Making Time For Yoga
With A Busy Schedule

Think you don’t have time for yoga? Think again. While many of us lead busy lives, there’s always time to squeeze in some restorative yoga — which could give you more energy to manage other areas of your life.

Why You Need To Find Time For Yoga

It’s easy to put yoga low on your list of priorities. If you’re already managing work, family, a social life, and more, time seems to evaporate and there’s not much left for self care. But you’ll suffer if you’re not taking care of yourself.

When you neglect self care, other areas of your life can start to decay. Skipping out on exercise, relaxation, and meditation offered by yoga is generally bad news for stress management. If you’re not getting that outlet for stress, it’s more difficult to relax and focus on what you need to do as you’re working or managing your life.

Even if you struggle to find pockets of time for yoga in your usual schedule, remind yourself that self care is a priority, and completely necessary for making sure you’re in a healthy, happy place to go about your life.

How To Fit Yoga Into Your Life

When life gets busy, sleep and physical activity are usually the first things to go. If you have to cut somewhere, you’ll probably cut there. But you shouldn’t. While sleep is tough to just squeeze in here and there, yoga is fairly easy to find small areas of time to practice.

Making yoga a priority in your life can go a long way to not brushing it off. Remind yourself that yoga time is productive time — after all, you’re taking care of yourself. Make a no excuses promise that you’ll stay on top of yoga practice. Schedule activities around yoga and other priorities, not the other way around.

Think about how you can combine yoga with other activities if needed. For example, if you’re caring for children and need an engaging family activity, why not do yoga together? Making yoga a family activity can not only help you squeeze in your yoga time, but make be a fun, relaxing thing to do with kids.

Or if you’re stuck at work longer than you’d like to be, remember that it’s important to get up and stretch your legs every now and then. Each time you get up from your desk, think about an easy yoga pose you could do right there in the office, or tuck into a private area for a 10 minute session a few times throughout the day.

For longer sessions, set a reminder and plan ahead. Just putting yoga in your calendar makes it a firmer commitment. Even better, think about how you can prepare for success. If you need to pack your yoga mat and clothes the night before, set a reminder on your phone so you’ll remember to do it before you get in bed. That way, you’ll be better prepared so all you have to do is grab your stuff and get to where you need to be.

Another way to fit yoga into your day is to make it part of your bedtime routine. You need a way to wind down and relax at night — why not do that with yoga? Plan some easy, relaxing poses that you can do each night for a few minutes so you can calm down, shake off the stress of the day, and feel better. You can even do yoga in bed if that’s all you’ve got energy for!

It’s easy to prioritize other activities over yoga, but that’s a mistake. Plan ahead, make yoga an important task, and think about how you can fit it into your busy schedule so you can enjoy the restorative benefits of yoga.

Susan Austin is a family research specialist with Family Living Today. A mother of three and small business owner in Texas, Austin spends her days juggling work and family life — sometimes expertly, sometimes not.