I love sleep! It’s probably one of my top five favourite things. I love crawling into bed at the end of a busy day, cuddling in and dozing off. I hate hearing my alarm pulling me from my slumber with a distant yet nerve rattling squeal.
That said I drag myself out of bed almost every morning, wobble downstairs, un-roll my mat and flomp down. Sometimes I follow videos, sometimes I go with the flow. Some days it’s easy and I can rattle through 40 mins of sun salutations and balances, feeling great. Other days it’s all I can do to get myself out of child’s pose.
So if you’re a bed bunny like me here are a few tips for getting into the morning yoga.
- Have a snooze; I set my alarm 15 mins before I actually have to get up. Then I get woken up, I can snooze and possibly snuggle with my boy a little, then get out of bed slowly.
- Have a video or sequence already set up; most mornings I can go with how my body feels but others I need all the direction I can get. I have an account with Gaimin TV, where I have built up a play list of morning (and evening) classes to follow just in case I don’t have the brain power I need to direct myself.
- Have a set place for your mat; we are lucky to have a large living room, I have a box with my mat, towel, blocks etc. just next to the sofa. When I get downstairs I have everything I need set up, in under a minute. If you’re rummaging around for things you might just give up and get a coffee.
- Get into a routine; its hard at first, everything worthwhile usually is. Once you get into a morning routine it will come as second nature, I promise. If you can only manage 10 mins in the morning then that’s great. Take that 10 mins and make it count.
- That said…..Don’t beat yourself up for missing a morning; I never get up on a Saturday morning and do yoga. Saturdays I have a small snooze in, a cuppa with my man and then get up for brekkie or a gym visit. There have also been week day mornings that I am feeling rubbish, I’ve had a late night and I know I need some extra sleep. The key is not to terrorise yourself for missing a day. Just get back on it the next day. Yoga is a pleasure, it’s a life enhancing activity, it is not a chore, don’t make it one!
So there are my little pearls of wisdom. Be great to hear anyone else’s tips!
* Gaimin TV is a subscription based health and spirituality website, you can find out more at www.gaiamtv.com