Undoubtedly practicing yoga at home has advantages such as free sessions, the possibility of choosing your schedule or the possibility of working the postures at your own pace.
The Interest of Practicing Yoga at Home
Thanks to the free sessions and the possibility of managing your own rhythm in the assimilation of body exercises, the practice of yoga at home is advantageous. Indeed, one does not have to follow the indoor classes which may be binding from a time point of view.
Sometimes, in group yoga classes, you have to follow the group rhythm so that the execution of a posture is not quite assimilated that already, you have to move on to the next sequence. By practicing yoga at home, you can have time to repeat the body exercises as many times as you need.
On the other hand, yoga, which is a demanding discipline in terms of attendance, which requires a lot of willpower and self-discipline. The risk of yoga at home is simply the tendency to give up, faced with possible difficulties. On the other hand, you have to make sure of the good form of the movements practiced, there will not be a teacher to correct your postures in real-time.
What is Yoga at Home?
Can everyone do yoga at home?
The answer is no for a certain category of practitioners considered vulnerable, such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. Unless, of course, you have to hire a special yoga teacher who comes home to assist them.
Given the risks to the body from improper exercises, inadequate breathing, it is best for beginners to refrain from doing yoga at home, without the assistance of a yoga teacher. We should, therefore, start practicing yoga at home, if and only if:
You have a good experience of yoga and hours of classes behind you.
In this case, the practice consists of repeating postures already acquired during previous lesson hours. And as we know how to do it, the risks are minimized.
The state of health allows you to practice yoga safely
Before practicing yoga at home, it is better to know if you are perfectly healthy and that you do not suffer from any illness that can worsen with the practice of yoga. For example, when you have back pain.
How to Practice Yoga at Home?
For the practice of yoga at home to be beneficial, we must have good organisation: arrange schedules and training space, have programs, exercises to perform and have adequate equipment.
It may sound a bit philosophical, but the same goes for all sports, in general, the results come when you are regular and consistent in your effort. How then to establish the favourable ground to reach this regularity and to register yoga at home in your routine? This is what we will see.
Set up Schedules and Spaces
Determination is one of the secrets of successful yoga at home. You have to think about arranging schedules to be able to do it in good condition. The practice of yoga at home must be a privileged moment to find yourself, and refocus on yourself, a way of disconnecting from everyday life.
For this, we must provide a space that allows being calm, it must be sufficient to allow us to lie down, stand up and practice without hindrance the various sequences. If you have an extra room that you can dedicate to your yoga practice, you are in the best of situations, because there is nothing more inviting to exercise than having your yoga mat rolled out and ready to go.
At a minimum, you will need a quiet and peaceful place at home, far from the room of others, we are talking about a moment suspended in time to relax. Make sure you have enough room to execute your postures. Create your own atmosphere with candles and incense if necessary, the goal is to make you feel good. Don’t forget to switch your mobile phones to do not disturb.
You can put very zen background music, or practice in silence focusing on your breathing, you can also practice watching the video of a class. Putting on music can help isolate yourself and not lose too much attention on environmental noises, it's also a great way to set a time if your yoga playlist lasts 1 hour when it ends, you know it's the end of your session!
Have Adequate Equipment
As you know, the bottom line is your yoga mat. This is the cornerstone of your equipment. Better to pay a little more for quality at this level. Choose a non-slip, very resistant and which does not slip once on it. In terms of material, opt for an organic carpet, more environmentally friendly.
Besides the mat, there are other accessories that can enhance your experience and open up new postures as you progress.
You will need a good pair of yoga pants. There are tons of brands on the market, the important thing is to find the yoga pants that meet your expectations and make you want to practice. I'm willing to bet that you will enjoy it and even put it on for other occasions than your yogic session!
A Little Caution and Prevention
Here is a point on which I cannot offer you an alternative, you must confine yourself to it. Always be vigilant about what surrounds you, no question of leaving everyday objects around you on which you could bump while practicing.
Pay particular attention to your body and your vulnerable areas, especially your knees, hips, spine, and neck. If you feel any discomfort in these areas, adjust your pose, or stop it directly. Never force.
Likewise, don't mess around with the warm-up, especially if you plan to attack more advanced positions during your session.
Finally, be particularly vigilant during transitions between your postures, they represent moments of potential danger because we tend to pay less attention to our alignment at this precise moment.
The Choice of Yoga Style and Routine
If you are new to Yoga, it might be a good idea to do some research beforehand or just take a course in the studio. What are you going to do once on your carpet? The first question to ask yourself is: what do my body and mind need? Are we talking about dynamic training to circulate energies or something softer, restorative for the body and the mind?
If you aim to tone up and lose a few pounds, you can turn to videos of Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga, if you'd rather relax and open up to meditation, you should find hatha yoga videos.
The more you practice, the more you learn the effects of different practices and the more you learn to identify what your body and mind need. You can even bring a yoga instructor home for your first few sessions, just to get you started.
The other alternative is to find a course online, and in this little game, read the descriptions given to be sure it suits you. If the perfect course doesn't seem to exist, create your own! Choose a style and a teacher that seem to suit you.
Finally, you can choose to do things your way! To do this, select 3 very simple postures during which you feel good, that you really love and that make you want to practice. It will be your basis for work. Now choose 3 more complex ones that you do not yet master and practice them. Alternate postures according to their difficulty and take breaks. As the sessions progress, add new postures as you progress. From time to time, offer yourself a course to assess and secure your practice.