The Best Time to Start Yoga
by Claire Meyer
Titles can be misleading. However, this is not a clickbait trap laid to inform the reader that there
is in fact a well-kept secret of when to practice yoga to achieve stellar results: things like
palpable peace, easing of physical maladies, or a quieter mind. And what exactly do we mean
by “time” for yoga? Is there an optimal point of the day at which you should commence your
yoga practice? Or, if you are brand new to yoga (possibly yet to hit the mat), does this refer to
the stage of life when you should begin doing yoga?
“When I am fit enough.”
“When I’ve been able to catch up on sleep.”
“I’m not flexible, so when I can do the splits or touch my toes, then I’ll go to yoga.”
“I can’t do any of those poses I see on social media. I’m not going to embarrass myself in a
class.”
The first rule of yoga is: there are no rules. True, there are some general guiding principles that
differentiate it from, say, a style of dance or organized sports. There’s also poses and postures
that have specific names and instructions on how to get into them. Beyond this, there is no
universally written rule about the flexibility or fitness or energy that one must come to their yoga
mat with. The key is to just start. Without knowing the names of things or how to do them;
without a perfectly serene mind; and with a body that has seen fatigue, injuries, soreness or
resistance to moving in a new way. In short, the time to start yoga is right now.
Yoga is so modifiable, so adaptable to the exact state that we exist in currently, that it is difficult
to not find a way for every person to practice. The great news is, the foundation of yoga is
something we are already doing without thinking: breathing. Practitioners of yoga can complete
an entire practice without moving from their seats or lying down on their mats. Yoga does not
show itself in its postures, but in the intention you set with each breath you take. To breathe and
to maintain focus on the quality of our breath is (to contradict earlier declarations) the true only
rule of yoga.
As with any new thing we begin- activities or intellectual undertakings or new life phases- it
takes a while to get into a rhythm. There is no yogi out there who fell immediately into a
handstand or Flying Bird of Paradise the first time they came to their mat. Yoga asks for an
openness and vulnerability to simply try. And as is part and parcel of trying anything, there is a
possibility we do not succeed. Maybe our thoughts wander out to our to-do list for the day when
we’re supposed to have a free and clear mind. Maybe we lose our balance and fall over when
working on a balance. Contrarily, what if you succeed? The more we instill the principles of
practice- that name is not an oversight; it really is a practice!- the less scary the unknown is, and
the more we grow.
So give yourself the time, in the traditional or abstract sense, to explore your yoga practice.
Begin today or start to deepen your study into your current relationship with yoga. There’s no
time like the present.
If you live in or around the Treasure Valley, Boise or Meridian, especially, stop in take a class. Now really is the best time.
Grab our New Student Intro 2 Weeks for $55, HERE.