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Practicing yoga is undoubtedly very beneficial. However, yoga’s biggest benefits are not just learning how to perform different asanas, but it’s also about developing certain habits that help you become a better person in your everyday life.
Yoga is a virtuous practice, but there are still numerous things, or you may call them habits, that can create a hindrance in your yoga sessions. The best thing you can do to make the most of your yoga classes is to identify those habits and break them.
For the sake of your health and better yoga practice, here's a look at seven bad yoga habits you should break for a more productive session.
Bad yoga habits to get rid of
1) Stop pushing your body beyond its limits
The first thing you should start doing while practicing yoga is to respect your body, mind and soul.
You should stop getting restless and pushing your body beyond your limits, as that can potentially lead to injuries. You must know when to say enough is enough and differentiate between muscle pain and something more serious. Never push yourself through the pain; instead, allow your body to learn with time and patience.
2) Don’t stop yourself from speaking up
If you are a beginner, have an injury, are pregnant or simply nervous about certain asanas, do not shy away from discussing the same with your yoga teacher. While some teachers go around asking the class about their problems, others may not do that. However, this doesn’t mean you shy away from speaking up.
Before you start your practice, make sure your yoga teacher has all the information about your health and well-being to help you safely do various yoga poses and postures.
3) Do not hold your breath while performing asanas
Breathing is of utmost importance, as it keeps us alive. It also plays the most significant role in yoga practice. However, many people have a habit of holding their breath while performing yoga, which is very wrong.
Holding your breath tends to stop the energy within you, depriving your body of the required amount of oxygen and impacting your body negatively. Therefore, you must always make sure to breathe easily and deeply while performing any asana to get the most out of your yoga sessions.
4) Stop comparing yourself
One of the worst yoga habits you should break is to stop comparing yourself with others. Although it’s tough not to compare yourself with others, that is exactly what you need to do.
It doesn't matter what the girl sitting next to you in your yoga class can do, so don’t feel bad about yourself. Just give yourself the proper time, and work your way up to achieve your goals.
Staying definite about your goals will help keep your insecurities ruining your practice. It will also reduce the likelihood of pushing yourself to keep up with others.
5) Don’t rush to go home
There may be days when you have an emergency and want to leave your yoga class early, but do not make that a habit and leave early every day.
You are busy and will have commitments, but you should always wait a few extra minutes to complete your asana and end your session with a few minutes of savasana.
6) Don’t stop yourself from having fun
Yoga definitely needs commitment, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t enjoy doing it. Your yoga practice doesn’t need to be serious; rather, it should be fun and always done with a light approach. Take on that challenging asana with a smile on your facem and laugh it off if you fall out of a yoga pose.
7) Don’t stop challenging yourself
Another bad habit you should break is not coming out of your comfort zone. Always remember that growth happens when you leave your comfort zone, and you are prepared to challenge yourself.
However, that doesn’t mean you need to push your body through pain and attempt poses that are not good for your health. It simply means you should challenge yourself in ways that are not harmful to you.
Takeaway
Your yoga session is one of the most secure spaces where you can just be yourself. While on some days you’ll want to practice low-intense asanas, on other days you can just sweat it out by performing challenging poses.
Whatever your practice looks like, the most important thing is to hold on to your good habits, and stick to them. Also, eliminate all your bad yoga habits, and replace them with healthier ones to continue developing yourself.
