Effort & Ease

Yoga is both a tool we can take with us off the mat, and a reflection of who we are off our mat. For example, if we are impatient in our regular life, we’ll probably be impatient in our yoga practice. One of the ways this shows up is through the balance that we navigate in our yoga asana between Effort and Ease. This is where we start to notice our habits. Is your habit to lean more toward Effort, always working really hard and striving, even when you need rest? Or is your habit to lean toward ease, taking it easy and not challenging yourself to do more? Our yoga mat is a place we can practice finding balance between those two things. 

Remember that each day is different and each moment is different and allow yourself to change with the moment. Some days your body or your mind might be craving a strong, fast practice, expending a lot of effort and it feels like exactly what you need that day. Some days your body and your mind might really need a little bit more ease and gentleness.

Your practice doesn’t have to look the same way every day. And that has absolutely nothing to do with your ability level. In our modern age of hyperfocus on achievement, we often see yoga portrayed as a linear, achievement-based endeavor where practitioners strive toward a “full version” of poses, and never look back. The true heart of yoga is awareness of each moment with transparent honesty. That means that some days I take every vinyasa and do one-legged chaturangas, and some days I do a lot of child’s pose and opt out of things. Nothing makes me happier as a teacher than to see my students honoring their bodies from moment to moment in the unique way personal to them.

How can you move closer to a balance between Effort and Ease in your practice? In your life?