I Have Never Regretted Paying For This In My Yoga Practice
It feels really good to buy things.
What doesn’t feel good is knowing that financial inaccessibility is a big problem in the yoga industry.
When I source yoga supports for my private yoga clients, I am angry that yoga blocks are sold separately and each one costs $30. I am upset that a yoga bolster is upwards $100. I am infuriated that a $60 yoga mat will not prevent you from sliding around. These are common enough supports. They aren’t anything fancy but what you would use in a regular yoga class.
When commonly yoga products are priced at this tier, it is another signal that the yoga industry is catered to anyone who can identify as middle class or white.
This is why my advice to fight back is to first find dupes around your household and if you really enjoy it then consider buying the thing from socially conscious companies.
It feels really good to buy things but it can be easy to have your experience of yoga tainted by the consumption of the practice. I know this because I’ve been on both extremes. I started practicing when I was 15, and I practiced in oversized tee shirts that I used to sleep in and cast off shorts or tights that I found in my sister or my mom’s room. And in all of my years of practice, I bought my first pair of Lululemon leggings in 2019.
It’s so easy to waste money on consumer goods. I definitely got the legging bug. Pretty outfits are great. I love fashion as a form of self-expression but they are not essential to how they can improve your yoga practice.
Yes. Buying pretty things can inspire you to practice more. More often than not, I would end up practicing in the sets that I had broken in, leaving my more pretty sets for “special yoga occasions.”
So when I write this, I am writing for the you that is me who has trouble with discretionary spending. Who may feel if they buy it, they’ve done it. Who may feel they buy to belong.
I’ve never regretted budgeting this in my yoga practice:
#1 The teacher.
A good teacher is hard to find. A good teacher that has the resources to build a connection with you? Hold on to them tight. They will not only inspire you, and keep you accountable, but it is working with a teacher that you realize that yoga is so much more than what we practice on the mat.
There are a lot of good teachers out there, and it can be hard to find the right teacher. It is okay if you have not found your teacher yet. It is also okay to know that your first teachers would not resonate with you today. A good teacher has something to offer, and the question is whether it is is something that you need to receive in this moment in time.
When you find your teacher, you know. Trust your feelings and don’t let them go!
It can be easy to feel a little embarrassed in front of your teachers. You form a bit of a crush or feel starstruck around teachers that you admire. This happened to me whether it was a girl or a boy. It’s okay! Don’t let that stop you from forming a connection, especially if you truly like their class. Nowadays, I don’t care if I am a fangirl. If I like a teacher, I will tell them to their face and I’ll be back the next day!
#2 The experience.
What I mean by that is special events like workshops and retreats. Unfortunately, most yoga classes in the west are primarily asana-based. This means that when we are craving more insight, it can be hard to find the same studio offering that to the keen student.
Yoga events can be a way to round out your your yoga practice. If you have interests in debate and conversation, find topics around yoga philosophy, myth and literature, and social justice. If you are interested in the arts, find topics around kirtan and mantra. If you enjoy sensory experiences not just asana, look for sound healing experiences.
Retreats are also an invaluable way to invest in your yoga practice. I have participated in yoga retreats and I have also held day retreats, as the co-creator of the Womxn of Color Summit, and it fills my heart with joy to hold a space for students to gather for a longer period of time for their yoga practice. I didn’t always used to feel this way. I am a self-professed homebody. To hear this come from me? Huge. Huge!
Yoga retreats help you to stay committed to your yoga practice. There is no excuse when you are in the ideal ashram environment. Often surrounded in nature with minimal technology use, and your meals and rooms taken care of, you get to focus on your practice with no distractions from your householder life.
Yoga retreats can give you a boost of inspiration. Sometimes, we find ourselves in a rut when we do the same thing every day. When we travel to a yoga retreat, the change of scenery can help us see how we can live our yoga with new eyes. We know it’s not about intellectually knowing but believing it and changing our attitudes and behaviours.
Yoga retreats help us find community all around the world. When you practice at home by yourself, the community is online. When you practice in a studio, you don’t always have deep conversations with folks, even if everyone is friendly. When you are in a yoga retreat, you know that the people who have opted in have a strong passion for yoga. Regardless of how long they have been practicing, something drew them to spend a plane ticket and more to focus on yoga. There is a whole world of yoga students who you might meet and become new friends with!
Oftentimes, if you have your teacher, they will have retreats, workshops, trainings for their community. I am hosting Reset And Recharge, a yoga retreat in Mexico April 15-16, 2023 in the Santiago Mountains, with my good friend Paola Arzola. We met in Bali when we were studying our 300 hours together. With mindful vinyasa yoga, trauma-informed yin yoga, and energy cleansing practices with limpia energetica con huevo and tarot readings, this will be a spiritual getaway for you to connect to your practice. Get your ticket during early bird sale!
Written By: Irene Lo