The Freedom to Set—Or Not Set— Goals in Your Yoga Practice

I'm curious: do you set goals for your yoga practice?

Sometimes a goal can be highly motivating.

It can help you aspire to work hard and to reach further than you have in the past. Giving yourself milestones on the way to a large goal can also help you notice your progress and celebrate along the way.

Goals give us structure and help us to create a system for how we’ll get from where we are to where we want to be.

There is also a sweetness— a spacious freedom— in having no goal in mind.

We become completely immersed in the present moment.

Do you give yourself permission to practice yoga without any specific goals in mind?

Do you allow yourself to be so fully immersed in the awareness that today’s practice has to offer that there is no need for a specific goal?

I’ve experienced both sides. Goal setting. Consistency. Structure. Intensity.

And also, the freedom and spaciousness of having no goals — no set end result that I’m seeking— to just allow the beauty of the process. There is value and wisdom in both.

PS: Mindful ways to set goals in your practice.

Photos by Angelo Hilton.