Have you ever sat in a quiet moment at the beginning of a yoga class, ready for an intense and very necessary practice only to be thrown for a loop when your teacher asks you to set an intention for the class? Don't let it stress you out!! That's NOT why you are here on your mat ready to workout!
Reasons why, as yoga teachers,we ask our students to set an intention at the start of class is that: it can be very helpful in giving you that extra something to focus. Yoga is tough - the mind wonders and we need to stick to our breath. An intention can help keep us present. Sometimes I suggest to my students to dedicate their practice to someone or something outside of yourself, which is another really nice way to increase the positive flow of energy.
So yes, all that sounds nice, but here you are ready for your workout and you are a blank canvas when it come to where to start for setting an intention! I mean, whats the "best" intention to set" ??? Picking the "perfect intention" that's a lot of pressure!!
BREATH my yogi! Deep breaths in and out through your nose! You can tailor your intention to whatever your particular need is that day. For instance, if you are feeling vulnerable one day, you might challenge yourself to be strong and fierce, and thereby encourage yourself to go after a tough pose you are wanting to achieve (ie getting into the crow pose and holding if for 5 breaths). Or you might remind yourself to be gentle with your body if you have an injury or just need to take it easy.
Say it! See it! Feel it! Be it ...and it will be so.
Still confused as to what is the "right" intention like cookie monster in a room full of cookies? Which is the perfect cookie? Well, as they said in the "Five Year Engagement" “There is no perfect cookie, just pick one and take a bite!”.
Intentions are similar to "perfect cookies" and don't need to be complicated either!
It makes me laugh when I think of the ways I use to try to set an intention sometimes - I would make it so complicated! I sit there and think to myself:
"My intention is to be healthy–no, happy!–umm.. or should I bemore mindful? Or wealthy! Wait!... Is that selfish? Maybe I should be a vessel for world peace? Or dedicate my practice to orphans.. Yeah! Orphans! But what about the cancer patients or the burn patients...only bad people forget the burn patients? Am I a bad person?… and so it goes.. and then I realise - it doesn't need to be SO COMPLICATED all the time!!
Here are great examples of some of the purest and most simple intentions for your yoga practice.
Say to yourself:
1. Chill out! Life isn’t stressful unless you let it stress you out. So, my intention is to just chill out for the next 75 minute and RELAX for a change.
2. Be OK with where I am right now, and realize it’s the perfect place for me. My best is good enough!
3. Fill up, take care of myself, and emerge refreshed and energetic. No more running on fumes.
4. Turn inward–if only for a few moments.
5. Take the lessons I learn on the yoga mat and apply them into all the other areas of my life.
Yoga is an amazing physical practice. In my power yoga my students are seeing that muscles tone and stretch, core strengthens, hard work pays off. While yoga offers very significant health benefits, yoga has the capability to go so much deeper. Setting an intention will help us get there but should never stress us out. The key here is connection with intentions. What this does is connect your physical practice to what you are doing to the why you are doing it in a body-mind-spirit manner.
Just know that an intention can be a simple, beautiful truth about you and why you practice. It doesn’t have to cure illnesses to be all overly meaningful or worldy effective. Setting your own intention is a great way get even more in tune with your own body and its individual needs.
Remember:
Say it! See it! Feel it! Be it... and it will be so.
Enjoy. Namaste
love Tara
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