Yoga Practice Space and Diet: Optimal Insights from a Yogi

The Optimal Yoga Practice Space and Diet

Posted on 2018/05/15 Under article

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There’s a question about in my home what kind of space do I have to practice yoga and when I travel how to create the space? For me the yoga space is where I’m standing. And honestly, I don’t think you have to make something really elaborate. It can be one tiny thing you do… it can be the mat you’re standing on, or some clothes you wear, but for me it’s really the mindset. It doesn’t matter if I’m in a hotel room or in some beautiful room. I teach in all kind of studios, some are big and fancy and some are funky and small. Whenever I can, I stand on the mat and do my practice.

Keep it simple. Because if you set that in your mind you’ll be able to carry the yoga practice anywhere you go. If you set too many parameters on “I can only be calm and into my yoga if I have this many square feet and this many statues there, and this many photos, and a certain incense”, it can lead to a dependency. Make it simple. Find that all you need to practice this yoga is enough space for you to stand on the floor and move your body around, that’s all you need. So, if you can keep it simple, better.

There are three things I’ve realized is better just left without a lot of discussion. That’s politics, religion, and diet. People have very strong views about these things.

I don’t tell people what they should eat……and what I eat should have no bearing on what you eat. I don’t think you have to tell someone what to eat. You start figuring it out. We become very aware of our body when practicing yoga. When you’re trying to move into some asana, you’ll find certain foods make you feel better, more energetic and lighter. Some make you feel more lethargic and heavy. Eat the foods that feed your body. The more processed food is, the less nutritional value. If you can eat food in their more whole states, you’ll gain more nutritional value.

Keep an open mind. If you want to become a vegetarian, rather than just being extreme, and just go all of a sudden, one day you do it, maybe become a Tuesday vegetarian for a while or one week in a month, or one month in a year. But don’t do it because someone lays a guilt trip on you! You’re going to find in life there is no shortage of people lining up outside your door right now, waiting to tell you what you should do with your life. You’re much better off if you can just figure it out on your own, and make the right choices for you!