture and breath work will be involved. While you like to achieve said forearmstand, your practice may cover shoulder strengthening drill, core workout and preparation on the wall etc. Observe carefully, our intension is change anytime, any day. It depends on our body condition and energy.

2/ How much time I have to practice?

This question light up the structure of the practice. More time we have, more complete the practice can be. For example, if you have 4 hours, you may able to give yourself a full warm-up, enter the core of the practice then go deep, follow by wind down. While you only get 30 mins, you need to MAKE SELECTION WISELY. Choose the most effective warm up for your peak pose, and a quick cool down. Understand we can’t do everything in a limited time. We flow whenever we can, whatever we have.

3/ Any specific drill/pose I want to do?

This is to outline the “main cause” of the practice. For example, with the intension to keep fit, you may like to work on the core muscle this week. So let’s highlight 3-4 different core workouts, mixed and match them in different pattern each day, at the end of last 2 days by adding some advance variations. Next week may focus more on arm, then legs..it can form a circle for you to repeat by adding something different each time.

To make your self practice more sustainable and efficient, you may like to try these method :

1/ Collect your favourite drills.

Nowadays we can search almost everything online. If you want to know how to stretch the hamstring, how to do headstand prep.or how to tone your arm etc. Go online type the key in Youtube, IG or google... Save your favourite drill to practice later. Take this as your daily homework.

2/ Do review.

Record your drill, progress and feeling towards the practice. Which gives you a better picture what fits you the most physically and mentally. For example, you had try A, B and C drill for the hip opening. You feel so good with drill A, but drill C brings you so much strange emotion. Record all these into your review. After a period of time, you read this and try drill C again, may be it gives you different feeling. This experience builds your insight of practice and allow you to know more and deeper the inner you bit by bit.

3/ Continue to learn.

No matter you have a teacher certification or not, you are so welcome to learn more about Yoga philosophy, history, meditation, yoga mantra, anatomy and kinematics etc. Explore the area drives your interest, go deeper as you feel ready. Immerse the theory intelligently into your practice by trial and error. Don’t think of the result at the first glance, embrace your curiosity, this is the key to enjoy your practice.

Writer_Christine Sit , Photo_pinteret.com

Simple guide to develop a more effective self practice.