And on vacations, how do you do it?

For some time now, I have received messages asking me how to continue practicing Ashtanga Yoga during the holidays?

The examples are many and vary from person to person, some write that this is a time of year when the children are not in school, which implies other care that makes it impossible to do Yoga in the morning. And some underline the fact that they are sharing a house with other family and friends, and the dinners are late, with good and long conversations, accompanied by a Portuguese wine, which keeps them away from practicing the next day. There are also those who mention the many difficulties in stepping on the mats, because they miss the classes environment, with a teacher and colleagues at the side. And there are still those who talk about the feelings of tiredness and demotivation to practice, after a whole day spent at the beach!

If it is not possible to practice at 6am in the morning because you have little babies  as I do, and at 10am also is not an option, because the rest of the family is already awake and want to go to the beach, but in the afternoon or at the dusk, you feel tired for a day spent in outdoor activities! So you have to talk to your family and friends and arrange the days so that you can find an hour where you can calmly extend the mat and enjoy your practice. Perhaps the only feasible time is at 3:00 p.m., after the return from the beach in the morning, the lunches and the function of throwing the little ones, the bigger ones are quiet playing a game, and you notice the adults ended up falling asleep  behind the newspapers, the magazines, or the books they flipped through. It will take some “game of the waist”, flexibility and surrender, to adjust to a different reality, which at all will not be perfect!

 

Do you want more tips?

Explain to your children that the next few moments will be practicing Yoga, that you will need to be alone. Ask the other family members or friends to take care of the children during this hour/ hour and a half.

Do not waste time, once you see the opportunity, spread the mat and start.

Perhaps your mind brings a panoply of thoughts and sensations of sheer laziness, yes you are still digesting a part of the lunch (the next day, eat less), yes, you could leaning to take a nap, you have to breathe more intensely, focus on the air in and out of the nose, in the movement of the diaphragm, and in a few moments you will be full of energy, vitality and motivation to continue.

Don ´t have enough time to do your whole sequence of postures? Even so, practice without haste, allow yourself to breathe calmly, because it will not matter the number of postures that will be able to do, the practice is not a race with end and goal, the important thing is to move with your breath, presence and attention .

I can assure you that at the end of each practice, you will be happier, with vitality and health in body and head, and above all a new disposition to enjoy your blessed vacations!

And you know what? The fact that you do not do your practice in the morning or at the end of the day will give you the opportunity for so many other activities where you can celebrate your lives in another way, either for going out with our babies for a walk while the sun is still not very strong, or surf at the end of the day, while our (spectacular) husbands (women) are giving support with the children on the sand!

Because the important thing is to continue practicing with inspiration, without being a must!

BOAS PRÁTICAS

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