How Much And How Often Should One Practice Yoga?

The term sadhana in Sanskrit means practice.perfection in Yoga by constant practice. Success will
Committing to practicing yoga on a regular, if not daily,follow him who practices, not him who practices not.
basis, reaps immeasurable benefits. Students often tellSuccess in yoga is not obtained by the mere
me that they cannot commit to an hour a day- theytheoretical reading of sacred texts. Success is not
simply do not have the time. In such cases, Iobtained by wearing the dress of a yogi or sanyasi (a
recommend deciding the time frame you canrecluse), nor by talking about it. Constant practice alone
realistically commit to each day, even if it is just fiveis the secret of success." (Ch.1, v. 64-6)
minutes. Much better to do this than to practice for... by the way, do not belittle the value of doing
two hours twice a week. Experts say build a routine'flossingyourteethasana'. Anything that you do mindfully
and you are more likely to stick to it. I agree. After aand with your full attention is yoga. If you are thinking
while, missing a practice begins to feel like neglecting toabout something else, you might as well be doing that
brush your teeth or shower daily. It just does not feelsomething else.
right if you do not do it.Practice staying fully present in each moment.
As the classic 15th century Sanskrit text The HathaWhether you are driving, washing the dishes or doing a
Yoga Pradipika tells us:"The young, the old, theSun Salutation- be fully engaged in the task at hand.
extremely aged, even the sick and the infirm obtainThen you are truly in Yoga, in union, with the Self.