The regular practice of yoga is important, but determining what time of the day you do your practice is just as equally essential. If you are new to yoga, you probably have not heard about any of the many great benefits of practicing yoga in the AM. Here are a list of 15 reasons why it’s recommended you practice yoga in the morning. Choose one or more of these great reasons to motivate you to get up a little early and get moving, flowing and breathing on your mat.
1. Sun salutations
The practice of sun salutations was traditionally done to greet the sunrise and be thankful for a new day. When you practice yoga in the morning, you are acknowledging and getting in sync with the natural rhythm of the earth.
2. Intentionality
Part of practicing yoga is setting the intentions for your practice. Regularly doing it in the morning time will help you become more intentional about your study of yoga.
3. Promote peace
One of the many reasons why people do yoga is to have inner peace. Practicing yoga in the morning will help you get your day started gently and without rush.
4. Energize without caffeine
We all need energy in the morning. While most people will reach for a cup of Joe to get a boost, yoga students practice yoga in the morning to get energized without the use of caffeine.
5. Personal time
It’s always important to allow yourself some me time. Don’t wait until the end of the day to give yourself some quality time; you’re usually tired by the end of the day. Rather, spend some personal time in the morning by practicing yoga.
6. Exercise
Sometimes it’s difficult to make time for exercise throughout a busy day. Fortunately, yoga in the morning doesn’t take too much time, and it will provide you the exercise you’ll need for the rest of the day.
7. Mental clarity
The focus and concentration promoted by yoga is most useful when you practice in the morning. By clearing your mental state at the beginning of the day, you’re preparing yourself to tackle the most difficult parts of the rest of the day.
8. Morning quiet
One of the best reasons why you should practice yoga in the morning is because of the quiet. There’s a certain hush that happens before the world wakes up. Take advantage of this time to go deeper into your yoga study.
9. Boost digestion
It’s no secret that one of the benefits of yoga is improved digestion. By practicing yoga in the morning, you are promoting the health of your digestive system early in your day. This will allow your gut to be healthier and stronger to handle the day.
10. Habit builder
Regularly practicing yoga in the morning will help you build better habits altogether. Consistency in yoga practice is more common among those that choose to do it in the morning.
11. Sharper brain
If you are looking to increase your brainpower before your workday starts, you should give it some time to be still and focus. One of the main purposes of yoga is meditation, and meditating in the morning will help increase your productivity and alertness.
12. Prevent injury
Your body takes some time to wake up, and practicing yoga in the morning will help you stretch out all the stiffness in your muscles and joints. This will decrease the likelihood of injury throughout the day.
13. Immune boost
Promoting your circulation the way you do when you practice yoga in the morning is important. Waking up your body’s systems will help give your immune system a much needed boost each day.
14. Prevent procrastination
Having a “do it later” mentally can happen even in yoga. By practicing yoga at the start of your day, you are preventing procrastination from happening. In turn, you’ll feel more all the more productive for doing it rather than not.
15. Better sleep
Believe it or not, everything you do during the day affects how you sleep at night. A solid yoga practice in the morning helps promote better sleep, and it all just gets better the more you practice yoga regularly in the morning.