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Many of us want to begin each day with more purpose. Instead, the alarm jerks you out of sleep with barely enough time to gulp down some coffee as you race to work. When your day continues in that vibe, making time to practice yoga can easily be lost in the rush of responsibilities that you call life. If you don’t have time to do it right, you tell yourself, why bother doing it at all?
And there goes your commitment to practicing yoga on the regular.
You’ve probably heard of James Clear’s book Atomic Habits on how to break bad habits and establish more positive ones. Maybe you’ve even read it. Since its publication in 2018, it continues to appear, again and again, in conversations related to changing behavior.
Clear talks about how easy it is to fall into common bad habit-formation traps, such as thinking in grandiose terms of what your behavior should look like, falling into all-or-nothing thinking and behaving, and fixating on an end goal that’s so different from your current reality that it seems unreachable.
Sound familiar?
How to Make Yoga a Habit
Consider what it means when the habit in question is your regular yoga practice, whether that means moving on your mat, taking time for conscious breathwork, or sitting in meditation.
The book establishes what Clear considers to be essential—and evidence-based— principles of successful habits. The first is that small actions, repeated consistently over time, create noticeable change. Second, successful habit formation is about supportive systems, not end goals. And finally, sticking to habits that confirm your identity.
You may already recognize the first two principles. Patient and persistent effort (abhyasa) along with non-attachment to outcome (vairagya) are foundational principles of yoga philosophy as outlined in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali (specifically sutras 1:12 to 1:16). And because you already identify as someone who practices yoga, you can check that third box as well.
Having a yoga practice means, quite simply, showing up to your mat over and over and over again, without holding tight to expectations around how you practice should look or feel. But how do you turn an intention into a sustainable habit?
Clear’s straightforward and research-backed suggestions for changing behavior make it straightforward.
1. Make It Obvious
This is all about giving yourself cues that remind you to do the behavior. The more cues you have to remind yourself of your desire to practice, the more likely you are to do it.
Your yoga practice becomes hard to ignore when you literally have to walk over your mat to get to the kitchen in the morning or go to bed at night. Instead of tucking your mat and any props away in a closet, keep them where you can’t help but see them, whether at the end of your bed or a corner of the living room. Schedule time for your practice on your calendar as you would any other commitment, even if 15 minutes is all you can manage on a given day. Maybe stick a post-it note reminder on your bathroom mirror or fridge.
Another way to encourage changed behavior is habit stacking. This means tying your desired new habit to an existing one, which can help automate your behavior. For example, consider scheduling your practice alongside a recurring point in your day—first thing in the morning before you check your email, as soon as you walk in the door after dropping the kids at school or getting home from work, or last thing at night after you do your skincare routine and before you slip into bed.
2. Make It Attractive
This draws on the fundamental human inclination to want to do something because it’s appealing to you.
Many of us make the mistake of forcing ourselves into practicing the kind of yoga we should have—the poses and styles we think we need rather than what we want. But it’s even easier to come up with excuses not to practice when you don’t look forward to the experience.
Instead, find a teacher, class style and studio you love, whether that means something serene and soothing or a little more spicy. If you practice at home, make sure you unroll your mat in a place where you can create a vibe that’s compelling for you, whether that’s outside, amid lit candles, maybe with your own playlist cued up.
It can also help to connect with friends who have a regular practice or take part in an online practice challenge to establish a sense of supportive community.
3. Make It Easy
One of the biggest mistakes we tend to make when creating a home practice or starting any new habit is starting too big. For example, imagining our practice requires an elaborate and time-consuming ritual or making it to the studio three times a week.
Just as tiny atoms are the building blocks of our universe, small habits build to big changes. So start with 2 minutes of stretching in the morning, five slow breaths before each meeting or daunting task, or one restorative pose before bed (which you could even practice in bed).
Make it about showing up for your practice again and again with regularity, not about how long you stay or how much you seem to achieve.
4. Make It Satisfying
Positive reinforcement helps make any new habit stick. You know you’ll feel better after practicing yoga, but for extra reinforcement, try delaying something indulgent—whether your morning coffee or social media scroll—until after your practice.
In the words of Clear, ”Some people spend their entire lives waiting for the time to be right to make an improvement.” If you want to create a regular home practice, don’t be that person. Don’t wait for some imagined day when you’re finally able to drag yourself out of bed while it’s still dark out to practice at home or when you have a job that allows you to make when you finally have time to make your fave teacher’s mid-morning class at the studio.
Start now by finding some way to include your changed behavior in the life you actually have. Be the kind of person who shows up to themselves every day, even if it’s for one minute, one pose, one day, or one conscious breath. Soon that habit will be so entrenched it no longer requires thought or effort and becomes two minutes, two poses, two days, or two breaths.
