Our commutes were too long.
We were never home enough to enjoy our pets, families or communities.
We had to rush to get our spot at the gym, at the Yoga studio, in the parking garage.
We rarely got the personal attention we deserved.
Before COVID-19 forced us all to stop and pause the world seemed to focus on what the crowd wanted rather than the deeper benefits of happiness, mindfulness and community, which can only be experienced at a deeply personal level. To this regard many of us are looking for a better way to achieve health and wellness and a improved standard of living.
Thankfully a better way is brought to us, to our offices and homes via streaming platforms like YouTube, Instagram, Zoom, Google Meets, FaceTime. But what’s best for you? How do you weed out the noise and get exactly what you need for transformation?
Here are a few ways to approach the challenge of changing your health and wellness experience from brick and mortar gyms/studios to online platforms.
If you're a person with a good amount of exercise experience, mindfulness and self motivation you'll do great with Apps that provide easy-to-follow daily regimens. The down side to these Apps is that you must be able to create your own modifications, and you'll need to have a system to evaluate your progress and maintain your motivation. It’s just way too easy to slack off when you’re on your own. It’s also a little lonely.
People with a more gregarious approach to exercise will enjoy tutorials and classes on platforms like YouTube and Instagram. These platforms allow you to search for whatever you have in mind and then follow along in your own way by skipping exercises you don't like, pressing pause, or fast forwarding if you're short on time. If the stream is live you can leave comments and establish a relationship with the presenter. These classes and workouts are attractive because they're entertaining and fun. The down side is that you might only work on the things you like, which doesn't generate balance or transformation.
If you were paying for a gym membership in the past you might want to take those funds and get online, one-on-one sessions from an expanding arena of Yoga, Pilates and fitness trainers who are available and ready to serve. There are many advantages to one-on-one training. Things like accountability, assessment and evaluation toward your goal and personal attention are at the top of the list. Online sessions are far more convenient and far less expensive than in-house sessions. If you’re on a budget you can always combine a bi-weekly private online session with your favorite App. In this way you’ll get the best of both worlds. The down side here is finding a qualified and professional instructor who's dedicated to seeing you past immediate goals and introductory offers. Be sure to read testimonials and talk on the phone with prospective trainers before starting sessions.
While the big gyms may be closed you'll notice that small studios are providing their entire offering of classes and courses online via booking apps like Mind Body. This gives students a sense of community as well as a broad range of class styles, teachers and class times. The down side is it’s hard to get personalized attention during classes. Some of these classes can have 100s of students participating, and with your mic off it’s easy to be overlooked. It’s also important to make sure your studio has a generous refund policy in case classes or programs get cancelled.
I personally offer online, private Yoga sessions and bookable classes via my website. In order to maintain a sense of high touch I limit my class attendance to 10 and speak directly to students who may need an extra cue of encouragement. Students say it’s nice to know I’m watching their alignment. I also host 30 minute Apres Yoga meet ups so we can check in with each other during theses challenging times. I have students and clients from all over the world so it’s wonderful to provide sessions, classes and community.
Life has certainly changed and we're all looking toward the future with hope and optimism. Normalcy will return, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't take advantage of technologies that actually make our lives easier. In this way we'll restore value to our lives and to the lives of others.
I'm a 30-year Yoga and fitness professional specializing in online private Yoga, mobility and core conditioning sessions. I've performed 1000s of sessions and classes for some of the nation's top fitness organizations and I'm excited to offer my skills to you!
Subscribe and register for Online Private Sessions and Online Yoga classes at www.CecilysYogaRetreats.com. Follow me at Instagram.com/Cecily_Yogi for Alignment based Yoga classes or at YouTube.com/c/YogiCecily for Vinyasa Flow based classes. If you manage corporate teams be sure to reach out via my website for corporate Yoga classes.