Daily, and I mean daily practice

TheGoblinRoad

How common is it to have a daily practice? I started practicing yoga on Christmas Eve and haven't missed a day since. My goal's simply to do at least 5 minutes, though I average 15 minutes each day. I am very much a novice, though I have practiced on and off since I was a teen. This is the longest I have practiced daily without a break.

Not much chance of injury. The way I practice yoga is not very intense. I have a leg injury that I'm still recovering from, and yoga's been therapy. Before the injury, I'd do an hour of yoga, maybe once a month, then a week where I did that hour daily, then nothing for a year. Very inconsistent, which is why I've set such a low number of 5 minutes, but daily.

Interested in knowing if it's common to practice daily.

yoginimary

Yes! Especially with serious students. It's great that you have a daily practice:bigsmile: It is better to have a 5 minute daily practice than a twice a week 90 minute practice.

I practice 6 days a week

SunshineT83

I've recently set a 21-Day Yoga Challenge for myself to practice at least 15 minutes a day everyday without fail. I'm hoping to really give myself a solid practice to continue with through out my life. I think you have started an amazing thing for yourself. The few people I know who practice yoga happen to be instructors and they practice daily. I think mostly the serious practitioners tend to practice daily. Good job, and keep it moving :-)

sfh0wrd

I'm similar in my yoga practice past-- I'd go a few times a month, and then not go for a long time; do it every day for a week, and then not at all for months..... yeah.

My renewed excitement for and focus on yoga now is because when I focused on running, I never stretched enough. Now I aim to do yoga every day for at least 10-15 minutes (especially right after I run as my stretching routine). On top of that, I'm aiming to do 20 minutes before I go to work 4 out of 5 work days.

I'm into week 3, and so far so good!

Himi16

Small daily practices are better than going weeks without anything and thinking you can dive into a full length session - that can REALLY be bad for your body as you tend to over stretch not realizing how tight you became.

I try to get to a studio 3 times a week and do a 30 min practice on the other days. Reality - I'm good for about 5x a week.

mandylooo

I'm typically practicing 5 times a week at the moment. I have one total rest day and one day where I do cardio and weights instead.

I take a 90 minute class on a Monday and a 45 minute class on a Thursday. I'll typically practice for 40 minutes on my own, but adjust to make it longer or shorter depending on how much time I have.

PagalM

For those who practice daily for only small increments of time what poses do you do during that time? I am going to a 1 hour class weekly and doing zumba the other days but would love to start practicing a little each day after zumba also for a few min.

sfh0wrd

I'm still pretty new to my daily practice, so I follow a Rodney Yee video (that I've mentioned a billion times in other threads, so sorry to anyone who thinks I'm a super interesting redundant weirdo... :blushing:) The video has five 20-minute sequences, all focusing on a particular group of poses.... Standing Poses, Twists, Backbends, Forward Bends, and Hip Openers. I LOVE the hip openers and forwards bends as a post run session, so maybe something similar would be good for Zumba, too.

CJT40

I am an instructor and I actively teach 3 days a week and on my "off teaching" days I enjoy my own practice just doing what ever comes naturally to my mind. I try not to focus on those days on the postures as much as I do my body....what is tight?.....what needs to be stretched?......then just do it. I honestly cannot imagine a day without yoga for me. Keep up your practice even if it is a short practice everyday.....your body will Thank You! :happy:

toffee322

i started practising regulary since march 2010.. it's almost 2 years! i try to go to the studio everyday, and do 2 classes a day.. hot and power. of course i havent done that everyday.. but i still make it to at least 5-6 days a week, and mostly 2 classes unless i really dont feel like it or have things to do.. i dont practise at home, mainly because i dont feel as motivated at home and also i dont have much empty space. many people in my studio are like me.. they go everyday and do 2 classes! i hope i can keep doing that,, sometimes i feel lazy too.. but from time to time, i will give myself a break..

SEMNMommie

I LOVE Rodney Yee! I have the same video. I'm trying to get into the habit of regular practice, although it's proven to be incredibly difficult between college, working full-time, 2 small kids and a hubby who is also working and going to college. I'm trying to aim for one 20 minute session several times per week. Afterwards, I always feel amazing, have more energy and clarity, however it's hard to snap out of my old habits!

I'm still pretty new to my daily practice, so I follow a Rodney Yee video (that I've mentioned a billion times in other threads, so sorry to anyone who thinks I'm a super interesting redundant weirdo... :blushing:) The video has five 20-minute sequences, all focusing on a particular group of poses.... Standing Poses, Twists, Backbends, Forward Bends, and Hip Openers. I LOVE the hip openers and forwards bends as a post run session, so maybe something similar would be good for Zumba, too.

