The path of self-discipline

Self-discipline as the basis for following yoga online

We would like to exercise and meditate, but what is missing to get us moving and motivated? 
When we are in company, in a guided program, we simply follow the rhythm of the group and do the practice. But when we are alone, left to our own will and our “free time”, we need to awaken our own discipline. In this short text, explore how to build self-discipline in a healthy way, which is the key to practicing at home and maintaining healthy habits. Yoga approaches discipline as a path to awakening faith and love for change, which is easily built because it is not out of guilt but out of joy. Let’s learn in 7 steps how to develop yogic self-discipline.

1. The right motivation

The word discipline brings to mind rigor, military order, and control, and we often associate it with the expectation of results, and thus a sense of guilt. If we decide to change something from these emotions, we will find that we are coming from the idea that now or what we want to change is not good. This means that we crave discipline and control because we are not good the way we are, and this is a form of hatred or aversion towards ourselves or the way things are now.

In yoga, we practice non-violence, which means that our intention for the practice does not stem from guilt or hatred. The first step of healthy discipline, one that remains our lifelong habit, is accepting the present situation and loving openness to change.

2. In spite of the bodily sensations

Setting the right intention for practice is clear, although it requires a little emotional calibration, we could say ok: “I accept how it is now and I start from that state”. But still, when it is time to start practicing, to finally move, the body is heavy. The body has its inertia, it tends to maintain the current state, so we make an effort to change that state. The next step is therefore to become aware of the present bodily sensations (for example, heaviness, fatigue, stiffness..) and start practicing respecting them. This is also the approach of the yogic non-violent principle – through acceptance and understanding to change.

At the beginning, we remember that we should not be discouraged by the current bodily sensations because they will change as soon as we move. We take a deep breath, exhale and despite everything that the body and mind are chattering, we awaken our healthy discipline, which in this case also includes overcoming ourselves.

3. Let go of the target

Expecting results blocks us from the very beginning because we have an image of what our exercise (practice) should look like to be “good enough”. If we start and the course of our exercise does not match that image, we are frustrated and have no joy, and therefore no motivation. That is why we let go of the idea of ​​how much we need to exercise and how we need to be to be good before we start and start with what is there. That is the motto: the journey is more important than the destination or the journey is the destination, as soon as we start we have arrived.

4. Make it a priority

We have taken the time to exercise, which means that it is now a priority. Exercise comes first above all the most important things in the world. Sometimes our minds like to play with us a little and suddenly we feel like peeing, we are hungry, we need to look up some important information, write something down… But we do not respond to these tendencies and we stick to our own thread. We do not have to jump immediately if someone calls us or if the child makes a mess, we stick to our determination and the current priority – exercise.

5. Start slowly.

We start with a gentle movement that will gradually lubricate the body. I mean this literally because everything under our skin is connected to fascia – a viscous tissue that “stiffens” when the body is still and cold, and becomes softer and more viscous when we warm up. Movement also stimulates the synovial fluids that lubricate the joints. Even with gentle movement, the lungs breathe, and as more oxygen enters the body, the muscles are more agile.

When we start with gratitude, gently and slowly, we gradually warm up, and the appetite for exercise will open up on its own.

6. “Sweet spot”

We started slowly but it is still difficult, not that we feel like it, there is still heaviness in our bodies. Just be patient, a little longer, soon there will come a turning point in which we will overcome the barrier of this inertia and the movement will become more comfortable. That limit is the reward for the effort invested and the victory over our laziness. After the energy is “reversed”, we gain momentum, we perform the movement with gusto and joy and we can complete the practice.

7. Why do we actually practice yoga?

The essence of yoga practice is not how much we move and stretch our bodies, but how much we let go of the idea of ​​how our bodies should feel. The practice is about letting go of identification with the pleasant and desired sensations in our bodies through which we believe we are well, on the right path, that this is how it “should be.” All sensations are on the right path, only our attitude can lead us astray.

In essence, our yogic discipline is a gift of self through the letting go of identification with feelings, thoughts, and emotions.

And in the end, when we carry the discipline and love for practice within us, wherever we are, we will organize ourselves to “practice”, to take time to touch ourselves through movement or meditation. There is no longer an obstacle to fully enjoy the guided program of online yoga, welcome.

Tena