Q and A with Hannah on staying motivated

Hannah

What motivates you to keep coming back to your mat?

There are many things that motivate me to keep coming back to my mat from the feelings I get when I practice to the community I am blessed to surround myself with. Yoga is all encompassing and there is no one way to practice or to show up and in knowing that, it inspires me to continue to arrive on my mat with both the light and the dark, exactly as I am. Whether it be on days when I feel great or not so great, simply showing up, accepting that each practice will be unique, and arriving on my mat allows me to feel connected, grounded, and taken care of. 

What suggestions do you have specifically for new students to build a regular yoga practice?

Start small and breathe. It can feel exciting to want to be a consistent practitioner of yoga, but it can also feel super daunting. There is no one right way to practice yoga and the coolest part about it is that you can practice yoga without even moving your body! So start small, maybe with one or two asana (physical - in person) classes a week and then on your own time at home you could search up 5-10 minute videos to include in your daily routine whether you're a morning or a night person including a short flow, breath work, or meditation can be super supportive in creating small shifts that can lead to life changing habits. 

How did you develop a consistent yoga practice? 

It definitely didn't happen overnight! It took creating lots of small habits to create a consistent big one. I started by doing 10-20 minutes of a feel good flow every morning to wake up my mind and body alongside a 5 minute meditation. Doing this helped me to make it a part of my routine to practice and experience yoga right at the start of my day to plant the seed. Eventually I started taking in person classes once or twice a week and I would try out a ton of them. I took from a variety of teachers and styles and started to realize what classes, teachers, and times really worked with my body, schedule, and life. From there I made it a priority to carve out an hour to practice yoga 3-4 times a week for my mental and physical well being. The more I practiced and explored the more natural it became. We live in an ebb and flow so my practice is always shifting and evolving as I shift and evolve. Even when I get out of the habit of having consistent practice I go back to the basics, start small, and build my way back to what feels right and good at that time in my life. Balance, like with most things in life, is key. Trusting the process and knowing that it is okay to 'fall' out of a consistent practice. The beautiful part is that you can step back into it! Yoga isn't going anywhere and there is no one way to practice it. 

What were/are things that get in your way of continued practice? How do you overcome them?

Some things that got in my way of continued practice were definitely time management and lack of knowledge. I always knew that yoga was something I was meant to deeply explore, but it felt distant because I would place other priorities above it. In addition, since I didn't develop a consistent practice or go to a studio frequently I didn't build up knowledge on poses, styles, language, and general yoga stuff so when I would try to practice on my own I was lost on where to start. What helped me was taking guided classes online through youtube and eventually going to a variety of in person classes even though it felt scary at times. It always helped when I would arrive to in person classes early and talk to the teacher beforehand about my experience and the class I was going to take. In addition, when I finally took the leap to educate myself further with my 200 hour certification I noticed an immense shift in my home practice, studio practice, and excitement to arrive on my mat as often as possible. Even doing research and following a variety of yogis and teachers online was super supportive in expanding my knowledge on yoga in the depth it can provide.