My Yoga Michi

I’ve been doing yoga since I took free classes at the University of Florida back in the day. After that, I took lessons at the gyms I belonged to. Then, more recently, (besides the month of yoga in Bali I did), I’ve been either practicing at home or attending studio classes every once in a while. I even used to be a member of two different online yoga channels.

 

When it comes to practicing yoga, we have so many choices.

 

1. Studio classes

PROs

-Best quality (a teacher will check your form, etc)

-Good for motivation

 

CONs

-Can be expensive

-Inconvenient time-wise (classes are at certain times, and it takes more time to get to and from the studio)

-Language barrier if you live in a foreign country

 

This is obviously the best choice for quality. However, if you don’t have the time, there isn’t a location nearby, you live in Japan and don’t understand Japanese, or just don’t have the money to shell out, it might not be a realistic choice. In Japan, an average class can range anywhere from $15 (1,500 yen) to $30 per lesson, and around $120 (12,000 yen) for a monthly membership.

 

2. Online yoga memberships

PROs

-Wide selection of videos and teachers to choose from

-At home

-You can choose when you do it

-Cheap, but not free

 

CONs

-Selection may not be that good

-May be hard to stay motivated

 

I tried Gaiam (formally Yoga Online) for almost two years, and Yoga International. I didn’t really like the selection of videos they had, and I never found an instructor that I liked that much. That said, it’s really inexpensive. When I had Gaiam, I think I paid like $90 for a whole year. Yoga Online was around $10 a month, but still really inexpensive and you have 24/7 access to videos.

 

3. YouTube

PROs

-FREE

-At home

-You choose when to do it

-Wide selection of videos and teachers to choose from

 

CONs

-May be hard to stay motivated

-No one there to check your form

 

Years ago, I searched and searched for yoga videos but they were bad, I mean baaaaad. Nowadays, with all the YouTuber madness and competition, they’ve gotten much, much better. This is awesome because it couldn’t be any more convenient and also it’s absolutely FREE! A couple drawbacks might be motivation and if you’re not too familiar with yoga, you don’t have anyone to check your form so you need to be careful.

 

4. Yoga Events

PROs

-Usually FREE

-You can make Yogi friends

-All about having fun

 

CONs

-There aren’t many going on

-Might not match your schedule

-Inconvenient time-wise

 

Living in a big city like Tokyo, has it’s perks. There are always events going and opportunities to try things for free and meet a community of really sweet people. I went to a huge yoga festival a couple years ago and they had hundreds of people taking lessons all day long on the lawn. Also, my friend had an event called Tokyo Community Yoga Project where he got different instructors to teach events usually in Shinjuku Gyoen Park every month or so. I think Lululemon, the yoga clothing company, also gives free yoga classes in their stores sometimes. I haven’t checked around to see if there are any other events like this going on, but if someone know’s please comment below or we can start a forum and share the info.

 

 

My current yoga situation

 

A mix of 1(Studio) and 3(YouTube)…and of course, I’m open to #4 (Events) if there are some events going on. My main source of yoga yumminess at the moment is YouTube, believe it or not. I also use YouTube for other fitness videos, too, so I might write about that in the future.

I found thee BEST YouTube yoga instructor. Her name is Adriene Michler. At first, I wasn’t too sure about her (sorry that sounds really bad), but I totally fell in love with her and her style of teaching after just a couple sessions. She’s got a really quirky sense of humor and you can tell she’s just the sweetest person. Apparently, she’s even a voice actor for DC comics. You can also tell she knows yoga well, both the physical and spiritual aspects, and does a great job of teaching both. I always feel like I’m getting a class at the Yoga Barn in Bali or something (without the lovely ambience of course). Oh and, she’s usually accompanied by her dog, “Benji” – super cute.

I had fallen off the horse after moving back to the city and needed to ease back into it. If you’re the same or are a beginner, I recommend her “TRUE 30-day Yoga Journey.” Each day has a different theme like “Trust,” “Detox,” and “Balance.” I always feel like my body is awake and powerful after doing a good yoga class, and this program’s classes are no exception. It’s a really good mix of challenging and relaxing, and she gives lots of pose variations when you need a break. She has a bunch of other videos but I haven’t got to many of those yet. I’m pretty sure they’re just as good and filled with poses that’ll feel super “yummy.”

 

Adriene Mishler’s site:

http://yogawithadriene.com/adriene-mishler/

 

Yoga with Adriene:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFKE7WVJfvaHW5q283SxchA

TRUE 30-day Yoga Journey:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLui6Eyny-UzwIo3OBXV_KlsWaxUANvWhh

Of course, nothing beats taking a class with a really good teacher in real life. So, the other thing I’m doing is I’m supplementing the YouTube yoga with once-a-month lessons at a studio. I have an amazing yoga instructor and friend who has a home studio that is really nice and relaxing to go to. She has workshops and events from time to time too that I try to participate in whenever possible. I have to say though that the type of teacher you have makes a huge difference. I feel amazing after taking lessons with Yukari, and wish I could go all the time. But I’ve taken classes at gyms that were just okay. So, I’d really recommend finding a good teacher through word of mouth.

I like to mix up really good quality things while being mindful of the resources (ie. money and time) that I have. I try to approach most of my mindful lifestyle choices (shopping, eating, etc) this way.

Please comment below if you have any other information or tips that might help someone. We’d all appreciate it. (*^_^*) ♡

 

JAPANESE TRANSLATION below…