Yoga, space, and boredom
new moon intentions
“For a moment, I bend into the possibility
of moving beyond opposites —
my body stretching as if it was one big womb
that could hold it all.”
-Corie Feiner, Warrior I
New moon: a pause, an intention.
Happy new moon, Yoga Mamas! I’ve been pondering the elements and how they connect to our yoga practice. Here in the northern hemisphere we’re getting close to that time of year when the fire element takes over: summer! It’s that time of year when we either rush to do everything we couldn’t do during the cold months, or we relish the extra time off and that precious space in the schedule to do more nothing.
It’s the new moon today! New moon is considered a time of setting intentions and as we are on the brink of a seasonal shift (from spring to summer), let’s look forward to how we enter this time of year with clarity. That means taking a step back to look at the big picture, sensing into how the movement between seasons and elements affects us, then moving forward in a meaningful way.
For me, stepping back to take stock means creating space, taking a pause to sense and feel, then taking up that space with all of my being. How does that look in a yoga practice? Read on!
Taking up space
I recently brought my 3-year-old son to a family yoga class, where all the toddlers stayed on their mats with their caregivers. Meanwhile, my son exuberantly ran all around the room, landing now and then on our yoga mat, only to embark on another journey around the space.
After the class, I commented to the teacher that my son is like a liquid, taking up whatever space he’s in. It made me think how sometimes we can feel so contained and rigid in yoga, occupying only our mats and worrying about whether or not we are in alignment.
I’m always for breaking alignment rules if it feels good in my body. Actually, it can be very refreshing to wiggle in poses or add movement to our practices. Maybe my son got it from me: this drive to go outside the lines and explore lots of different possibilities.
Sometimes the little ones in our lives take up so much space: toys all over the living room, schedules that have us taxiing them to and fro, and even the emotional space they take up as they learn (very gradually) how to regulate their emotions.
I don’t know about you, but sometimes I forget about my own needs. Sometimes my physical space as well as my mental space and my schedule get overtaken with my kids’ things. If you ever get to this point, it can be nice to remind yourself to have a moment of pause and embody that sense of occupying the space you’re in: flow like air or water and really stretch and expand your body on your mat. I’m silently thanking my son now for this reminder:)
Here are a few of my favorite poses that help me feel like I’m expanding my whole body and breath:
Wide-Angle seated forward bend
Here’s a mini sequence on taking up space with the breath and body. I hope you take a moment to savor it!
It’s powerful to not only take up space, but feel comfortable doing it. But of course, we need time in order to practice this. We can’t fully settle into a space and a place without enough time to just be there. You hear the saying “Time is money.” Well, that might be true sometimes, but here I’d like to suggest that time is also space. And sometimes, that space begs to be filled.
The same can be true of yoga practice: we might find ourselves in a yoga class where we wish the teacher were doing more or saying more. Or maybe we find ourselves on our yoga mat at home, at a loss for what to do, or maybe just tired of our usual practice.
Boredom (time and space to fill)
This next little bit is an excerpt from a chapter in a Yoga Mama Manual I’ve been working on. The chapter is called, “Motherhood: Mundane Cycles and Daily Life.”
I have a confession to make: there have been so many moments in which I felt that being a mom was boring. Don’t get me wrong, I love being a mom, but there are times when I feel like I’m not really doing anything particularly meaningful and inspiring. I might know intellectually that my impact as a mom is important, but it’s often hard to feel the gravity and power of it when my day is full of tiny tasks like sweeping up crumbs, changing diapers, picking up toys, and chopping vegetables. It’s hard to feel like I’m making a difference in the community or the world when something as basic as filling and starting the dishwasher is cause for celebration!
Chores can be so tedious…
But, boredom is fleeting. I remember as a child, I’d follow my mom around the house, complaining that I was bored. Her solution was to give me some vegetables, a knife, and chopping board and have me help her make dinner. And you know what? To this day I love cooking. So my boredom fostered a closer relationship with my mom and I also got a great life skill out of it.
In fact, boredom can spark creativity. There are times when I get bored of yoga, too. I roll out my mat and do the same old poses; I go through the motions because ‘it’s good for me.’ I forget that yoga can be fun, exploratory, experimental — it’s best approached as a process-oriented, not outcome-driven practice. At least we get more out of it if we treat it as a practice, not a performance.
In light of this, here’s my invitation: I would like to propose that when momlife gets monotonous and somehow you can’t get yourself to practice even a few poses, try writing out a sort of survival tool kit for when yoga doesn’t seem attainable or enticing. I find that most of the time when I believe I don’t have time for yoga, it’s just a belief. I might not have time to do an hour of uninterrupted yoga, but there are ways I can give myself some time to recharge.
Let’s break it down with these statements:
In moments when I don’t have time for yoga, I will/can ____________(to recharge myself).
When I’m too tired to do yoga on my mat, I will/can ___________(to recharge myself).
In order to do yoga, I need ____________________________.
Here are my examples in the moment:
In moments when I don’t have time for yoga, I will/can do a pose or two anyway while I am watching the kids play in the living room.
When I’m too tired to do yoga on my mat, I will/can do yoga nidra or take a catnap.
In order to do yoga, I need to plan 3-5 minute practices that I do no matter what. This can include formal practice on my mat (postures, breathing, meditation), or it can include reading yogic texts or meditating in bed before I sleep.
My yoga practice right now might not look anything like what I expected pre-kids, but over the years, I’ve been inspired to find the most calm I can in my mini-practices. But if you’re truly bored, with motherhood, yoga, or life, check out these three posts here, here, and here to share yoga with your family in a fun way. It might be just what you need to shake up the monotony!
Some articles on motherhood and boredom:
https://www.motheruntitled.com/blog/2023/3/10/expert-tips-for-dealing-with-boredom-as-a-sahm
https://helpmychildthrive.com/boredom-in-motherhood-the-good-the-bad-the-ugly/
So I wonder, on this new moon, day of setting intentions, how will you find space and then fill it up? What will you do when boredom arises? And how will you keep your yoga practice fresh and relevant to how you are in each and every moment?
Also, did you catch the quote at the beginning of this post? It’s from my fellow Substacker,
. Here’s the entire breathtaking poem, shared with Corie’s permission:)
Did you enjoy this post? I hope so! And I hope you share the love, too.