MagicFeather

I've been doing yoga sporadically for 15 years, sometimes going to classes and sometimes on my own. I recently committed to a daily practice for the first time. I set 15 minutes as the goal but I find that once I get going I usually average about 45 min to an hour. I've got a couple of dvd's but I've been having fun exploring all the classes you can find on youtube. So far, it's been glorious. I feel so much better in my body which can be a challenge when you're trying to make a transformation like weight loss.

I also do 30day shred 3 days a week for resistance training and go for long walks with my baby girl a couple of times a week.

I love this group by the way. I think it's the best thing I've found on mfp so far.

Yogi_Carl

I practise every day, covering all the basics at least, for at least 60 minutes. On two days my practise is at class and the pther five are my personal studies.

In addition, I practise bodyweight exercises including push-ups and pullups and leg strength work as supplementary to my yoga.

I find these two compliment each other perfectly and I have no need of weight lifting to increase strength and flexibility.

I also swim twice a week and commute to work and back four days a week on my road bike and pull in a run once a week with my dog. I also love kettlebells and pull in a KB session once a week.

Sounds like a lot, but I don't think I would have the energy to manage such a full-on schedule without the daily visit to the yoga mat.

synthomarsh

For those who practice daily for only small increments of time what poses do you do during that time? I am going to a 1 hour class weekly and doing zumba the other days but would love to start practicing a little each day after zumba also for a few min.

I just starting getting into yoga through p90x and I have a friend who is an instructor he told me starting out with daily practice in the mornings do about 5 sun salutations a and 5 sun salutations b holding 1 breath per pose. and end the day with 5 moon salutations 2 breaths per pose, i've been doing it a week and it feels great

ThatSoundsHard

Your practise sounds very similar to mine as well.

I've loved yoga since I was a teen but would fall in and out of regular practice over the years..

For the past couple of months I've been averaging 10-30 minutes of practice a day. I practice on days where I work out (also really new to that one!) as well as days I don't.

Overall I feel better and improve all the time.

yoginimary

For those who practice daily for only small increments of time what poses do you do during that time? I am going to a 1 hour class weekly and doing zumba the other days but would love to start practicing a little each day after zumba also for a few min.

Just saw this. What pose do you like? Pick one pose you like and do it everyday. Then if you feel you want to do another pose, do that one next. After a couple of weeks/months of adding one pose at a time, think about a pose you avoid and add that one in. First find a practice that you like, then find a practice that you need.

verptwerp

I do a little each morning, usually 15 minutes, but sometimes 60 ....... very slow & gentle to get my back ready for the day ....... doesn't burn many calories so I don't log it anymore ....... I save logging for my gym workouts !

Have a great practice :flowerforyou:

bunny1006

I've done that. Yoga daily, but like others here I've practiced in fits and starts. Last year I practiced daily for 5.5 months for at least 5 minutes, but usually 15 -30 minutes/day. At the very least I would do a few sun salutations.I started practicing moon salutation. I'm currently back to daily practice, but it's only been 2 days using youtube videos. This group is motivation though. Thanks!

jeansgirl

I am into 80 days in a row of yoga right now...it is probably more because I started right after Christmas. I just didn't think to track it here until New Years Eve. Feeling great too. I do at least 20minutes a day. I have been following Namaste yoga on youtube with Dr. Melissa West. All free and just choose one each day. I have several yoga dvd s but I found I start anticipating whats coming and never can stay in the moment. These all vary and are really good. She also has a membership site with more available free with paid membership....reasonable too. About the cost of 1dvd for a quarterly membership.....but the youtube is a great way to start. Did I mention I am over 60?

lindaw66

Thanks for the information! And good for you! Can you also share what 80 days in a row of Yoga has done for you?:flowerforyou:

auntsammy88

I've been doing yoga daily for the past 6 days and I'm loving it so far. I would love to continue a daily practice, but my goal is a minimum of 3 days a week. I just took my first studio class today and have 6 months of unlimited yoga there. Would love some more yoga friends to encourage me on this journey. :flowerforyou:

erbear117

if you are only doing a short practice each day, i would suggest a few rounds of Surya Namaskar (Sun Salute).
a lot of longer practices begin with this opening sequence, and it's an excellent way to ground into your day and get your spine moving a bit. There are many different variations of it, including Ashtanga A and B. My personal favorite is a modified version where you place one foot back into a lunge before coming into plank, and again when coming back to forward fold. I love the hip opening aspect of this version!
if you do a short practice in the evening too, I'd suggest the counterpart - Moon Salute!

KombuchaCat

This has really inspired me...I can totally take at least 5-10 min/day to do a little practice, no excuses!