Yoga: random or routine?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 17 Aug 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

napaea	17 Aug 2002
:eek: i've been doing yoga for probably 4 or 5 years, and i've been sporadic. you know how it is, i'm really faithful for a while, and then i get sooo busy and stressed, and can't seem to fit it in. well i may have solved my problem! i've always done yoga like this: hmmmm, what should i do today? and i have those great cards "yoga for everyday" where you can lay them all out on the floor and choose your poses. i love it. but about a month ago, i decided to create a routine and try doing it every time. same thing every time. i'm loving it! first of all i'm getting to know the poses more intimately cause i'm doing it every day (ok, almost) secondly, i'm being more diligent. even if it's only 15 minutes, i go do my routine. it's like i'm looking forward to it so much more, cuase i know what i gotta do. i think i will be doing this routine every day for a few months, and then pick another. this seems to work great for me. now, i did take a class once, where the teacher had us do almost the same routine every time, adn i wasn't happy at all with that. because, you know, she only had us do 10 poses, there are a million more i'd like help with, thank you! plus, i could do the same routine at home, why am i paying you tons of money to do the same thing every week? but at home, i'm happy with routine. ~ what about you? do you prefer the flexibility of randomness, or the steadiness of routine? ~

zorya	17 Aug 2002
i have couple of videos that i do yoga with every morning, well, um... almost every morning, lol. so yes, i do a routine. it's fun to do yoga with rodney yee! sometimes i switch to tai chi for a while. i do find i have to do it at the same time every day. if i put it off, it doesn't get done.

Yogi Cat	18 Aug 2002
Hi Napaea When I practice yoga at home I tend to have a set routine of postures and flexibilities that I like doing. I also try to do one thing that I am not keen on doing, every so often. When I teach my pupils I do try to vary the routine so although the overall pattern of the lesson is the same we do the posture in a different way. I usually start with a meditation/relaxation so everyone is calmed down first. A lot of my pupils have rushed in after work. Then we have flexibilities. Then sitting and lying postures. I always spend time on the full yoga breath and a cleansing breath. We then do the standing postures and ones like salute to the sun. After that we do postures lying on the tummy. A couple more sitting ones. Then a breathing exercise before we have the deep relaxation at the end. I always throw in a challenge posture for the advanced pupils. I also do impulse yoga - that is doing things any time of the day - when in the shower - stopping at the lights - talking on the phone. I started yoga about 32 years ago and have been teaching for 22 years with a couple of gaps in between. I practice hatha yoga which suits all ages. My class age ranges from 19 years to 73 years of age. Although it is good to practice at home or with a video, a class is really good if you can find the right teacher for you. Love and light

Sulis	18 Aug 2002
Hi I used to practice yoga years ago and then let it slip. I started a yoga class at the beginning of this year and love it but my yoga practice at home is to say the least sporadic: There just don`t seem to be enough hours in the day. I`ve never come across these yoga cards but I really like the sound of them. Where are they from? Do tell. Crystalmynx xx :TEMPS

napaea	18 Aug 2002
crystalmynx: "Basic Yoga for Everyday" by Gertrud Hirschi. Hirschi also has a book of mudras - positions for the hands - that i truly love - and lost my copy of!! >:( i got this copy when i worked at Barnes and Noble. ISBN# is 1578631033. There is an accompanying book, and the cards are color coordinated by group: supine poses, inverted, etc. I love them and find them very helpful if you have to do yoga on your own! she also has affirmations on the cards. YogiCat: yeah, i would love a teacher, just haven't found one yet. I did a class about 2 years ago. it kind of sucked. the instructor was really hyper and talkative, so the whole class she would talk. like, were all deep breathing, and she'd start in "yesterday a guy almost hit me with his car". after the first class the class size went down by about 8. she also sucked because she wouldn't come around the room and help you get your body into the right position. i think maybe she did it one time. she just stayed in position in the front of the class. my whole reason for wanting a teacher is to make sure i'm doing it right and getting the most out of the pose! so it was kind of like just doing yoga with friends, cause she didn't offer much assistance. that and the fact we did the same thing every week until the last week, i was pretty bummed. now i have to start looking for a teacher in Seattle. hope i have better luck.

Sulis	18 Aug 2002
Thanks Napaea, just checked out the cards on Amazon, yet another addition to the wish list. Blessings Crystalmynx xx :TEMPS

Aquahectate	19 Aug 2002
I've been doing Yoga for two years and i start my teacher training in two months. I've been to two different yoga schools, one was very much "i will stand her and do postures and you guys just follow and i may or may not look to see if you are doing it right" the one i am in now is amazing. I have four different teachers and they all are great teachers in their own rite. They usually do the same postures for a two/ three week programme so we can learn them and see how we improve etc. They also different programmes eg: postures for chakras, energising postures, flexibility programmes and so on. I was really lucky to find this school and its a great place for me to do my teacher training, so much love and support. I should do more yoga at home, well i should do yoga at home , i am really slack when it comes to this i hate to admit. I really do need more motivation. But yeah. when you find a good school its amazing how much your yoga changes and atleast i find it makes a huge difference to your everday life. Om shanti Gisele

napaea	19 Aug 2002
hey gisele, is this a world-wide school, or just in australia? i know a lot of people have recommended i go to the kripalu institute to study, but i've never been sure where i wanted to go. just wondered if they had a branch out here in the states.?

Aquahectate	19 Aug 2002
Hey Napaea, The school i go to is only in Vic, Australia. My Teacher had a dream of having a yoga school and she ended up building an extension onto her house and made that the school. The way i found it was pretty interesting. I had been looking for another school, i had the address and everything but i couldn't find it , after an hour of searching i said to my guides "ok i get the message this is not the place for me to go, i won't go here but please let me find it now" i turned the corner and there it was. So i came home and opened the yellow pages and said to my guides "ok you didn't want me to go to that school, where do you want me to go?" and the name of this school jumped out, i went there the next day and found it first time, very different from the first one. I walked in and met my teacher, i signed up for two classes there and then and talked about doing my teacher training (this was a year ago), before i left she hugged me and thanked me for coming in to the school. It was a pretty amazing way to find a school. I listen to my instincts alot more now and my guides too for that matter. Don't worry the right teacher and school will come to you when the time is right and you are ready to find it and when the teacher is ready to find you. Om Shanti Gisele

renard	19 Aug 2002
I've been doing yoga pretty steadily for a couple years now, and if I don't go to class, I don't do it. I find class really inspiring -- there are many wonderful teachers and students in the city where I live and lots of different styles and environments to choose from. I go to one class usually three times a week at a club we belong to, and another on the weekend at a local studio. I'd urge that anyone who's had a lousy experience with a class to get out and sample some more -- the world is full of knowledgeable, gifted instructors who can help enormously. It's very easy to get into Bad Yoga Habits (eek!) without correction and guidance -- but you don't have to commit for life to one teacher! (I'd never do that -- I like variety too much.) Also, you meet some of the greatest people doing yoga -- but that of course is a side-benefit. Napaea -- I know several people who've been to Kripalu who recommend it very highly. Another great yoga resource is Yoga Journal -- tons of info and inspiration in every issue. ("Ooooh, an in-depth article on Downward Dog this time!" -- my husband thinks I'm bonkers.) Yoga on! Namaste, Renard

The Yoga: random or routine? thread was originally posted on 17 Aug 2002 in the Spirituality board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Spirituality, or read more archived threads.