Many of us are experts at producing excuses for not trying yoga let alone anything new.

We make excuses why we aren’t sleeping enough, exercising or practicing healthy eating habits. Granted, for those with difficulty making ends, these “stories” are more often than not justified. But for others, excuses often mask a destructive cycle of underlying beliefs that negatively impact our health needs.

Here are 6 common excuses followed by tips to drop that bad habit and rock out your yoga pants!

1

“I’m Not Flexible enough.” A common perception is that you have to be super flexible to do yoga. In truth, yoga has nothing to do with how flexible or strong you are. In fact, the main purpose of practicing yoga is to open your body and clear your mind. Yoga teaches discipline, concentration and focus. In short it, promotes mindfulness in daily life.

2

“Yoga is too expensive!” By large, the yoga community aims to be welcoming. But often the prices pay for the instructor’s rent and bills (they have to make a living too). Despite the tendency for high prices for yoga classes, there are many ways you can make it affordable. Many Yoga studios offer discounted community classes, which are often during off-peak hours. Check out your local community centers, YMCA’s and gyms where you can often find various activities offered for less. During the summer, you often can find free classes such as the New York Parks Department summer activities list. But wait, there’s more! YouTube is a great source of quality ‘how-to’ videos and what’s more, they’re free! A Google search can also locate a donation based yoga studio – something that’s more prevalent in cities.

3

“My apartment is too small!” We have you covered. Trying to bust out some yoga moves in a small apartment with small children, tight spaces is hard. Take advantage of the nice summer weather and make the outdoors is your yoga studio. All you need is a yoga mat and water. Whether your yoga space is the rooftop of your building, your backyard or the park across the street, do something to make it feel sacred, even just erecting a temporary statue or lighting a candle. Om.

4

“People like me don’t do yoga.” Somebody needs to adjust his or her thinking! Yoga is for everyone, so it doesn’t matter whether you’re male, not skinny or short. Neither does your race matter. Not a single yoga class requires that you be bendy, athletic, or strong. If you notice these excuses coming up in your head squash them! You don’t have to change who you are to do yoga.

a little piece of movement from my practice this evening #yoga

A video posted by patrick beach (@patrickbeach) on Aug 7, 2015 at 7:18pm PDT

5

“I don’t have time!” Of course you do. How much time do you spend on social media/ Internet? A worldwide poll tracked the Internet habits of 170,000 people (GlobalWebIndex). The results? The average user clocks in at 1.72 hours per day. Wouldn’t you rather spend some of that time improving your health and wellness? Surely you aren’t too busy for that.

6

“Have you seen those poses on Instagram?” A lot of people are intimidated by the images of yogis in ‘impossible’ yoga poses that make them seem more pretzel than person. Not everyone starts out being able to do that. Besides, that’s one of the thing yoga can help you with; increase flexibility. Some types of yoga, like Restorative Yoga, are specifically aimed at those with injuries. Need more motivation? Proof? Check out @mynameisjessamyn on Instagram.

 

I had so much fun shooting w/ the @bandierfit team- I wrote an @elephantjournal article awhile back about the need for better #curvy athletic wear and it’s still frustrating that the best athletic fashion is still firmly placed in the straight size arena. I mean, all the clothes I wore for this shoot were from straight size clothing companies and while the looks (expertly styled by my boo @rachelbalzarini) were adorable, I’d really like to see the same designs available up to AT LEAST a 4X. But I’m not stupid. I know why that probably won’t happen. It’s because WE (All of us) are afraid of #fat bodies. We are afraid of breasts that go unsupported, and bellies that bulge. We’re afraid, and we sow the seeds of fear in our children, and our whole fucking Western worldview of beauty is shot to hell. We need to work towards a world where we are not afraid of our own bodies and recognize that the fear is truly everywhere- even within the #bodypositive movement. Anyway, if you want to read my full interview w/ @bandierfit, head over to their instagram page for the link! Top- @k.deer Leggings- @underarmourwomen Photo by @LaurenPerlstein Makeup- @debiedoesmakeup (Also, hayyyy @athleisurely) #mermaidpose #ekapadarajakapotasana

 

A photo posted by Jessamyn (@mynameisjessamyn) on Jul 30, 2015 at 7:56pm PDT

I hope this helps ease your doubts and encourage you to try yoga. For greater skeptics, why not drop into your neighborhood yoga studio and speak to the head yogi about what you can anticipate from your first yoga class, fellow yogis and teachers? As you and I know, they’re generally a happy bunch and will no doubt love to answer your questions.

What is an excuse that holds you back from your practice and how have you been able to overcome it? Tweet us your answers!

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