Transforming Your Yoga Practice into a Sustainable Healthy Habit

Yoga is more than just a way to relax and stretch; it can help you gain strength, enhance your health, and shed some pounds! However, if you stop practicing yoga, unhealthy habits can easily return. It’s crucial to turn your yoga routine into a healthy habit.

Introducing something new into your life can be challenging. Some days, it may feel like you don’t have time for anything extra. So, how can you make your yoga routine a lasting habit? Research indicates that forming a habit is more complicated than just doing an activity repeatedly.

Building a habit means feeling empowered to make choices. It requires setting clear intentions and consistently repeating activities until they become automatic. We’ll share tips to help you make your yoga practice a regular part of your life, just like brushing your teeth!

You can set a goal, but without a clear intention for how to achieve it, you’re less likely to succeed. Experts suggest that weak intentions can lead to a lack of follow-through. What motivates you to establish a yoga habit? It doesn’t matter what the reason is, as long as it’s meaningful to you.

Some common yoga goals include improving flexibility, building arm strength, practicing meditation, reducing stress, and alleviating back pain. Research shows that consistency makes it easier to form a habit. If your schedule requires you to practice yoga on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Saturdays, you might find it harder to stick with it than if you practice every day.

Missing a session won’t derail your habit, but the more you skip, the less likely you are to make it automatic. For instance, I have two main goals for my yoga practice: achieving splits and handstands. To reach these goals, I need to practice daily! Your muscles become more flexible with time, but they can quickly revert if you don’t practice regularly.

If you plan to practice every day, keep it simple. Committing to an hour of yoga daily may not be realistic. Finding an extra hour can be tough, and if you set such a high expectation, you might end up feeling like a failure if you can’t meet it.

Instead, aim for just 10 minutes of yoga each day. If you try to do more, you might struggle to find the time and end up skipping it. By telling yourself you only need to do 10 minutes, you’re more likely to fit it into your day. Most people can find an extra 10 minutes, often spent on unproductive activities like scrolling through social media.

Even if you think you don’t have those 10 minutes, waking up or going to bed just 10 minutes earlier or later isn’t a big ask. It’s much easier to incorporate a consistent 10-minute practice than to squeeze in an extra 30 minutes or an hour.

Set yourself up for success by committing to 10 minutes of yoga every day. To make this happen, you may need to prepare in advance. This could mean finding a quiet space away from distractions or wearing comfortable clothes that allow for movement.

If you spend time searching for the perfect yoga routine, you might lose interest. Prepare ahead by laying out your yoga clothes or researching a suitable routine the day before. Whatever your prep involves, ensure it’s done so that practicing yoga feels natural.

Like anything in life, you can’t rush through yoga. Even if your goal is to master a challenging pose, you must go through the necessary steps. If you view yoga as a process rather than just a means to an end, you’ll find more enjoyment in it.

Yoga serves as a great metaphor for life. We set goals and work hard to achieve them, but if we don’t enjoy the journey, life can feel frustrating and unfulfilling. That’s why it’s essential to focus on the yoga process, not just the end goal.

Yoga encourages a connection between mind and body. The breathing techniques and movements help you stay present rather than fixating on the outcome. I’ve struggled with this myself; I often get frustrated with my progress and want to achieve certain poses faster than my body allows.

Flexibility, weight loss, muscle tone, and the ability to relax in savasana take time. Focus on how you feel during and after your practice. That uplifting feeling is what makes yoga enjoyable. Pay attention to it and learn from it.

As humans, we tend to gravitate toward activities that yield quick results rather than long-term benefits. Maintaining a healthy diet is a prime example! It’s easy to eat healthily, but it’s often more tempting to choose convenient, tasty options. Similarly, while working out is beneficial, it’s easier to skip it.

When establishing yoga as a healthy habit, avoid setting unrealistic goals. If your aim is to practice just 10 minutes a day, you can reward yourself for that achievement daily. However, if you aim for an hour of challenging poses, it becomes harder to celebrate your progress.

Reinforce your positive choices by making your goals attainable. If you have to pay for a class or gym membership, travel to a location, and arrive early, you might be investing more time than you can spare, especially as a beginner. Make it easier to establish your yoga routine by practicing at home.

You won’t need to carve out extra time or spend additional money. You can even do yoga in your pajamas! Even if you prefer the motivation of a class, following the earlier steps makes practicing at home a great way to build your habit.

Alex and I have created a yoga program based on these principles. While the workouts are 30 minutes instead of 10, you’ll have the tools to design your own practice. If you only have 10 minutes, that’s perfectly fine!

The program includes everything you need to get started, such as a complete 12-week workout plan, a flexibility guide, and a beginner’s meditation guide. It’s an excellent option for those looking to lose weight, increase flexibility, and relieve discomfort through a calming yoga practice.

It will show you how to effectively reduce stubborn body fat with regular yoga and features the top 50 fat-burning poses every beginner should learn. You can check it out by clicking here!

Always remember, the hardest part of yoga is simply showing up. Make sure to show up today and give your best effort. You deserve it! If you enjoyed this article on making your yoga routine a healthy habit or have any questions, feel free to leave a comment below!