Simple Home Practice 101 -- Place

you only need a small space in your home to practice yoga. the hard part is making the effort to get on your mat.

so, let's take care of the small stuff first.

a place, a space, for yoga. some people have space in their home for a yoga room. if you are one of these people, then consider yourself very, very fortunate. for the rest of us, we're usually doing our home yoga practice in our bedroom or the living room. but do not fret, these places can be the perfect space for your practice. even when i lived in a 400 square foot studio in san francisco, i still had enough space to practice. 

find a corner of a room or a small wall space where you can keep your yoga mat and props in a clean, orderly area. i also like to tape an image of a yoga pose that i love or a yogic word or phrase on the wall in this area to help define the space as special. when defining a new space for yoga, i also like to light a candle (perhaps smudge a little sage) and sit in meditation in the beginning to bring energy to this space. do whatever feels good to you to welcome this space as your special yoga space. and then i like to do a few simple yoga poses here to begin to establish this space as my place for yoga. you don't have to do a full-blown yoga practice, perhaps just a sun salutation or even a tree pose. by doing this simple act you will already be establishing the space and your body to practice here.

make this space inviting. make it a joyful place to be. then you will want to be there, and ultimately practice daily.

)) may we all be happy and free ((
lokah samastah sukhino bhavantu