You love your partner. You love yoga. Having a regular yoga practice isn’t just great for you (in ways I can't even count); it can also be a way to deepen your connection to your significant other. Yoga, after all, means yoke or union in Sanskrit.
Read on for some ways you can bring yoga into your relationship.
1. Yoga Date Night
Are you stuck in the date night rut of dinner and a movie? Or maybe you don’t even remember the last time you and your significant other ventured out for a little romance. Switch things up by making your next date a yoga date.
Practicing together is a simple way to connect. Set your mats up next to one another. As you both breathe, move, and center as individuals, notice the energy that flows between you. Of course, if your partner is new to yoga, make sure to start with a gentle class.
2. Partner Yoga
Many studios offer specific classes or workshops in partner yoga, a practice in which two people intentionally breathe and move together in linked poses. Here are some postures to get you started.
Begin with connected breathing and progress from there. Conclude your practice by bowing to one another and saying, “Namaste,” which translates to, “the Divine in me bows to the Divine in you.”
3. Restore and Renew
Restorative yoga is a style of yoga that relies heavily on props to create support and release. Yogis stay in these gentle restorative postures for around 5-10 minutes in order to deeply relax and restore their bodies, minds, and spirits.
While yoga props are nice to have, you can also use items from around your home like pillows and blankets. Take turns placing your partner into a restorative posture. Begin with a simple Savasana. Light some candles and turn on some peaceful music. Help your partner lie down on their mat and place a pillow or bolster beneath their knees. They might also benefit from some support beneath the neck.
Finally, gently drape a blanket over them, tucking it beneath their feet and hands. Sit next to your partner, holding the space for them so that they can surrender. After about 10 minutes, with loving hands and heart, remove the blanket and help them return to seated. Take turns practicing this and other restorative postures together. Notice how finding peace in yourself impacts your feelings toward your partner.
4. Off the Mat
The physical postures (what we call asana in Sanskrit) are only a small part of the huge tradition and practice of yoga. Two of the most important parts of yoga are the spiritual tenets called the yamas and niyamas.
These two limbs of yoga offer guidelines for how we should interact with others and with ourselves. The first two yamas are ahimsa, which translates to nonviolence, non-harming, or deep compassion, and satya, which translates to honesty or truthfulness.
The next time you and your partner disagree, consider exploring how these ideas can help to improve your communication. How can you balance honesty with kindness? Mastering that skill is one of the many ways that you can bring your yoga practice into your relationship.
What are some ways that you bring your yoga practice into your relationship? Sound off below!
Image credit: Briohny Smyth and Dice Ilda-Klein