How to take yoga off the mat

Approaching yoga like a lifestyle doesn't mean wearing matching sets and burning incense; it does mean finding powerful ways to connect to life wherever you are.

In a recent poll on social media, you all voted for this week’s post to cover taking yoga off the mat for two weeks. So, that’s what we are doing today.

If you missed it, I was away for most of May on my honeymoon. My husband and I took a long road trip out west through Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. We covered over 6,000 miles on the road and walked many steps enjoying Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, Boise, and many other towns along the way.

Other than a few quick strength workouts, I didn’t touch my mat. I didn’t practice long flows of postures. Instead, I focused on practicing yoga in other forms, like this:

• Allowing myself to cry from joy and gratitude as I stared out a window. I’ve found that my joy demands to be felt. This post captures the feeling.

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  A post shared by @sunlightafterdark

• Using my breath to help me take one step at a time while climbing a steep incline at Table Rock in Boise. Here’s a view from the top.

  

• Playing around at cool geologic features, I did do some poses! Why take the same picture everyone else is taking, when you can be playful and embrace nature.

  

• I used self study to notice how my mind was reacting to my body. I’ve been struggling with what my body looks like right now. I grew up with someone who wouldn’t get in pictures due to feelings like this or would scowl at the camera. I’ve chosen not to be like that. Instead, full smiles and permission to enjoy my vacation and all the treats.

  

• Reilly and I both had to be nonreactive (aka not screaming) when we came face to face with a bull (moose) on our hike around Jenny Lake. We both noticed how our calmness and confidence likely saved us from a serious injury or worse. We made eye contact, moved along, and did no harm. This picture DOES NOT EVEN give you an idea because we only took the picture after we passed him.

  

Taking yoga off the mat is critical for many reasons. Yoga was never intended to be a performative practice that we check off the morning routine list. It is not a practice meant to be constricted to a rectangular rubber mat. No, yoga at its roots has always been about who we are, how we see ourselves and the world, and how we act.

I’m so grateful for my mat and what it has taught me, but the mat is not a pre-requisite for a yoga practice. I’ve found the most impactful moments of my life (and healing) have happened off the mat when I deploy yogic tools.

This post captures it well.

Taking yoga off the mat is an important way for you to deepen your practice. It can and likely will start in small ways where you notice something in a new way. Pause and breathe into those moments. Choose your reactions, trust yourself, rewire connections you’ve made. Serve yourself and your community. Be wild in nature, sing with the birds, stomp like kid, and sway with the wind.

Take care of yourself and pause in moments when you brew a warm morning beverage to be grateful as you start another day. Choose kind words when you greet yourself in the mirror. Allow yourself to rest and let go of productivity. Let it scare you a little.

That’s all yoga off the mat.

5 Ways I Practiced Yoga Last Week

1. Swadhyaya (self-study): After returning from travels, I was tired. I knew I needed to rest. I spent three days as a trash panda, and I started to notice certain messages repeating in my head about how I wasted time, did things wrong, etc. My practice was to notice these messages and consider where they came from as I tried to let my body trust itself.

2. Aparigraha (non-attachment): The bad times pass just like the good ones do, so be present and then let it go when its time. This week I let go of our trip, letting it end. It was wonderful and the memories are powerful, but I trust it’s time for something else now.

3. Asteya (non-stealing): It would have been really easy to pick up a couple cool rocks in the parks, but we practiced the “leave nothing but footprints & take nothing but pictures” as we explored in May.

4. Pranayama (breath control): I used my breath to bring myself back to safety after someone startled me at the park on Saturday. I also used my breath to yell at the person, so balance.

5. Asana (physical postures): Wednesday was my first day back on the mat for a practice and my body wanted to move very slowly.

5 Ways You Can Practice Yoga This Week

1. Swadhyaya (self-study): Check in on your energy throughout the day by stopping to breathe and ask yourself: What does my body need right now? This will help you build awareness of what impacts you and what would support you.

2. Aparigraha (non-attachment): Let something go, a sigh, a toxic relationship, an old schedule, or an belief or pattern that is no longer serving you.

3. Asteya (non-stealing): Don’t steal peace from yourself. Monitor the moments where you might be taking from yourself.

4. Pranayama (breath control): Couple your swadhyaya and asteya practices with your favorite breathing pattern to stay present and reflective as you grow.

5. Asana (physical postures): Join a movement class this week that you’ve been wanting to try.

Bonus content for everyone! Here are links to a few FREE yoga practices I’ve recorded recently as part of my Lakercast video collection.

3 Different Yoga for Writers Practices:

• Yoga for clearing your mind before writing practice is here.

• Yoga break to ease writer’s block is here.

• Yoga for decompressing after writing is here.

By request, I also made a effective (and silly) video on self care for hangovers.

You’ll find links to over half a dozen other free videos in the highlights on my Instagram profile.

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If a paid subscription is not feasible at this time, please keep enjoying the free portions of The Sunday Series and share the post with your friends and family. Thanks for sharing your Sunday with me!