You wake up, the sun is rising and the house is quiet. While the rest of the family is still in bed visualize yourself going to a space that is all yours and enter a tranquil room. You light a few candles, maybe some incense and you roll out your mat. What if you could have a place, a space, that was all yours for your practice, what would that look like? What would that feel like?
Creating a space to practice can actually be very easy. Do you have a closed in patio, spare bedroom or closet? If you are looking for a space to practice yoga, qigong or other fitness routine, technically you only need a space about 4′ wide by about 8′ long. Sometimes creating a space for your practice can have a dual purpose. For me I had a closed in patio that was a sitting room, but to be quite honest we rarely used it. I decided I would make this into a home office with a space to practice and teach private lessons and meet with clients.
I started out by taking all the furniture out of the room — I sold the furniture on Craigslist — which funded my project. Next I painted the room a nice calming color. After painting the room, I found a used desk at a second hand store, cleaned it up and put it on one end of the room. With my husbands help we painted and put up a few shelves and set up my wireless internet connection. I then had my home office up and running.
On the other end of the room, I created a small alter. This consisted of a small table I found at a garage sale. I put a plant on the bottom shelf and found a salt lamp and a few candles also at garage sales and put them on the top of the table. I have quite a few books on nutrition, yoga, tai chi, qigong and spiritual writings and wanted these in the room. We had a bookcase from another room and decided to put this in the room, that way all my books relating to my profession were easily accessible. I also purchased a few other accessories to enhance the space.
Because this is a patio, the room can get very cold in the mornings and during the summer can get pretty hot. I choose thermo curtains to help balance the temperature. I also purchased sheer white curtains to help diffuse the light during the day. I hung the curtains and the space was complete.
By creating a space in your home you now have the freedom and convenience to practice on your time and conducive to your schedule. A place that is all yours with no interruptions. Whether you are looking for a place to go to calm your mind, meditate or you are looking for a space to get in an energetic practice having a space of your own can get you to the next level. There are many online classes and videos that you can use to help you get the most out of your practice.
There are also many online studios offering very reasonably priced memberships. These studios have many different types of videos for all fitness levels and some studios also offer live online classes and private lessons with certified, knowledgeable teachers. Now you can practice in the convenience, comfort and privacy of your own home with a qualified teacher at the fraction of the cost. If you think practicing online is not very personal — in reality — it can become very personal. You will find most of the teachers who teach live online classes are very personable and many times you will feel more of a connection with the teacher than when going to a crowded class at a studio. My students who practice with me in a live online class have had remarkable success and break throughs by practicing at home that they did not get when going to a gym or physical studio. The reason is they feel so supported being in the comfort of their own home.
Great suggestions