I was traveling last week and had a jammed packed schedule. We left the hotel each morning between 7-8 am and didn’t return until 8 pm or after; it was go, go, go. It was awesome, but it also makes it harder to fit in yoga and self-care.

One, the scheduling is hard. Two, the energy to practice is hard to find. Third, the location (a hotel room) is not as conducive as a studio. 🙂

It definitely reminded me of what I so frequently tell others — yoga looks different depending on circumstances and is not always an hour practice. In fact, each day of vacation my practice looked different.

I practiced daily, but I never completed a traditional hour practice on my mat. Instead, I practiced meditation during travel times. I held an extended downdog at several rest stops. While waiting in line or to move to the next thing, I did some side stretches and ragdoll.

In my hotel room, I rolled out my mat in the evening and did some seated stretches and some cat/cow and child’s pose. No sun salutations, no standing poses, just grounding down and stretching out the day.

One night, after a few stretches, I just enjoyed sitting on my mat while I ate some much deserved chocolate cake and drank a glass of wine. That was self-care.

Each morning before getting out of bed, I scanned the body to see how it was feeling from the day before. I would point and flex my feet, take a full body stretch, take some single leg stretches, and a happy baby.

Yes, you can yoga in bed. It’s a great way to start the day and check in with yourself before rushing into the schedule.

The longest practice (not counting the cake/wine) was probably 20 minutes.

But each practice was exactly what I wanted and needed. Each practice helped me to be centered, grounded, and stretched.

My YouTube channel is a great resource for short practices if you want something and need a guide to lead you through so that you can relax the mind and let the body do the work and stretch.

If you are also new to yoga, I definitely recommend taking a Beginner’s Course to help you feel confident and familiar with poses and how they should feel. My online, comprehensive, self-paced Beginner’s Course breaks down poses and provides you with practice flows so that you have everything you need in one spot to enjoy a safe and nourishing practice. I am in your pocket, in your bag, ready to practice when you are. 🙂