Being Flexible: Getting Started
Hey Niche Friends!
Thanks for checking on our blog! Our hobby for this week was yoga to help get us ready for a new year and another indefinite amount of time under lock-down and health orders. So, let’s crack into this week’s blog post from a place of kindness with some general suggestions on getting started with an at-home workout!
Step 1. Find a Video or Stream that works for you
Are you a 5-minute yoga fan? fifteen? An hour? Not sure are really just want to get started? Lucky for you, there are tons of options for online videos and streaming classes. Try lots of new ones, see what works for you! This week Cait tuned into Yoga with Bird whose classes vary between 5-30 minutes.
Our Suggestions For Getting Started:
Yoga With Bird’s 5 Minute Morning Yoga To Feel Your BEST!
Small steps make great steps! Dip your pool into the water and see how much your mood can improve with this super quick morning session.
Note: Time isn’t real, morning yoga can be done at any time
Step 2. Make A Comfortable Space For You To Work Out
For those of you who have been to a yoga class before, or even thought about a class before, you may have an idea of what a good yoga space looks like. Wide, open space, a comfortable mat, the perfect room temperature.
Some of you (if not all) may have recently become aware by the size of your home, and the impact of now being potentially an office space, family room, and prison of your own isolation. What we’re getting at here is that space may be an issue here.
Our Suggestion For Getting Started
Figure out what room you’re going to work out in? Bedroom? Office? Kitchen? Where ever you can comfortably lie down on the floor
If the space is messy or has reminders of something that stresses you out, try to do a quick 30 second clean up
Put on the Big Comfy Couch song on if you’d like
3. Forgive yourself for not having the perfect space. take a second and acknowledge how well you’re doing by taking this first step. Your house isn’t a yoga studio, that’s okay!
4. Light a candle, put a plant where you can see it, put on netflix’s Moving Art on mute in the background. Do something to make your space just a little more special.
Step 3. Find Something Comfy To Work Out On
Got a yoga mat? Great? Want a yoga mat? We also have some suggestions for that. However, while you wait for your mat to arrive, you still want to get started right?
Our Recommendations to get started:
Use a blanket, towel, or bathmat for now
Want to see if you’re going to stick with yoga but don’t want to pay for a mat? Using any soft material with some grip under you is a great way to try it out. Remember, the mat will be thicker and grip the floor better, so if you’re sliding around on silk sheets, it may not be the best comparison
Do sitting/lying down yoga positions in bed
In bed??? That’s right! You can do most of the lying down and sitting positions without even getting out of bed. Would we recommend this always? No, but for some of us struggling with depression because… everything right now, this could be a great option to start with.
On carpeted or hardwood floor
Now, this may not be for everyone (RIP our knees), but if you feel up to it, bare feet or socks with grippy bottoms are a great option as well.
Like yoga enough to buy a mat? Check out:
for $38.00 (CAD), this eco friendly mat is a great starter for you home work out!
For $80.00 (CAD) this thicker, stickier mat will keep you from slipping and sliding all over the place. Half Moon does have more wallet friendly options, but we love a thicker mat!
At £65.00 (roughly $112 CAD) this is a more expensive mat. However, it’s eco-friendly, gets more traction the more you sweat and 10% of all profits go towards Destiny Reflection, a charity that supports human-trafficking survivors.
That’s it! Getting started with yoga at home is a simple process and a great covid-friendly activity!
Happy Flexing!
