How To Fit In Yoga When You Are Busy: 12 Essential Tips -

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Even with the best intentions, it can be a struggle to fit in Yoga. Check out our 12 tips on how to make time for Yoga even when life is busy, no matter where you are or how much time you have.

1. Remember Why You Do Yoga

If you are a busy Yogi, ask yourself why do you love Yoga? How do you feel after you have completed a Yoga session? What do you like best about it? By answering questions such as these, you will create positive associations in your mind. Next time you struggle to make time for Yoga, remembering your answers to these questions might be all that’s needed.

You could even take it one step further by writing down some of the answers and sticking them to the fridge to jog your memory.

2. Plan Ahead

If you are a person who likes to plan, then will be a much easier task to fit Yoga in. Even if you are not, a simple weekly view of your schedule – whether on paper or online – can be really helpful. That way, you’ll see your chosen Yoga slot(s) on a daily basis and be mentally prepared to make time for Yoga.

Part of this planning process is also to make sure you have all the gear you need (including food and snacks) ready at hand.

3. Set A Goal

Loving the fundamental idea of Yoga is often not enough to give us enough motivation to practice on a regular basis. However, setting a specific, measurable goal for our practice can be another way to get us going.

What could be your goal? Here are some examples:

Do at least one Yoga class once a week
Learn to do a specific pose within a specific timeframe – such as lotus pose, pigeon pose, handstand, etc.
Do an online 30-day Yoga challenge – there are many free online options available
Do 10 minutes of Yoga every (second) day.

Although it’s good to be ambitious, make your Yoga goals realistic and enjoyable. Think about rewards, too. What will be your treat if you achieve your goal? That may just give you the added motivation to work towards your goal.

4. Do Yoga To Fit Your Personality

What is your personality type and what gets you going? What are your passions and interests, and what your dislikes? Try to fit Yoga into your preferences and avoid what turns you off. Is this Yoga in a gym or Yoga studio? Yoga with a friend in a park, in your office chair, or simply in a quiet room in your own home? Or, do just like to build it in as you move through the day? Think about your personality and what you tend to gravitate to naturally. Then build Yoga into that.

5. Find A Yoga Class You Love

Finding a Yoga class you truly love can make all the difference. Think about what’s most important to you. Is your chosen Yoga style the main drawcard? Is it a specific Yoga teacher or the people attending the class? Or is it making sure that you will be able to cope with relative ease?

Choosing the right Yoga style, teacher, and also the right experience level are essential to help you make a solid commitment to a particular Yoga class. That will significantly increase your chances of fitting Yoga into a busy schedule, even if things get a bit stressful.

6. Join An Online Yoga Community

There are many online Yoga communities and schools on offer, both for free and on a subscription basis. These provide a wide range of styles and levels of difficulty of Yoga. Some specialize, such as for example in Plus Size Yoga, while others offer the full spectrum of Yoga styles and experience levels.

The upside of online Yoga communities and schools is that they are available at any time of day and whenever you have slot of time at your hand – as long as you have access to the internet.

Some also offer downloadable Yoga classes for those times when you want to practice in a remote location.

7. Do Yoga With A Friend

Do you have friend who is also interested in Yoga? We tend to take a joint commitment to do Yoga with a friend often far more seriously than if it’s just ourselves. Therefore, we are far more likely to practice Yoga as we do not want to disappoint or appear inconsistent.

They say it takes 100 hours spent with another person to build a genuine friendship. Yoga, together, is a great way to go about this.

8. Keep It Short

Do you feel tempted to skip Yoga because it takes too much time? If that is the case, consider doing Yoga in short bursts of 10 to 20 minutes. In fact, scientific studies suggest that short and frequent Yoga practice delivers more physical, mental and emotional benefits than single intensive Yoga classes, particularly for older practitioners.

Therefore, short-duration Yoga will not short-change you on any of the key benefits of Yoga. If shorter yoga sessions are your thing, keep doing them!

9. Choose a Relaxing Style Of Yoga

If finding the time to do Yoga in a busy schedule is an issue, then choosing a relaxing or calming style of Yoga can have real benefits. Yoga styles that promote calm and reduce stress include restorative Yoga, Yin Yoga, any slow or gentle Yoga class, as well as Yoga Nidra (Yoga meditation).

The cumulative mental and emotional benefits of these Yoga classes are substantial and will increase your resilience and ability to manage stress.

10. Create A Yoga Space

Do you love peace and quiet? In this case, you might prefer Yoga practice at home.

Create a Zen space that will be conducive to practising Yoga. Play your favorite calming music and light a couple of candles. Think about adding essential oils to your practice. In this way, you create positive emotions associated with Yoga. Science confirms has found that positive memories are strongly enhanced if they are associated with a certain sound, smell, or sensation.

11. Do Yoga With Children

Doing Yoga with our own or someone else’s children is a great idea. Any activity we do together with children helps to strengthen our bond with them.

Everyone, children and adults, benefits. But the Yoga practice has to be appropriate to the child’s ability and you may have to tone your own practice down a bit.

It’s mandatory that Yoga with children has to be fun as otherwise, they would not be keen to continue their practice. Plus – having fun with children is a tonic for the adult soul.

12. Do Yoga In Bed

Lastly, don’t forget about the fact that your bed is an excellent place to do Yoga, either before going to sleep or after waking up in the morning. Think gentle and soothing Yoga in this instance. In the morning, this will set you up for the day ahead in a peaceful manner, while in the evening Yoga will go a long way to help you sleep more soundly.

And Lastly … Don’t Sweat It If You Are Not Perfect

Are you still struggling to fit Yoga into your busy schedule even though you have tried everything?

The key thing is not to beat yourself up. It’s very human to struggle in a world that places so many demands on us. The last thing we want is more pressure because the expectations of ourselves are too high.

Just start afresh the next day – possibly using another one of the tips listed above. Different things work for different people and at different times!

If you have never done Yoga before, you might be interested to read some of our other introductory articles on Yoga, including:

When you start practicing Yoga in class or online: be your own guru. Only do what your body tells you what you can do, based on the principle of honesty and doing no harm.