Does practicing yoga at home "count"

nichikki

I have been practicing yoga three times a week at home because I can't afford classes every week, using youtube videos and books. I have taken a few yoga classes sporadically to make sure I'm doing everything correctly.
I really enjoy yoga and am considering taking my training to the next level. However does this "count" as real yoga experience?
I feel going in for a level 1 and saying I have only practiced at home will make me look ridculous

burrenyoga

Going to Yoga classes and doing your own practice at home are 2 different things.

Doing your own yoga practice each day IS your yoga practice. This is the most important thing to be doing.... and is the 'real' yoga practice.

It allows you to tune into the breath... focus inwardly... and flow and practice mindfully... hopefully in time with little or at least much less 'thoughts/analysis/listening to someone talking/' and more 'in the moment feeling and awareness'..... following one's asana practice with pranayama... and leading to quieter states and then meditation practice.

Attending yoga classes with a very experienced teacher is also essential in order to ensure you are practising the asanas with good alignment and not doing damage to yourself. And also with a gifted experienced teacher who will be able 'to sense your energies and stage of practice' in order for them to advise and guide you towards what the best types of practices you should be doing each day at home. This will change as the months and years go by, so very important to have an experienced teacher who will help you develop and evolve your practice over the years.

However.... going to yoga classes is not the same as your own yoga practice.

Usually going to yoga classes involves listening, analysis, weighing up, thinking and all these activities take you away from the state of yoga.

They are very important steps to go through in order to get a better grasp of what you should be doing.... but they are only stepping stones to the real practice which takes place on your own mat/cushion every day... and eventually spills over into every waking moment of your day.... and if we were as fortunate as some of the great yogis.... into every moment of our lives whether awake or asleep..... but that is getting into more speculative stages for us modern day yoga practitioners.

If you are happy to simply go to yoga classes for fitness, toning... health and periodic states of deep relaxation then fine... you can forget about this daily yoga practice thing.

However yoga is over 5,000 years old.... and for the 5,000 years preceding the last 100 years... it was mainly about your own yoga practice. If you hope to get in touch with the deep transformative states and evolution that occurs through yoga... then that is the path.

If the yoga teacher training course you are hoping to sign up for has strict guidelines on minimum numbers of years you should be practising before considering teaching... and are interested enough to offer personal one to one interviews with aspirants, I am sure they will understand and value all of your personal yoga practice at home.

If you are interested in this difference between practising yoga at home and attending yoga classes, this very subject is part of our monthly yoga newsletter which gives you tips for your own yoga practice.

I wish you well with your practice.

Best Wishes,
Dave

catbradleyyoga

Hi Nichikki

I have been practising Yoga now for over 2 years, I have recently gained my 200hour Yoga diploma, and honestly I believe, how i gained this was through my home practise and not in fact going to my regular practise...why;

1. At home I feel i have more courage to push myself more, i have less inhibitions if i fall over or stumble etc.

2. At home you learn several diffierent styles of Yogic exercises which will help you develop your own style and you are learning from the best there is!

3. I was only attending a regular Yoga practise once per week and the rest of my practise was at home, but in class we might touch on handstands and then not do it for several weeks again, so it was so important for me to practise at home, that way i advanced in the postures quicker.

4. Other benefits of a home practise of course are, you can do it in your own time and sometimes i might only get 20 minutes here and there which of course you can only achieve by a home practise.

5. if you can afford it, i would suggest signing up for an online app such as cody app where you learn very specific yoga styles, I love the Kino Macgregor one which is Ashtanga, thats not what i am certified in, but i love it and it definately enhances my practise at regular Hatha class.

6. The key to progressing in Yogic exercise is be patient and do as much research as you can, there are tons of online websites that can assist you in ensuring your practise is safe and fun of course!

I also found doing workshops whenever i could really helped as again you are learning from very experienced teachers, the yoga hub and yoga rooms in Dublin are great for hosting really good international teachers, i felt i learned a lot from attending these workshops.

Once you keep your practise varied and look at all different types of styles of teaching you will eventually learn your own style and develop it to suit you. Are you looking at becoming a teacher? I am now teaching and my style is ocmpletely different to my regular Hatha teacher, so doing a home (your own) practise is cruical and certainly does not make you look ridiculous, it makes you sound committed!

Best of luck!!!!!

karma_coma

nichikki wrote: »

I have been practicing yoga three times a week at home because I can't afford classes every week, using youtube videos and books. I have taken a few yoga classes sporadically to make sure I'm doing everything correctly.
I really enjoy yoga and am considering taking my training to the next level. However does this "count" as real yoga experience?
I feel going in for a level 1 and saying I have only practiced at home will make me look ridculous

Not sure on that actually.