https://www.yogajournal.com/practice/this-sequence-is-going-to-make-you-want-to-practice-with-your-mom?platform=hootsuite

This Sequence Is Going to Make You Want to Practice With Your Mom

Here’s how one yoga teacher’s relationship with her mother has evolved thanks to their shared yoga practice. Plus, a customizable sequence to inspire you to practice with your mom, too.

CHRISTINE GAGEN

10 HOURS AGO

Here’s a yoga sequence you can practice with your mom.

Caroline Rocchetta

My mom, Denise, started practicing yoga regularly in 1998. At the time, no one she knew was doing yoga yet, but she loved it and stuck to her Ashtanga practice. When I was in high school, she brought me to my first class, and I quickly fell in love—not only with the yoga, but also the fact that it was something we shared.

Fast forward more than a decade—and a transition to Vinyasa-styleclasses—and my mom and I have practiced next to or near one another thousands of times. We practice around the country, with other family members, even when inspiration for an impromptu session in my parents’ garden strikes. And it has made us close in some amazing ways. When she comes to a class I’m teaching, I get to adjust her and observe her beautiful practice. (She has the most impressive Revolved Triangle!). We also find ourselves talking about what yoga feels like off the mat; how this ancient practice we both love so much has shaped our lives. As we both get older, we talk about the fact that time has changed our bodies, our balance, our joints, our progress, and our struggles.

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Best of all, our shared yoga practice has given me the gift of being able to witness my mom’s strength and grace. Through the unique thread of our shared appreciation of yoga, our relationship has evolved so sweetly—through awareness, honesty, and mutual respect—and has made us true companions sharing the kind of inner journey yoga inspires.

I created this sequence to practice with my mom in the hopes that it might inspire you to practice with your own mom, dad, or family member. All of these poses can be held for shorter or longer than suggested, and the flow can be broken down pose by pose or even repeated with the breath multiple times. Have fun and encourage each other with steady breath and a joyful energy that’s sure to emerge as you practice together.

Try this yoga with mom sequence

1. Siddhasana (Easy Seat)

Sit on a folded blanket or block with your ankles crossed, hips slightly higher than your knees. Lengthen the spine and align your ears over your shoulders, and shoulders over your hips. Close your eyes and breathe in and out through your nose as you begin to connect with your breath. As you inhale, root the base of your spine and your thighs; as you exhale, lift up through the crown of your head. Take in any noises and the setting around you, and try not to let them distract you.

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Caroline Rocchetta

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About the AuthorChristine Gagen is a yoga and Pilates teacher in Greenport, New York, and Miami, FL. Follow her on Instagram here.