Outdoor Yoga: 5 tips for practicing outdoors

Outdoor Yoga

Summer is almost here: We are already keen to get outside – because nature gives us strength and teaches us connection… We have 5 tips for your outdoor yoga .

Handstand on the sandy beach, tree in front of palm trees, sun salutation at sunrise – if you look at the yoga photos on social media, it looks as if yoga generally takes place outdoors. But we all know that while these are beautiful motifs, they are rarely the reality: the practice mostly takes place indoors – in the studio, in the living room and, in times of Corona, more often than ever on the screen.

5 tips for outdoor yoga

Outdoor Yoga
  1. In the right place: Quiet, flat, sheltered from the wind and with a great view – the ideal yoga spot is not that easy to find in nature. It usually works better the other way round: let yourself be inspired by a place that you are drawn to and that just feels “right” for you. There you will then find a practice that suits both the conditions and your mood – even if it is just a nice, grounded Tadasana (mountain pose) .
  2. Include everything : Practicing outdoors is rarely as undisturbed as at home: insects crawling over your legs, a sudden gust of wind, a butterfly, a stone piercing the mat – many things attract our attention outdoors, and not everything is pleasant. The challenge is not to perceive the pleasant as a welcome distraction and the unpleasant as a source of disturbance: everything that is there now is a living part of your thoroughly alive experience. We call this open, non-judgmental presence mindfulness.
  3. Maintaining the energy : Focusing and collecting yourself outdoors as well as you do when practicing indoors is perhaps the biggest challenge. While the energy seems to condense more and more when practicing indoors, outside you have the feeling that it is evaporating. The only thing that helps here is complete openness to the experience as it is: practicing outdoors is very different – and this difference is something you need to discover and appreciate.
  4. With all senses : Instead of withdrawing the senses ( Pratyahara ), we initially try the exact opposite when practicing outdoors: we use all senses to connect with our surroundings. We feel the earth beneath our feet and the breath of air on our skin. We smell the forest floor, taste the sea breeze. We hear the sounds near and far and see the sunbeams peeking through the branches. All of this can touch us and make us resonate – just as our practice has an effect on this environment.
  5. Let the outside and the inside merge : The actual idea of ​​this practice, as in yoga in general, is a deeper connection: we go outside and at the same time move inwards. And the other way round: we feel from our inside and connect with the outside. In doing so, we perceive that the nature around us is also within us, and we are a part of it with every fibre of our being.

Read also: Harnessing Inner Peace: The Transformative Power of Yoga Meditation