Fifteen minutes of yoga every morning can be of great benefit to the way the rest of your day goes.

Your first reaction might be that you don’t have time for that in-between showering, making breakfast, pouring your coffee and getting out the door to work. But if we are being honest with ourselves, we know we do actually have the time.

Fifteen minutes is a mere two alarm snoozes, or the average time spent checking different outlets of social media before even getting out of bed to see if anything life-changing has happened within the last 10 hours. Neither of these habits that so many of us easily fall into are of benefit to ourselves.

Fifteen more minutes of sleep will not make or break how well-rested you are, especially when interrupted with rude alarm noises. And 15 minutes of seeing what the rest of the world is doing between seven and nine in the morning certainly isn’t a routine that will center you for the rest of your day. Again, especially considering how many more times you will check those same social media outlets later in the day, it’s unnecessary for it to be the first thing you do when you wake up.

It’s not easy to change our habits for the better because it usually means sacrificing short term comfort and pleasure. However, it is always beneficial for us in the long run, and you will thank yourself for it later.

Here are three little tips to ensure your 15 minutes of yoga happen each morning:

1. No checking the phone until after yoga.

Although it is tempting to start scrolling through Twitter like a morning paper, refrain from doing anything other than turning your alarm off until your 15 minutes of yoga is over. This prevents you from procrastinating on your yoga practice and possibly skipping it entirely.

2. Keep your yoga mat out at all times.

Although it may not seem like a big change, having your mat out on your bedroom floor or wherever you typically practice will make you more likely to commit to doing a daily practice, even if it’s short. Out of sight, out of mind, right? Well this works in reverse as well. Instead of having to roll out your mat, you just have to roll out of bed and start practicing.

3. Drink a glass of lemon water following your practice.

If you don’t have the lemons, it is still helpful to drink a glass of water in the morning before eating breakfast or drinking coffee. It clears out and awakens your digestive system as well as rehydrating your body after eight hours of not drinking anything.

Doing this will not only improve your strength and flexibility in your practice, but your body will feel more aligned for the rest of the day. It will also do what yoga does best and improve your mood and mindset, putting you in a better place for any events that may follow.

“The success of Yoga does not lie in the ability to perform postures but in how it positively changes the way we live our life and our relationships.” ~ T.K.V. Desikachar

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Author: Esther Fiore

Image: Courtesy of Emily Bartran