A friend of mine is completing the seven day yoga intensive. He is staying in a hotel and all is simple and easy in that he is able to eat at the requisite time so that he can do his yoga on an empty stomach. On the last day of the series he learned that in order to receive the benefits of this practice one must practice diligently for 40 days 2 times a day. In addition to this there is a requirement regarding eating prior to doing the exercises.
He is committed to doing the 40 days and has a clear motivation for doing so. The feeling that came up immediately was “how am I going to do this.”
I truly felt for him, this is a huge task at hand, no matter how passionate you are. I thought back to my coaching training and the tool for change is that whenever we want to make lasting change, accomplish a goal, the best thing we can do is to make the goal smaller, measurable and doable.
For example:
1) Decide on the 40 day goal (i.e. I will be doing yoga 2 x a day every day of the week for 40 days). Feel all the positive benefits of that goal.
2) Break it down: 3 weeks and then 1 week. Set the 40 day goal aside.
3) Each week renew your goal – even if it amounts to one day a week – set-renew and revisit your goal.
Explore your Obstacles – the daily / weekly obstacles to achieving your goal. Discuss and explore ways to overcome those obstacles.
· For example: If you work till 5:00 and then you eat dinner at 6:30 you have to wait till 10:30 to do a practice – by then you might be so tired you want to fall asleep. Or his concern is what if he eats at 7:00 or 7:30, perhaps when getting together with friends. This means he wouldn’t do his practice till 11:30. So he needs to look at ways that he can make sure he eats early enough to do his practice earlier.
When we talked about this he came up with the idea of making space in his office so that he could do his practice, after hours, on the nights that he will be going out directly from work.
When we started to break things down he started to see that this could actually be done. It may require some tweaking. It certainly will require a continued reminder of why he is doing this.
He is concerned that he will come home and get into his daily routine, letting go of his commitment. Having a coach that can support you in staying connected to why you are doing this in the first place is a wonderful way to support you on your spiritual journey.
If you are beginning a mind/body transformation practice and want to receive the support needed after the retreat/intensive is over. Contact Lynne Jenrow, MA (Cert. Licensed WellCoach – Specializing in Integrative Wellness Coaching).
Certified Licensed WellCoach specializing in Integrative Wellness Coaching.