How to Begin Your Yoga Practice
Beginning a Yoga Practice.
When beginning an asana practice, celebrate the fact that you made the decision to get on a mat and start molding the clay. You are the clay and about to sculpt your masterpiece. It all begins with making space to go and practice. If it is at home, clear the area, lay the mat down, and make it welcoming so you want to go there.
Start by just sitting in the space and inviting your thoughts to surface along with all the shifting and settling until you feel this is a space that resonates with you. Once you are there, either look at a spot on the wall to meditate with or close your eyes and begin to journey inward allowing yourself to experience whatever unfolds for a few seconds or minutes.
Be here as long as you need to. This is the beginning of a yoga practice.
Sure, many will tell you the foundational key points. I.E. What type of Mat do you need, props, financial considerations, studio or online, the style you may want to explore, if you align with the teacher, what kind of teacher are you looking for, and so much more…
Discover your Dosha to learn what routines and foods work best for to get you back into balance.
Learn more about Ayurveda by becoming a member or taking our Ayurveda Yoga Teacher Training course with us so you can learn more about how to care for yourself and others through a safe, natural, and consciousness-based approach to holistic wellness.
The Style of Yoga You Align With
To take it all the way to the root chakra of the practice, it all begins with an intention. Making a commitment to show up for yourself. Once you embody that, then it’s time to begin asking ourselves,
What style of yoga do you think you would enjoy?
Consider, for instance, if you are into a more mellow practice and not into sweating much, then a Bikram, or Hot Yoga studio, may not be for you. You may want to look for a studio that has a regulated temperature that aligns best with you. On the other hand, you may want a HotWorks, or Power Yoga Vinyasa heated or infrared sauna-style class.
Ask yourself, “Do I like to sweat a lot, a little, somewhere in between, or do I need a more supportive practice with props and bolsters to really open up?” Do I like to move a lot or a little? Do I prefer more meditative practices, gentle, or aquatic?
Check-in with your body. Do you have chronic back pain? Knee ailments, joint pain, sciatica, vertigo?
Based on your answers, will give you insight into what style of practice to consider. Remember, there are so many different styles of yoga. For example:
Core and Balance Vinyasa Yoga - Focuses on breath work, isometric movements, and a combination of vinyasa asana with pilates and adaptive abdominal strengthening postures to activate Tejas (fire) within the physiology to stimulate the digestive Agni (fire) for the athletic practitioner. Please bring any props to class you feel you may need to enhance your practice. Adapt postures for sensitive wrists, knees, neck, and lower back. The class is for students familiar with the vinyasa style of yoga.
Bilingüe Yoga en Español - Esta clase es una clase de hatha yoga bilingüe centrada en conectar y estabilizar la energía fundamental. Aprovechamos nuestras intenciones y poder manteniéndonos firmes y abriéndonos a la transformación. Cada semana exploramos algo nuevo cómo encontramos la chakra respectivo. Aprendemos a aplicar y adaptar sus enseñanzas en nuestra vida diaria al incorporarlas en nuestra práctica de asanas físicas. Tocando los rasgos y las cualidades por las que cada uno es utilizado y conocido. Adapte y modifique según sea necesario. Tenga siempre almohada, mantas, una correa o cinturón, bloques o similares, y un espacio en el que pueda practicar sin ser interrumpido. Es útil tener una silla cerca. Esta clase está abierta a practicantes de cualquier nivel, sin embargo, nos enfocamos en principiantes a intermedios.
Aqua Yoga - Aqua yoga is a viable option for all students of yoga who like being in the water. What we are doing in yoga, is modifying and redirecting the forces of nature within us, to bring about change and greater serenity and balance. The benefits of practicing the postures (asanas) in water are slightly different from those on land. The bones are not loaded in the same way. Making yoga accessible to those who would not find the practice suitable on land. Reaching up out of the water sustains inner body length.
The wall helps with the asana articulation rather than in the middle of the pool. The wall offers some resistance to deepen and help stabilize the asana so inquiry into the breath can be made. Senior, elderly, and limited-mobility participants are less likely to get hurt. People after surgery and post-stroke find it a nice, stimulating environment that helps them forget their limitations by refining their breathing techniques. Expecting mothers, find it pleasant and helpful when their bodies are hurting.
