Expectations and goal setting in Yoga

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

As a new year approaches I can’t help but think I’d like to make a few changes in my life. I have some goals in mind but I’m becoming aware that I often expect too much of myself from life.

My interests in life include Yoga, Aikido, music & photography. I like the idea of having a 40 minute yoga practice in the morning followed by a 1 hour music session. I would have to get up at 6 am in order to get this done and would be done by 8am ready to start the day. It feels important to practice these things on a daily basis and to protect some time in order to get things done.

I realise that getting up at 6am for some people is nothing - my dad had to get up at 5:30 am for 40 years in order to work in a factory and give me a decent upbringing. There’s people out there with kids who are up at ridiculous hours in order to get them ready for school. But to me who only has to be in work at 9am, 20 minnutes down the road - getting up at 6 could easily be dropped which is why this is a challenging goal.

Living for goals - and whether or not it is a good thing for me -is something that has played on mind a lot this year. Do you think it is wise to set goals in yoga - for example if i have the goal of a a daily 40 minute practice - or is it a more “passive” experience than that?

#2

Whether setting goals is necessary for your growth can only be determined by you. I tend to grow best by not following any regimen at all, or possibly all of my growth has come from struggling to do so and failing repeatedly, thereby coming to an understanding of acceptance and truly evaluating my motivations and priorities.

Anyway…

Try going to bed tonight at ten, setting an alarm for six, and then just getting out of bed. Don’t get back into bed. If you can do that for one night, then try three nights. If you can do it for three nights, then try seven nights. Skip New Years eve, probably… but then go back to bed at ten every night. Going to bed at the same time every night usually gets me up at the same time, especially if I actually get OUT of the bed and stay away from it. My biggest downfall.

#3

Hello Ryan,

For these sorts of questions it’s best to share something ore of you in the post. Think of it much like buying a suit and telling someone over the phone that you’re “medium” and then expecting them to show up at your door with suit that not only looks amazing but fits YOU to a tee.

The nature of Yoga for a 22 year old gent should suit that persons current station in life.

Generally speaking, conceptualizing changes in your living is quite healthy, as long as it doesn’t become obsessive. Much of what humanity does they do with their mind, but in the world of yoga it is the heart that determines one’s true course. There is an old Chinese saying…“don’t think too much”.

Get up at six and practice OR sleep in and do not. See which one serves you best and choose based on that.

#4

Thanks for the positive replies.

[QUOTE=InnerAthlete;69108]Hello Ryan,

For these sorts of questions it’s best to share something ore of you in the post.

[/QUOTE]

Hmm - something of me. I’m 30 single and currently living with my parents whilst saving up for a narrow boat. I work as a “community musician” delivering music tuition sessions to kids, adults with learning disabilities and the elderely. I also teach Drums & Percussion part time.

I have recently been accepted onto a Yoga Foundation course and would one day like to teach Yoga - it’s had a real positive impact on my life so far and would love to share this with others. I am aiming to build up a regular practice in my spare time.

#5

Well, you can start by doing a shorter practice in the morning, say 20 minutes and gradually increasing it. It may be a shock to your body to wake up 2 hours earlier than you used to. It is best to do it gradually but then again it depends on the person. Some people do better if they just jump right into a new routine. I am not a morning person so I prefer to do my yoga practice at night. I think it is important to have regular practice regardless of when you can fit it in.

#6

Thirty is a nice time to make changes in one’s living.The days of carrying on are behind and the decade ahead is one of maturity. Harmony means that we acknowledge these things and live accordingly.

Get up earlier:-)

#7

As a 27 year-old night owl, I can empathize! I have tried and failed so many times to get up early! It was great back in college, where I went to bed around 2 and got up around 9 or 9:30-- the perfect schedule for me. But that kind of schedule is not so practical in the real world. But if I sleep from 11 to 6 or 6:30, I still feel exhausted. So I usually end up falling asleep around midnight and getting up around 7. I’ve tried “programs” that are supposed to help you re-set your biological clock, but I have not been successful. For instance, working out in the morning is supposed to help, but I could only stick to that for 2 days-- what miserable work-outs they were!

If anyone has any tips to help ryanlikealion and I stick to a 6am wake-up call, I’d appreciate them!! One of my new year’s resolutions is to stick to only 1 10 minute snooze!

#8

I am a 29 year old that has tried and failed to stick by any routine until now. Before I used to beat myself up about setting myself a routine and then failing, clearly thinking that life isnt about rules and structure but about how you feel at the time and doing what comes naturally. Having a small baby to take care of now enforces living to a new set of rules and I actually feel great for it. I wouldn’t say to stress yourself out by being too strict on yourself, but what i found helpful was to include it in your nightly mantras and repeat your goal to yourself while lying in bed. You will get there, its just a matter of retraining your mind and changing the pattern you have set… Good Luck!

#9

Thanks for these replies so far.

Penelope - i think I’m going to try and stop using the snooze function completely - seems to be my downfall when trying to get up! But we’ll see.

Mimicme - I can imagine these nightly mantras being fairly effective - will give them a try.

#10

always try to have fun goals. if you make your yoga practice feel like a workout it wont be attainable

but if you make it feel more like play then it will happen allot easier for a daily practice

#11

If I were to set a goal in regards to my yoga practice I know I would fail miserably.

practice because you love it and because you love how it makes you feel

practice because you can’t live without it

practice because your life is fuller with it.

just be…

#12

intuitive goal setting is more flexible and natural and more in tune with your needs and therefore better ultimately. you don’t know for certain today what your needs will be in 6 weeks or 6 months

-dale

#13

My main question to you is, why get up early? You can do all of the same exact stuff withOUT getting up early. Why do you feel you have to do these things before work? why not after work? The whole “early bird gets the worm” is a misconception created by people that wake up early! If your natural inclination is not to get up early, don’t fight it. The fact that most people use alarm clocks proves a very serious point: americans don’t sleep enough. If we need an alarm to go off to wake us up, then we obviously aren’t getting enough sleep, because if we were, then we’d be waking up naturally.

I know some people who wake up early and get stuff done. But you know what? they are sleeping by 9pm, whereas I stay up till 1 am getting work done (Same thing. I get just as much done, just not on the same schedule.) I mean, seriously, I can’t hardly go out to dinner with these people because they need to eat so early so that they can get home to get to bed. Seems like a huge hindrance to me, but that is because I am not a morning person, and I do not fight it.

#14

Interesting point. I think we’re all individual in this respect.

I just feel like I’m more likely to get the practice done if I do it in the morning. And once it is done it allows me to relax a bit more throughout the day. I do a lot of teaching work in the evenings so i feel the need to make a bit more time for myself. I tend to have a bit more clarity in the mornings and find it easier to focus.

Although having said that most of my creative ideas come to me in the evening.