With your busy schedule it’s hard to take time out of the day for just yourself. You may have found yourself joining your local yoga studio and as the days and weeks progress, your attendance becomes less and less until you don’t even try to make time anymore. But it’s important to take time for yourself and commit to something that will better your body, your mind, and your soul. The 30-Day Yoga Challenge with Erin Motz helps make all that attainable. Her daily installments break down different poses, focuses and series into 10 – 20 minute bites. Two Sweet Lemon writers, in two parts of the country, with different but busy schedules accepted this challenge and documented it along the way. Here’s how they did it:
Filomena: I would consider myself a Level 2- Experienced Beginner. I have taken multiple hot yoga classes before, but as my schedule became busier, I found it harder to make time for my yoga practice. Before starting the challenge, my goal was to make sure that I would commit 100 percent to the challenge! Also I wanted to overall become more flexible. I became so inflexible that it was hard for me to touch my toes without bending my knees!
Molly: I’ve practiced yoga on and off for the past five years and would consider myself an intermediate yogi. During a class, I am able to flow through the majority of poses by hearing the names rather than needing to watch the teacher. I went into this challenge hoping to develop a more serious and dedicated practice. Working a full-time and part-time job and recently moving had left my yoga routine in a rut. My other focus was to strengthen and open my back and hips, respectively, as these areas cause me the most trouble.
The way the challenge works is simple: you sign up with your email address and once you decide to start, you receive a new routine every night for 30 days. This allows you to fit the workout into any part of the following day. The videos range anywhere from 10-20 minutes and each has a specific theme: Yoga for Runners, Yoga For Better Sleep, “How to” on certain poses, etc.
Filomena: I really enjoyed the challenge! It allowed me to make time for myself everyday and it made me feel good. I would do the challenge every morning before I started my school/work day and I found that I felt like I accomplished so much so early in the day. I liked how every day the challenge would change and you would focus on different parts of the body! My favorite days were the core strength (who doesn’t want to get some abs), and the neck and upper back. Especially because I tend to hold so much tension and stress in my neck it was a great way to learn new postures that would release that built up tension.
Molly: While I felt some of the videos were a little slow to start or left me wanting more, overall I was very impressed with the challenge. Erin’s positive attitude is infectious and I always found myself looking forward to the next day’s challenge, curious to what it would cover. The length of the videos made completing this challenge manageable, especially on days with a jammed pack schedule and only a small chunk of time to dedicate towards exercise. They are the perfect length for an early morning workout to get your mind and body awake for the day. My favorite part of this challenge however is that the videos can easily be used outside of the challenge. I still incorporate the abs, hips, and back days into my weekly routine.
Filomena: I think it is wonderful to do on your own or even with a friend. Not only did this challenge help me create some “me” time, but I also made a friend along the way. You can do this challenge anywhere in the world, at anytime with any kind of schedule. All you need to do is devote 20 minutes of your day for yourself, and your practice.
Ready to try? Grab a friend, head over to DoYouYoga.com, start the challenge and let us know what you think! Whether you’re doing this challenge or continuing a home-yoga routine, throw on this playlist, which includes some of our favorite tunes that help us get our Namaste on!
By and