Ashtanga Yoga - Ashtanga is a very dynamic and athletic form of hatha yoga, made up of six series or levels, with a fixed order of postures. It is rooted in vinyasa, the flowing movements between postures, with a focus on energy and breath. While it is a very physical practice, it also promotes mental clarity and inner peace.
The intensive physical processes in Ashtanga are all about pushing through mental blocks, and emotional baggage to cultivate mental clarity, mindful breathing, physical strength, flexibility, and endurance. The structure and frequency of the practice is designed to help you quickly improve your body and overall wellness. The set sequence of posture creates a strong framework that allows one to focus on the inner limbs of the yoga sutras (Burgin, 2000)
Chair Yoga - A great class for beginners. In this class, we work through the foundations of poses connecting to nature and using the Chair for accessibility while adapting the yoga asanas to support strengthening, balance, and concentration. This class is done mostly in the chair or can be done in and out of the chair, using the chair as a tool for stability.
Maharishi Ayurveda Yoga Asana - Maharishi AyurVeda supplements diet, routine, and behavior changes with lifestyle modifications. Movement not only allows for stagnation to reduce in our physiology, but this particular set of Maharishi Yoga Asanas enliven cognitive coherence and assists the practitioner in accessing higher states of consciousness. (Medieros, Roxanna.; MIU., 2022)
Vinyasa - Vinyasa classes are more popular in gyms and yoga studios and are often heated and play music during practice (Burgin, 2000). Vinyasa is a Sanskrit term often employed to describe a broad range of yoga styles. Vinyasa can be decoded from its root words Nyasa denoting "to place" and vi denoting "in a special way." It symbolizes a flowing, dynamic form of yoga, where postures are linked together using breath.
Yin Yoga - Dive deep into the tissues that hold many of our past issues. In Yin, we hold poses for 3-5mins long and discover how our breath, nervous system, and body react and respond to the practice of holding these poses for myofascial and therapeutic releases. Props are used heavily to support the length of time the body is holding the pose. This class can be challenging for the mind, as it empowers you to go beyond your human or superficial plane. Please have a couch cushion, thick pillow, yoga bolster, strap, blocks, (or similar), blanket, and a thick towel available to support you.
Just to name a few.
Studio Vs. Online
Studio
Next, you will want to shop around for intro options at studios nearby so as to get a sampling of what the studio offers before you commit to a membership program and get locked in for a while. Investing in your health is vital to your overall well-being, and therefore it is important to practice in an environment that is enriching to your practice and not draining your wallet.
Some studios offer special intro offers to get you started on your journey. You will want to check with your local yoga studios to see which ones have a 30-day special or new student offer. A good place to start is Groupon.
Online
Online is my personal favorite because it is the MOST cost conscious. A great place to start is YouTube. Here you will find an incredible amount of resources to get you started on your yoga journey and help you discover what style, teacher, practice, time of day, etc, aligns with you. Most YouTube channels are Free and all you have to do is subscribe to the channels that you like the most and you will receive a notification each time a new video is uploaded or released.
JBYF has a FREE YouTube Channel with over 300+ video offerings to discover and see which one aligns with you. Use it as a launch pad to begin your journey by clicking here. Above is a Root Chakra Chair yoga video and below is one of the Beginner Yoga class videos from our Beginner Yoga series on our channel with the instructor Christina Andrini that goes over basic tools of what you need to begin your practice.
“I’m not Flexible.”
If I had a penny for every time I heard that from a student, I would not be writing this blog right now.
The key principle of yoga does not focus solely on the physical flexibility of the body. It enlivens the flexibility of the will, mind, and spirit. Those are areas far more challenging to work on than the flexibility of human physiology. Yoga teaches us how to be flexible in all the ways and forms of our being. It is part of the growth that we experience during our practice of doing just 1% more a day. In time, you will notice how you begin to open up physically and mentally.
Yoga gives you the ability to awaken the areas of the body that have been static, stuck, and stagnant, by doing 1% more each time you come to your mat. Yoga cultivates awareness. “With awareness comes responsibility.” - Illi Stovall
Practicing safely is essential to one’s evolution in their practice and at times may even impress upon their ability to continue or switch to a different style that aligns more with their ability. This is part of the discovery process when it comes to taking responsibility with awareness to one’s growth. You have the freedom to adapt and adjust poses to support you wherever you are along the journey.
