I recently started to practice yoga at home after my sister-in-law invited me to join her local yoga group.
I normally wouldn’t entertain travelling 40 minutes to do yoga in her town, but due to the pandemic, the class turned virtual and therefore accessible for all!
Considering my body has turned into a painful, stressed blob over the past three lockdowns, I figured what’s the worst that could happen.
So we check in every Monday night and have a blissful 1.5 hours of relaxing, stretching and mindful yoga practice.
We turn our videos off so the others in the class can’t see us trying to practise yoga with kids jumping on us, or the husband sniggering and making fun. Maybe that’s just mine?!
I have been meaning to write about the benefits of yoga practice at home, so I will endeavour to express them in this post.
Do let me know in the comments if you practise yoga and any tips you have!
The Benefits Of Yoga Practice
Yoga is known to have incredible health benefits. And doing good yoga for the basics at home has even more benefits!
I’m by no means an expert at yoga, but I do know:
- Yoga improves overall health
- Yoga promotes physical power
- It Improves flexibility and sleep
- Yoga improves your metabolism, digestion and detoxification
- It can even help with lowering blood pressure
- Yoga helps manage anxiety and depression
- It strengthens immunity and helps with mental strength
Practising Yoga At Home Helps To Ease My Nightmares
Since starting yoga practice at home I have noticed that I am sleeping more soundly.
I have recently come off anxiety meds so I am experiencing a lot of bad dreams, especially when I am particularly stressed out or overworked.
Yoga is helping me to wind right down enough to not be bothered by the nightmares.
I sleep more deeply and feel more refreshed in the morning. Definitely a welcome benefit, not to mention the positive effect on my mental health when feeling well-rested!
Yoga Practice Helps My Posture Whilst Working At Home
A few months ago during lockdown 2, I got out of bed – having co-slept with my toddler for many nights I should add – and my neck went PING.
1 very painful emergency visit to my chiropractor, a post-appointment migraine, 3 follow up sessions, a new office chair, and a new external monitor and keyboard later, my neck was much better.
Turns out that working on a laptop at a kitchen table on a dining chair, and sleeping with my baby was not doing my back any good at all.
Add that to lack of exercise, overeating and work stress and we have a recipe for a dysfunctional body.
Yoga helps me to consciously be aware of my posture whilst sat at my desk working. Plus it reminds me to engage my core and stand up straight when I’m holding my children or cooking etc.
Practising Yoga At Home Is Me Time
Running a busy business from home, plus the extra stress of navigating homeschooling and covid has meant that my ‘me time’ has been compromised!
There was a stage in lockdown 3 where I couldn’t cope with everything the world was throwing at me. I felt I was majorly failing my eldest for not being able to carve time out to home-school him properly. Work was getting even crazier, and so was my personal life.
I have bimonthly business coaching and I had a bit of a meltdown during one of my sessions.
My coach did his usual wonderful job of identifying all the things I was trying to juggle and that I was indeed failing.
Huh?
Failing myself for putting literally everyone and everything first and totally forgetting about myself.
Me time is not selfish, and it is VITAL to help you stay on top of your game.
Even if me-time is 10 minutes of laying on your bed and catching up with a friend on WhatsApp with no one jumping on your back or screaming MUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM.
Yoga practice has allowed me 1.5 precious hours a week where I zone out and put my mind and body first.
It also helps my family understand that I have other interests other than work and caring for them.
It gives me something to talk about other than work and kids, and it is nice to see the other class members briefly before we turn our cameras off.
How To Find The Best Online Yoga Classes
During the pandemic, I have sought all sorts of alternative measures for things in life.
Online shopping, takeaways (who am I kidding, I already knew every takeaway in town,) home-crafting projects, virtual parties…
Staying fit and healthy from home has also been one of them, and I am pleased to share some good options with you.
Local online yoga classes
Firstly you can look online to see if any local yoga practitioners have gone virtual during the pandemic. With a simple search online you should be able to find some options.
Yoga on social media
You can search Instagram for classes and practitioners.
There are loads of free resources on YouTube and some amazing short yoga routines to fit your daily life. Also different routines for different ailments which I find useful.
Yoga Practice At Home: A Summary
Yoga is not only a valuable tool for optimum physical health, but it’s also invaluable for mental health.
Mums try to juggle a lot, it’s in our nature.
We’re built to care, built to nurture and boy do we give give give.
But we don’t all do the same for ourselves. So taking some time out to practice yoga and be kind to ourselves is a brilliant way of tackling all the areas of self-care that we so often deprioritise.
Give it a try and I hope you get as much as I have from taking time to practice yoga at home.
Last Updated on June 22, 2023 by Lucy Clarke