I am still working my way back to my practice. Yes, this really is a broken record going round and round the old turntable.
New Year’s resolutions have never been my thing, although I do appreciate the intention of them. That said, I didn’t make a resolution. BUT I did set an intention a few days ago in cahoots with my friends at extendYoga to join a 30-day yoga habit challenge. Back to that broken record and it’s bumpy, scratchy cycle. Some of you remember that sound. An old record (now called vinyl), a favorite with so many plays, lots of dust and fingerprints, many scratches, maybe even a crack. The needle lands to the crackle and hiss, sometimes there is rhythmic pop . . . pop . . . pop. That is precisely what returning to my yoga mat feels like this time…..
Oy.
Happy New Year to me.
I actually returned to some of my old blogs to motivate myself. Can you believe that? I have always said Yoga Nag needs a nag, but that is pretty absurd. I resurrected and reworked an old blog for Medium on Ten Reasons to Practice Yoga Alone. Check it out if you too need some clarity, and maybe a smidge of motivation to practice on your own.
Honestly practicing yoga alone is the ONLY way I want to practice yoga right now. I know community is great. I love a good yoga class. But at this moment, this practice, this return to my practice, is between me and my mat. Alone.
Pop….. pop….. pop.
But then the music plays, and you can still hear and feel it through the noise, that wear and tear of years of playing and love.
Yoga Nag 
I feel you, Daisy. I practice yoga all by myself, alone, most of the time. And it’s so nourishing. Hope it proves to be that for you, too.
smooooooches.
I think you are busier than me. Give yourself a break and do what you can.
I try, Michael, oh I try, and I will keep trying. xoxo
OMG!!! Extend Yoga! Daisy Whittemore!
I haven’t visited WordPress in years! But somehow I felt compelled to get a new password, since i’d long ago forgotten my old one. And I was thumbing thru various topics and paused when I came across your Post! Between Me, My Yoga Mat, Alone. Then, lo and behold, as I was reading the post, Extend Yoga was mentioned.
I had not noticed who was writing, so hadn’t put 2&2 together yet. But then…your name, what are the chances? Extend Yoga is my home away from home cherished Yoga Studio! I often come from Connecticut to visit our daughter and Grandkids! Small world.And, I’ve been lucky enough to have you teach some of the classes I’ve signed up for while visiting. Not for nothing but, you are a great teacher and I always feel so much more alive and in my body, after practice with you!.
I do however appreciate your wanting to practice alone! How fortunate that you are so well versed and knowledgeable as an instructor, to practice alone. I imagine your going into the “zone” as you flow breath by breath from pose to pose.
To me it makes perfect sense to want and imagine making the time space to create and carve out time for you! Nowhere to go, nothing to do, just go deep within and flow. I see this as a calling for you and you alone!
So many of us attend class, often do so in order to nourish and support our well being. So we make a commitment to ourself to come together in our Yoga Studio of choice. We show up to class, knowing it is where we are motivated, encouraged, and taken on a journey of sorts, all while being supported by the energy of the teacher giving class. And yes, our fellow students are with us as well, as we practice “ “be- ing” together.
So perhaps Daisy, your desire to practice alone, is coming from a deep place within your being, that needs exactly what it is, you are being called to do.
Take the time for yourself and be mindful and listen to the voice within! That is your calling!
Teachers deserve and need to nourish and replenish themselves too! Just do it!!!
With love and gratitude. Your student, Ilene Lion 🙏🧘♂️🙏
How fun and nice to hear from you. YES, to each his or her own…. for sure. I m delighted you come to extend! And I have LOVED attending classes too, of course, for the learning, the community, the teacher. I also think it is important to play around on your own, even if you don’t have yoga teaching experience, just to get into your own groove and feeeeeeel. Don’t think we need expertise to have that! But I do get that it is easier with more knowledge.Did you ever read my blogs on Elephant about practicing one pose a day as a path to practicing on your own? https://www.elephantjournal.com/2013/05/do-one-pose-today-daisy-whittemore/
xox