Yoga is a system of movement and breathwork that you repeat, again and again

Mountain,  triangle, warrior 1, tree, dog, cat cow, lying twist, relaxation

Repeat

We do these poses, maybe different ways and ith different adaptions, but we do them again and again. Some style of yoga even do the same class every single time. Why? To keep the whole body limber, to find ease in the practice and it also helps you see things change. The down side is that it can get boring.

At the beginning of a new year you want newness, hope, grand ideals… so why take up yoga or do more of it?

In short the more you put in, the more you get out. Slowly slowly you will get to love your body whatever shape it is, whatever limitations it has, weird bits, lumpy bits, bumpy bits. You are going to enjoy being you and in your physical body more. Long term worries and ttraumas can fade and ease, long term joys can become more vibrant and colourful.

But doing the same yoga poses is boring!

Yes, yoga can be boring. Until you have linked your breath, your sense of enjoying having a physical body and found a base line level of ease in the poses it can be challenging. If you feel stiff and sore you’re never going to find enlightenment are you! You’re just going to count the seconds until its over. Thats why adapting poses is so important. Yes, you want to grow and transform, Yes you want fun challenges and to expand your abilities – but the trick is to go slowly enough that you enjoy the journey. A ‘great looking pose’ is worth very little if you didn’t enjoy the journey. That’s just insta worthy gymnastics.

Is 3000 dog poses too many?

How many dog poses have you done? 10, 100, 1000? Ive been doing yoga for, yikes, 30 years. Once a week for about 15 years (780) and 3 to 7 days a week for 15 years ish (2340). So at a low count Ive done a minimum of 3000 dog poses. You’d think it’d get boring wouldnt you? I do dog pose nearly every day, so what is it that keeps yoga new and exciting. So is 3000 dog poses too many? No, defeinitely not. Infact I got more bored of dog pose when I did fewer. As you get to like the feeling of being in your body it gets more exciting, more interesting, supportive and enjoyable.

So what it is that makes yoga eternally new?

Yoga can get stuck and boring, just like anything can. So sometmes you need to shake things up. Do it differently, add a variation, listen to a particular part of your body, retune alignment, or your breath. Dog pose, and every other pose you rely on can become like a micro universe. Everything is mirrored in that one pose: your love, frustration, fear, anger, boredom and passion.

What if Im different and it gets boring?

It’s really simple, give it a good go and if it doesnt float your soul try another teacher or style or go play tennis, chess or go surfing. There are many ways to inner harmony. Find yours. Yoga works for hundreds of thousands of people, but its ok if you;re not one of them. This year is a precious time for you to find what you need in life… and enjoy it!

Come give it a try, or don’t ;  )

To find my classes for the new year:  https://www.theyoga.co.uk/classes/

To see more yoga snippets see my insta: theyogauk