I've had many students ask me this question, especially since the Covid paranoia seems to be mostly finished in our part of the world.
When Covid began I was one of the first responders to bringing our yoga community into the online space - as much as me and technology aren't the best of friends, I was determined to keep going no matter what. Covid seemed to take so much from each of us - it wasn't going to steal our yoga community away too.
However, how we would actually do yoga and be involved in our communities had to change with the crisis, or else we would have nothing left. It felt like a bittersweet moment, and one worth fighting for.
Even though we all had to change the way we did everything, at first I had eager students reaching out to me, trying to figure out HOW to maintain their practices. Covid had disrupted schedules and habits, routines and expectations. But after a while I noticed many of my students dropping away; not logging in for classes, and not recommitting to memberships.
Some of my students blamed the distractions at home, while others started complaining about being on Zoom all day. "I get it!" I would say, in conversation after conversation. But, one thing did not change - their basic needs, which still included daily yoga.
Here's what's interesting: #Onlineyoga is something that happened long before #covid. In fact without yoga online I wouldn't be the teacher I am today.
Before Covid even hit the world, I took part in a few different professional development courses for yoga teachers, and advanced teacher trainings from teachers I loved. What I saw, even before the world was forced to change, was the beauty in working with people I actually wanted to learn from, and with an online option this meant I didn't have to travel to do so.
As a mom with a boatload of responsibilities, THIS WAS LIFE-CHANGING.
I didn't have to spend travel dollars heading to California, Florida, or India; I didn't have to worry about bringing my daughter along and not knowing what to do with her when I was practicing and studying. I didn't have to worry about what my then-partner thought about my inherent desire to deepen my practice. I didn't have to juggle the family schedule around too much. I didn't have to take time off work, or worry about 'what would happen if'.
I simply had to commit to showing up online a few times each week in order to get what I wanted. In fact, it was EASY for me because all the obstacles had been removed.
I understand being in-person is an entirely different experience, BUT if you truly want your practice to unfold the way you crave, why put the obstacle of 'I'm Zoomed out' in the way of your progress?
Listen, we are all sick of Covid and Covid-related inconveniences. Again, I get it. However, a commitment is a commitment, no matter how it looks.
Here's an example of a real-life hybrid schedule:
Monday: In-person yoga class
Tuesday: Online yoga class and 20-minute walk outside (that 20-minutes would have otherwise been spent getting to and from yoga)
Wednesday: In-person yoga class
Thursday: Online yoga class and 15-minute run (that 15 minute drive is not happening again!)
Friday: Online yoga class and leave work 20 minutes early (you earned the extra 20 minutes because you didn't drive)
Saturday: Online yoga class (and more time with family)
Sunday: Off
I think one of the biggest things to remember here is that you actually GET TIME BACK by doing practices online. This is one of the best things to have come out of Covid, especially for busy yoga lovers (you know who you are!)
Let me know in the comments how you are doing with online yoga versus in-person. This is a real conversation, and I'd like to know where you're at.
Much love, Jenni Sol
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