As a long time yoga teacher, I am about to do something borderline heretical. I want to tell you my 10 reasons to do online yoga classes.
Listen, I love going to yoga studio classes as much as the next leggings-wearing, crystal collecting person. The reality is that I have 2 small children and a husband with a weird schedule (thanks, Air Force), so getting out of the house to a yoga class even once a month is challenging.
Until I became a parent, I had no idea how fortunate I was to be able to leave the house on my own, to do things just for me whenever I wanted to.
Now I know better.
In the event you’re still on the fence about online yoga and you’re not quite sold on the many amazing benefits of practicing with a teacher in an online yoga community, here are my top 10 (plus 1) reasons why you should do online yoga classes.
Do yoga classes whenever you want:
This is a biggie. Most yoga studios have very conventional and limited schedule options. You have to fit your yoga into their preferred times, which might not be doable for you. When you do online yoga classes, you can fit the classes into your schedule.
Introverts Paradise:
Are you an introvert? Then online yoga classes are for you! Don’t like making small talk with people you don’t know? You’ll love online yoga classes. Would you rather do your yoga in your own space without having to leave your house? You should be doing online yoga classes already.
No traffic giving you stress:
Road rage while driving to your weekly yoga class is a tragic irony. If you’d rather a stress free commute to your yoga class, consider the minimal effort of walking from one room to the other and rolling out your mat.
No parking drama:
It’s bad enough to be stuck in traffic, but what if you can’t find parking? Adds insult to injury. Isn’t yoga supposed to relieve tension? Sometimes. Sort of. That’s a blog for another time. Still, if you only have to park your mat in front of your computer, imagine how much more calm and enjoyable your yoga practice will be.
No childcare needed:
I know this doesn’t apply to everyone, but as someone who regularly solo parents and also still has a child at home during the day, the childcare issue is a big one. Not only do you have to pay for class, you have to pay a babysitter, too. Or coordinate with your partner, parents, in-laws, or kindly neighbors. Either way, it’s an extra obstacle keeping you from your mat. Online yoga classes, remove that obstacle.
No weird smelly mats:
Other than your own, if you haven’t wiped it down lately.
More affordable:
If you drop in and take a single yoga class, it will usually cost you around $18. Just for one class. If you buy a class pass or a monthly unlimited pass, those can run you anywhere from $50 to $150 or more, depending. Online yoga is way more affordable. For $18 a month, you could join the Collective LITE, getting several new monthly yoga classes, plus meditation and pranayama AND a full, growing library of 15-minute classes you can do anytime you want.
For $28 a month, you could join the Collective and do 2 live classes with me per week, plus the full library of yoga classes, meditations, and pranayama.
It’s almost a steal.
There is no competition between online yoga classes and studio classes when it comes to affordability.
Choose your own yoga adventure:
Not only can you do yoga on your own schedule, but you can also choose what type of class you want to do. When you go to class at a studio, you are at the mercy of the yoga teacher. (insert evil genius laugh here). If you do live online classes, that’s also the case. But at least in my online yoga studio and community, I give warning about what the classes coming up will be, so you can choose whether or not to show up live. And maybe do one of the classes in the online class library instead. Point is, you get to choose.
Come as you are:
When you do online yoga classes, you can wear whatever you want to your class. Pajamas, bathing suit, tutu, gorilla costume…seriously, whatever you are most comfortable in and makes you happy. I know this should apply to attending studio classes, but there is a general uniform that most people wear to class, which can make some people feel like they have to dress the part of a yogi, instead of wearing whatever makes them feel good.
Building community beyond your immediate community:
When you go to your neighborhood yoga studio, you are taking class and connecting with people who live around the corner from you, shop at the same grocery store, and also happen to go to your favorite yoga class. This is awesome.
When you take an online yoga class, especially if you do an online live yoga class, you get to take class and connect with people who live all over the country. You get to see inside people’s living rooms (if their screen in on) and they get to see inside yours (if your screen is on). You’ll see their kids waving through the camera or stealing some mat space. Dogs, cats, parrots…stuffed animals are all things that share their space, too. You get to see that even though the world is really big, it’s also really small. This is powerful and awesome.
Your yoga is portable:
You can take your yoga everywhere you want or need to go. So if you’re on vacation and can’t find a local yoga studio, you have an online studio full of classes you already know and love. If you’re traveling for business and you don’t have as much free time to sneak out to a studio class, you can squeeze in a 30-minute class in your hotel room instead. Basically it’s “have internet connection, will travel.”
I want to quickly differentiate between doing online yoga classes on YouTube or Vimeo or even online streaming platforms like Yogaglo or Yoga International and joining an online yoga studio or community, like my Conscious Healthy Collective or the Collective LITE. In this blog, while I’m talking somewhat generally about taking online yoga classes, I’m partial to community-based online yoga studios (aka subscription services or memberships), because there is a greater opportunity to connect and support one another, just like you would in a studio class. Most subscription services don’t have this element of community built into their programs. I do, because I think it’s part of what makes yoga so powerful.
If this is something you’re interested in, I’d love for you to join one of my online yoga communities.
And as you can see, there are some phenomenal reasons to do online yoga classes.
And in my 2 online yoga studio communities, I focus as much on building relationships and living your yoga off your mat, as much as I do when I teach in yoga studios.
You can check out both of these amazing communities here:
I’ll be closing the virtual doors on these 2 online yoga studios on December 16th, so don’t miss your chance to join me on the yoga mat and kick off your new year with a steady, strong yoga practice!
Ready to join the world of online yoga? Check out my FREE Beginners series. 5 yoga classes delivered directly to your inbox! Get them below.
