Ever wonder how your yoga teacher stays so healthy and strong?
We searched nationwide to find the brightest, most inspiring yogis and asked them to share tips for staying balanced in this 2.0 world:
Tip #1: Center in the AM
We all wake up at the prod of to-do’s, tasks, errands and buzzing thoughts. Unanswered emails, thoughts from last nights TV shows, worries about our loved ones…
Each yogi we interviewed has a routine centering activity to start their day – and it’s not always yoga or meditation!
Kristina Bengala, a yoga teacher and life coach from Salida, Colorado, follows up two glasses of citrus water with a morning hike with her dog, Remi:
Starting the day off with hydration is common among yogis, and has many benefits as Kristina eloquently explains:
Each morning, I begin my day by drinking two glasses of room temperature water with some sort of citrus. Water is the elixir of life! This hydrates my body from the night before, increases my circulation, stimulates my digestion, helps my mind wake up, and gets nutrients from the foods I eat to circulate throughout my body and provide nourishment.
Marissa Rose, yogi and nonprofit entrepreneur from Orange County, California, uses the first few hours of the AM to write and gather her thoughts before heading into the chaos of the day:
Yoga and pilates instructor and former ballerina Elle Bernstein from Bloomington, Indiana, describes the importance of these morning hours:
My quiet 60 to 90 minutes in the morning is the most important part of my day. I always wake up way before I need to be out of the house to ensure that I have plenty of time to eat, digest, drink coffee, get ready, read my emails, and center myself for the day.
Tip #2: “Me Time” is Mandatory
Every yoga instructor we talked to has another thing in common – they always schedule “me time” into their day. Kristina also adds “My Yoga” and Leslie Storms, registered orthopedic nurse and yoga instructor from Plano, Texas, schedules two hours of at-home practice every afternoon:
Tip #3: Plan Tomorrow Today
In a world where simply getting to bed on time is considered a win, planning ahead for tomorrow may seem like a dream. Perhaps it takes the discipline of a former NFL wide receiver, personal trainer and now yoga instructor like Derrick “DJ” Townsel in Orlando, Florida, to get it all done. Derrick takes almost two hours every night to end his day with meditation and visualize his plan for the next day:
Want to learn more? Check out how professional yogis are evolving to thrive in the 21st century:
