{"id":1455,"date":"2017-02-12T18:39:06","date_gmt":"2017-02-12T18:39:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vickygooden.com\/?p=1455"},"modified":"2017-02-12T21:31:54","modified_gmt":"2017-02-12T21:31:54","slug":"15-minute-pyjama-yoga-practice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.vickygooden.com\/index.php\/2017\/02\/12\/15-minute-pyjama-yoga-practice\/","title":{"rendered":"My 15 minute pyjama yoga practice"},"content":{"rendered":"

Why I get up, shower and do yoga in my pyjamas every damn day.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I’ve practiced yoga on and off for 14 years. My earliest dabble in it was learning via books and DVDs in my bedroom when I was about 20 and suffering from acne conglobata (googling this condition is not<\/span> advisable when eating). I was on SO. MANY. PRESCRIPTION. PILLS courtesy of consultants and specialists and my GP to treat the bubbling and raw skin on my face, from Roaccutane and steroids to an ongoing concoction of antibiotics.<\/p>\n

Back then I didn’t know the hellish damage all these pills were doing to my insides. No doctor told me about the benefits of taking probiotics alongside the anti ones. I was 20, so my diet was questionable too. Before the acne struck, seemingly overnight, I was out on the town regularly with the girls, flirting with guys and my main concerns really were the contents of my wardrobe and affording a few vodka lime and lemonades. It was a time when the word Hipster referred to the low waisted Miss Sixty trousers I was so desperate for.<\/p>\n

So when I didn’t leave the house for near on 6 months apart from to go to the hospital and even then with a scarf pulled up to my eyeballs because little kids had previously pointed and asked \u2018what\u2019s wrong with that girls face mummy?\u2019, something compelled me to try yoga. It might have even been my mum, who used to attend evening classes through her work.<\/p>\n

Amazon was my bezzie, and I ordered books and DVDs to study in my bedroom. Back then it really was just about movement and holding certain positions and trying to get the Geri Halliwell abs. I hadn’t connected that breathing or spirituality was a part of the practice. But little by little my body started to change. Roaccutane can give you arthritic type pain but yoga seemed to counter that. It gave me something to focus on at a time when Instagram wasn’t a thing.<\/p>\n

Once my face finally started to heal (we\u2019re talking months down the line) and I subsequently had laser treatment to my cheeks to help with the scarring, yoga dropped away in importance as I tried to reclaim my old life back, reconnect with friends and brush it all off with a huge dose of fake confidence, almost dismissal.<\/p>\n

My twenties whizzed by and again I went to the odd class and did some bits at home. I remember joining the class at the doctors surgery where my mum was a receptionist, joining older ladies as we arched and warrior\u2019d and bridged together one evening a week.<\/p>\n

I used to spend a lot of money going to classes and I still will every now and then but I recently realised that I actually now feel confident in the nuts and bolts of it thanks to great teachers i\u2019ve had over the years. From the gentle Sue Delf,<\/a><\/strong> the patient Jaina<\/a><\/strong>, wonderful Laurent<\/a><\/strong> who I had the pleasure of learning from in the middle of a retreat in Slovenia some years back and the gorgeous Abi Adams\u00a0<\/a><\/strong>who I take inspo from on Instagram and who led a class I attended at Ally Pally last year for International Yoga Day. Experiencing different teaching approaches to guide you through a practice is one of the cool things about yoga. Some classes will be more serious or spiritual than others and once you’ve got to grips with the basics, you can then adapt your own personal practice by pick\u2019n\u2019mixing from all that you’ve learned.<\/p>\n

So!<\/p>\n

After reading Hal Elrod\u2019s \u2018Miracle Morning\u2019 book about a year ago and switching up my morning routine – more on that here – I went about introducing yoga into my life, DAILY. And I\u2019m not all fancy pants about it either. I will shower, throw on whatever clean pjs I can find, probably keep some snuggly socks on and start an unguided 15 mins yoga show for Rupert, who, warm by the radiator on the sofa literally couldn’t give a rats arse.<\/p>\n

I start with arms and shoulders, releasing out any caught tension there. Then on to neck and back and stretching out the back of the legs. Then some simple twists to wring out the spine further and massaging the internal organs, often accompanied by some satisfying creaks and cracks. Then laying down postures, supporting the sacrum and hips.<\/p>\n

My 15 minute morning yoga routine\u2026timelapse style!<\/b><\/p>\n