How to start your own yoga practice

You told yourself you needed to either relax, exercise or release tension (or all of that at once). You’ve heard about yoga of course, but didn’t know if you’d be “namaste” enough. Many people feel like yoga might be the solution, but don’t know where and how to start. It can easily feel overwhelming to start something new and the wide variety of yoga styles, levels and studios might make your head spin. Wasn’t yoga suppose to be simple and stress free?

Here are few simple steps to start your journey. Either you’re at home or traveling, forget the destination, it’s all about your journey. These are my own steps, how I got into yoga a while back when I had a 9 to 5 job in Canada. It simple, cheap and effective.

 

1. The Meditation for beginners step: Start by standing or sitting in your living room and feel where your body and mind are at. Ask yourself “What’s tense?”, “Where would I need a massage?”, “Where does your body ask for ATTENTION?”

2.The label it step: Then, try to label that “feeling”, to give that thing that makes you tense a name. It might be a handful of things: “my back hurts” or “I want to relax everywhere” or “my hips need a stretch” or “I need some neck relief or “I need to cut out my stress” or ” my arms need strength” or “more abs power please”. The list never ends.

3.The Google yoga step: Now open your eyes, start your computer and type in those words, that label in your search engine, add YOGA to it and Voilà! This is where you will start. That label is your goal. And as long as you have a goal, something you have identified to be needing fixing, you’ll know where you are going.

4. Open a video and try it step: Does it help? Is that the type of yoga you’re looking for? Hatha, Vinyasa, Ashtanga, Power… Do you want it to go slower, faster or is it THE ONE? The one that will fill that goal.

5. That’s the one step: Try a few videos, don’t commit just yet, taste it, “like” it, come back to resonated with you. When you see the same type of yoga appearing over and over again, for example “Vinyasa flow”, “Vinyasa for beginners”, “Vinyasa sequence”, you’ll narrow your interest to a specific type of yoga. Good job! You’ve catched a small fish in the big sea of yoga options.

6. Join the community step: Now you know more… What about the BIG JUMP? Look for a yoga studio teaching THE ONE Yoga type you’ve “liked” over and over again. Hop on a “drop-in” class, no commitment, just fun!

 

 

How do we get somewhere? One step at the time. These are 6 super easy steps just for you. Like dating, no one expects to fall in love at first sight, if you do, GREAT, if you don’t keep looking. The sea is big enough for all of us!

At our Yoga Farm near Canoa, on the coast of Ecuador, we will explore different yoga styles with you. We will let you feel and expand your yoga practice; let your practice come to you! Hop-on a Beach Yoga class at Hotel Bambu in Canoa beach or come to Finca Pinguino Farm Yoga and Food forest and try a Yoga Farmstay!