Choosing A Yoga Mat
Another tool you will need is a yoga mat. There are an incredible amount of yoga mats that are made in all shapes, sizes, and materials. Our favorites are Jade and Manduka, but we have been known to use Gaiam and occasionally lululemon.
What’s important, is that the mat fits your size, is comfortable to the touch and to your knees, and is practical for the style of practice you are choosing to do. It may require a sticky grip on the ground and for your hands, or it may need more padding for knees and backs. Some yoga mats have a funny odor when they are new, and it takes some cleaning and breaking them in to get rid of it. Using a bit of witch hazel and tea tree oil is helpful to cleanse it.
Lastly, you will need a few supporting tools in your beginner yoga tool kit. A strap, 2 blocks (either foam or cork) and blanket, and a meditation cushion. You can purchase all those at the sites mentioned above or on Amazon. Watch the video above for more information on the props of yoga.
JBYF Membership Program
If you want to simply get started, a great way to get a yoga starter kit for free is by joining our membership program. You will receive your yoga starter kit 30 days after registering. We will reach out to you upon registration to get some details so we can send you your new yoga kit.
Framework of Resilience
It is a framework to create resilience, leadership, and perseverance each time you make a choice to get on the mat and face yourself.
Yoga is an ongoing journey that is always beginning somewhere for someone and evolving for others. The beginning is and always will be the essence of what yoga is all about. Maintaining a beginner's mind in an effort to elevate humbly.
Yoga is for beginners. We are not “advanced,” just simply at different stages of our evolution. Practitioners around the world are awakening to deeper levels of connection to what is reshaping the way we look, think, and feel about ourselves and the world around us in the different states of consciousness that manifest from yoga. The union of mind, body, and spirit. It is not easy, and it takes time, but yoga is all about balancing time, activity, and self-care.
You are a beginner each time you step onto your mat. Never allow your ego to block your growth. The teacher is always the student and the student is always the teacher. Thus, you are always a beginner when it comes to self-discovery.
Deepening Your Practice
JBYF offers you the opportunity to take this exploration even further by providing online, in-person, and immersion-based 100 and 200-hour Ayurveda Yoga Teacher Training. This is a comprehensive training that goes over the roots of yoga, self-discovery, the philosophy of yoga and Ayurveda, breakdowns of postures, sequences, lifestyle, nutrition, the business of yoga, adaptive practices like Aqua and Chair yoga, and so much more.
The training not only gives you the confidence to practice on your own but as a leader for others to learn and grow from so you can Become an Ayurvedic Yoga Teacher and be a leader in your community advocating for health and wellness. It is also a 100% Tax deduction. We support you along the way.
200-Hour Ayurveda Yoga Teacher Training
Learn the basics of Ayurveda, yoga’s sister science, along with the Hatha yoga lineage, adaptive sequences for special mobility such as Chair and Aqua Yoga, nutrition, lifestyle, and meditation to name a few. Click here for more details.
Jai Bhakti Yoga believes in providing an accessible and equitable way for all financial backgrounds to invest in their future. More information about our payment plans can be found here.
Teacher training is not just a program to make you a yoga teacher, it is a life-transforming journey that will shift your paradigms and cultivate a consciousness-based approach in all aspects of your life. Save 30% off your ENTIRE tuition by using coupon code JBYF30. (Good on monthly payments as well).
Our key mantras this year:
1. Be patient
2. Be kind
3. Be strong
4. Be free
Growth happens when you allow yourself to fail, learn, and rise above. Watch the live Podcast here on Instagram
BALI Ayurveda, YOGA, and Cultural Wellness Retreat September 1-7th, 2023
Join us this year in Bali, Indonesia to discover the art of the heart. Learn how to paint Batik, explore the rice fields, snorkeling in Nusa Lembongan, learn the art of making Balinese offerings, and so much more.
Space is very limited
Single and Shared occupancy is available.
How does one do this? By doing 1% a day.
Back to basics. At the start of every new year, the world makes resolutions, intentions, and goals that very few ever see through to the end.
The reason is that there may be a moment when there is a setback, a slip-up, or a quantum shift, that at times, makes us feel that we need to give up, that it isn’t worth the effort, or that it’s just too hard. This can happen in the early phases of your yoga practice.
