I’m new to yoga, and these are the goals I’m working towards on my mat

© Getty Images / Prasit photo
I’m new to yoga, and these are the goals I’m working towards on my mat

© Getty Images
Aisan young woman practicing yoga in the park at sunset.

Believe it or not, I would say that I have been a yoga beginner for almost a decade. That’s because I’ve only practiced periodically, maybe once a week for a month or two before I roll up my mat and let it collect dust in the corner for a few more months.

Now, I consider myself in my longest and most consistent stretch as a yogi. Since spring, I have been practicing at least three times a week. Although I’m only on my mat for about 30 minutes at a time, I can already see a lot of progress in my postures and feel less stiffness in my joints.

To stay on track to graduate from beginner status and continue my regular practice, I have set myself four achievable goals to achieve during the summer.

Stay for all the Savasana

One of my horrible training habits is not getting cold. Truth be told, I’ve improved a lot by not running after the last repetition in strength classes, but lately I’ve become lazy when it comes to yoga.

Although I look forward to the glorious release of Savasana, sometimes my racing thoughts take over. I try to get ahead by closing my yoga app early and running some errands. But I know I would have a much smoother and less stressful start to my morning if I stayed on my mat via Savasana.

Try new and difficult poses

I dream of mastering the crow pose. I always envied anyone who was able to keep his balance in his arms. But envying and simply dreaming is not getting me closer to performing Crow Pose. I gave up and entered Child’s Pose from the moment my instructor even announced the pose because I was afraid of failure, and I fell flat on my face.

However, the other day, thanks to the wise words of my instructor, I put fear aside and tried to adopt the posture. I fell down a lot and my arms were shaking, but I kept going. After trying and trying again, I managed to keep my balance in my arms for a second or two. It felt amazing! I know that if I keep practicing, I will work to keep Crow Pose longer.

Concentrate on my breath

When I’m working through an accelerated flow, I hold my breath without even realizing it.

But it is the continuous work of breathing in yoga, the combination of deep inhalations and exhalations, that helps me calm down in moments of tension. In an effort to be more considerate in my practice and really reap those relaxing benefits, I would like to start connecting my breaths with my movement.

Get to 60 minutes on my mat

I start to let my mind wander after about 25 minutes on my mat. Instead of working through my accumulated energy during a flow, I start to make a list of things that I need to do in my head; then I count the minutes until I can roll up my mat. Because of that, the last quarter of my practice feels like a wash.

Spending an hour on the meditative career is no problem for me, and I hope to build that same relationship with yoga. I know that my anxiety levels, my pose technique and my joint health will be better for it.

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