I fell off the wagon last week during my trip to Phoenix when it came to my goal of practicing yoga every day. It seemed as though most of my time went to work and then driving around to see friends and family as much as possible. I didn’t get much yoga or meditation in, though I consider it a small win that I made it to a 6:15 a.m. OrangeTheory class. I missed the benefits of yoga in my life during this off-week.
My yoga practice took a backseat, but I realized its importance as a method of calming. I consider it a missed opportunity that I didn’t do any yoga poses or meditation during work (in a conference room or break room) to alleviate the effects of sitting for too long. At one point I was upset about a family matter and curled up into a ball instead of working out the emotions with a physical practice. I would love to re-train my mind to choose yoga over stewing in my emotions. I also missed writing in my journal and taking time for self-reflection.
Lessons:
- Don’t be so hard on yourself when you fail at a goal, but focus on what you can do about it now.
- Schedule time for yoga, or whatever your intention is. Make it a priority. I decided to save reminders in my phone to practice yoga, because scheduling time for it will cut down on my excuses. If I can’t find an hour block of time to practice, I can at least get a few minutes in here and there throughout the day.
- Find a yoga/workout buddy to keep you accountable.
- Bring along your yoga mat when you go out of town. Seeing it will remind you to use it.
- Tell your friends, family, or the even the Internet about your goal. People will ask you about it and that will keep you motivated and accountable.