The words, “I can’t” make their appearance and before we know it, we are falling short of sticking to our new practice.
Keep showing up, and doing just 1% each day and you will achieve the results you seek for your mental, emotional, and physical, well-being.
Watch the live Podcast here on Instagram
Now it’s your turn to make a quantum shift in your life and I want to help you achieve your goals this year by sharing how doing 1% each day will get you there.
222 LENT 40 DAY 1% to Achieve Your Goals Challenge
It all begins with making a choice.
What is it, that you want to focus on right now? (Big or small)
Join our Facebook Group: Goal Getters starting 2/22 and join a community of individuals on a similar journey to achieve their goals. I will be with you each step of the way.
Get your Free Smart Goals and Vision Boards Workbook by clicking the button below and joining the challenge.
1% begins with your Dinacharya or Your Daily Routine.
What does that look like to you?
Maybe, this is a good time to reflect and journal about what your ideal day or week looks like.
What does self-care look like to you?
When was the last time you made healthy food choices or did some yoga, maybe even went to the gym?
Here is something to make part of your daily routine:
Take 5 mins each day to jot down your accomplishments, what inspired you, and what you will work on to enrich an area that needs more growth.
Life is about the allocation of time. Discover how to value your worth and yourSelf. Valuing Your Self-worth in a way that doesn’t stress the body so you can achieve lasting results through a lifestyle you love.
JBYF focuses on integrating a yogic and ayurvedic lifestyle. Ayurveda emphasizes the importance of not stopping anything quickly so the mind has an opportunity to gently transition to new rasayanas (behaviors) while releasing old habits. It’s important to remind ourselves to ease into the activity as well.
Stressing the body in or out of activity to achieve your goal puts the body under stress and is not a state of yoga or union in the body. If you are new to yoga, your one percent a day could look like following along with one of my videos on my Jai Bhakti Yoga YouTube channel. Feel free to subscribe there for free as we share a new video daily for our online community.
Maybe you attempt 5 mins of the video, and then the next day, your one percent could look like following along for 8 minutes and one second, and so on. That one second toward your one percent on the second day is fantastic! I think you're catching my drift… on the third day, 10 minutes and two seconds is perfect.
Your one percent a day could also look like moving away from something slowly… one percent at a time.
The important thing to remember is that time accumulates, and you are worthy of the time you put into yourself.
Ayurveda utilizes the circadian rhythm as a foundation for its routine because Ayurveda is supported by the underlying foundations of nature.
There are certain times of the day, for instance, when we wake up and go to bed. In the morning, there is your morning routine, some have an afternoon ritual, and then there is an evening ritual. In Ayurveda, we call the morning routine, Dinacharya, which we covered in our Creating a Healthy Daily Routine According to the Ayurveda blog, along with its sister Blog Creating Healthy Daily Routines Dinacharya and Ritucharya. You can also listen to the podcasts Episodes 24 and 52 (which were released on Jan.10).
Being in alignment with Self and having balance can take time and effort- but you are so worth it.
Starting Feb.22, I will be sharing a 40-day challenge version of our 5-day challenge that will help you achieve these goals. You will get an email each week that will give you 1% more to do so you can see instant results.
Be sure to join our online community mailing list at jbyfnola.org to join in on the challenge and get your free dosha quiz to discover your dominant dosha.
We will restructure the way we explore our new routines based on how we align with the circadian rhythm.
If you would like to support us, become a Founding member for $29 a month using code JBY20.
Be sure to give us a follow here on IG and FB, as well as to subscribe to our free YouTube channel.
You can also join us for a retreat to Bali by visiting our website and making a deposit of $597 to secure your spot.
Thank you for your support and we look forward to growing with you this year!
This week’s references:
Burgin, T. (2000). Yoga Basics
Keller, J. (January 3, 2023). Giving 1% A Day. Jai Bhakti Yoga Blog.
We hope that you benefitted from our free-of-charge programs and services, for which a group of expert yoga teachers, ayurvedic clinicians, practitioners, consultants, and holistic wellness leaders volunteered their time and creative effort to support you so you can live your best healthy life. Continued electronic implementation, programming, and education require considerable expense to sustain online at little to no cost for you and the community. Will you Please consider giving to JBYF in acknowledgment of this professional contribution?
Thank you very much and live well.
