6 Ways to Set Up Your Home Practice Space
Nourish from Within
When we take time to create sacred space at home, we are filling our own cup to fulfil our own needs. We aren’t waiting for someone to come along and magically fulfil all the things we’ve been longing for; we are empowering ourselves to nourish from within.
Find Your Space and Define Your Purpose
The first step in setting up a space for your yoga or meditation practice is to think about how you want this space to feel. What will you be using the space for? Perhaps this space will be dedicated to the practice of stillness? You decide.
Whether you are in a yoga flow or are meditating the practice of stillness is created within the space.
When choosing a space, remember it doesn’t need to be a whole room, it can be the corner of a room. Think about whether your space is on show, integrated in your home or if it is concealed in a private part of your home.
Whatever works for you, its important to find a designated spot where you come back to each time. This allows the mind to prepare naturally as you return to your space daily.
“If you want to practice but don’t, ask yourself why would you put off something so beneficial to your well-being.”
Evoke Your Senses
I’m a huge lover of doTERRA essential oils and you will always find oils in my yoga practice and my classes. I love to use essential oils at the start and close of my practice.
My go-to oils are Adaptive, Balance, and Frankincense, I am never without these oils to ground my energy and quiet my mind. Essential oils enhance relaxation when you inhale them by stimulating the part of your brain which controls emotions, so there is real science behind it.
I also love incense; my favourites scents are Reiki, Seven Chakra and Karma from The Psychic Tree. You can also burn sage in the corners of your room to cleanse the energy and prepare the space.
Using soothing music or mantras Is also a lovely way to create a peaceful energy in your space, especially If you live near a road or live with other people. Try this soothing playlist I made for you on Spotify.
Make It Personal
This is where you can get creative, and it is one of my favourite ways to connect to my sacred space. When I say sacred, what I mean is “special” as opposed to mundane.
This is about putting energy and care into your space and finding ways to connect to it. For me, I love to create a little altar with objects that are meaningful to me.
I have a statue of Buddha, a photograph of my Gran, my Grandads old rosary beads, some crystals, an essential oil, and some other trinkets, such as postcards and quotes that inspire me.
This is unique to you, so just go for it!
Equip Your Space
You are going to need a yoga mat for sure. If you have just started out, you may not want to spend a lot of money whilst you test out various types.
In my experience there are lots of different mats out there. As a teacher one of the biggest complaints about mats is slipping hands and for this I absolutely love the Eco Jute yoga mat. It’s made with natural materials and wears down nicely over the years.
I also recommend having at least two yoga bricks or blocks. Bricks are squatter in size, great for helping you with forward folds or tricky hand to ground poses.
Blocks have a wider surface area and slimmer profile. They are both used for different things but if you are going to opt for one design over the other, I’d recommend beginning with two bricks, I find they are more versatile.
Care for Your Space
This is your sacred space so you will want to create clear, clean uplifting energy ready for your practice. It is a good idea to have a short preparatory practice before you begin meditation or practicing yoga.
I like to do this by tidying the space, lightly dusting my altar, making sure my photographs, quotes and trinkets are neatly displayed, I light incense and a few candles. This only needs to take 5 minutes, but it prepares your mind ready for your practice and removes distractions.
I love plants to decorate my space too. Plants are a great way to connect to nature and when we care for plants, we help to balance our root chakra making us feel more secure and a giving us greater sense of belonging in the world.
Light Up Your World
Consider how you will light your space. It you’re practicing in the morning it is beautiful to practice near a window where you can feel the morning sun. If that’s not possible, try to find another window you can practice nearby.
Sunlight releases those happy hormones, so we get a double effect practicing yoga by natural light. If it just isn’t possible to practice near natural light, don’t worry there are other ways to light your space.
Candlelight is beautiful and soothing and makes a lovely offering to your practice too. You could try fairy lights to give a cosy vibe, or you could even try a sunrise alarm clock. I use the Phillips one, it’s and investment but a complete winner for the dark winter mornings.
Keep It Simple
It’s super important that we create a dedicated space for our practice. Most rooms at home are dedicated to some activity whether it eating, cooking, sleeping or watching TV. Then why not have a space dedicated to stillness.
Not only will you benefit from this, but people around you will also benefit from your renewed energy and experience. We don’t need to shout about it we just need to live it and the magic filters through. That is the real magic of yoga.
Above all, keep it simple, manageable and keep it special. Let it be as you intend so that you always have a peaceful place to retreat to whenever you need it.
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