At some point in time, many people stumble across yoga and maintain a strong practice after realizing that they’re able to attain a wide range of incredible benefits. The benefits can include anything from weight loss to heightened self-awareness to the development of authentic, loving interactions with others. Many individuals find that they enjoy the process of making progress with their practice and want to take it to the next level. Yet they reach plateaus and find themselves getting stuck. If this is your dilemma, don’t worry. Instead, start implementing some or all of the following strategies so you can take your yoga practice to the next level:

1. Put The Self-Inquiry Process First.

One of the best ways to take your yoga practice to the next level is by placing primacy on the self-inquiry process. This approach is important because once you realize who you are, you’ll be able to figure out how to practice more effectively. For example, if your self-inquiry process helps you realize that you’re not an image-based person, practicing in a commercialized yoga studio will likely not be ideal for you. In fact, completing your asanas in a studio that puts wearing perfect workout clothes over and above mastering postures or drawing more awareness to the breath and heartbeat can detract from your progress with your practice. Because there’s no “right” or “wrong” way to practice, knowing who you are and what constitutes an authentic, progressive yoga practice in your mind is imperative if you’re seeking real growth.

2. Eat Optimally.

In addition to putting the self-inquiry process first, make sure that you start eating optimally. Doing so will ensure that you maintain mental clarity and physical stamina while you are completing your asanas. In many cases, people have the will and desire to grow their practice yet can’t attain the level of strength and cardiovascular endurance necessary to see results because they eat fried foods, candy bars, ice cream, and other processed items that detract from energy levels while engendering brain fog. Yet by eating a diet rich in fresh, unprocessed fruits and vegetables, you can see astounding results in terms of things like your ability to concentrate on your asanas and breath easily through each one of them.

3. Go Through A Teacher Training.

Another strategy you can implement to deepen your yoga practice is going through a teacher training. Taking this step will help you remain immersed in an environment where you can learn more about things like the history and origins of yoga as well as the wide range of unique asanas that can be completed to generate psychosomatic growth. In many cases, people find that becoming a yoga teacher is the key to deepening their practice because in addition to completing the asanas regularly, they are able to carefully observe other people do it. This can engender more knowledge about how to complete asanas more effectively and gracefully.

4. Acknowledge And End All Addictions.

One final technique that you can utilize to take your yoga practice further is acknowledging and ending all addictions. At some point in life, almost everyone will find themselves addicted to a substance, person, object or activity that detracts from their mental and physical health. In addition to compromising health, addictions preclude individuals from progressing their yoga practice by hampering bodily movements, precipitating a wide range of distractions, and lowering energy levels.

Luckily, there are several strategies that individuals can implement to overcome addictions. The first is acknowledging the reality of addiction. Unfortunately, many people find themselves lying to themselves about the reality of their addiction. Doing so keeps the addiction alive by precluding the individual from consciously recognizing the role that things like substance abuse play in precluding them from leading a holistically healthy life. If you’re currently addicted to a substance like alcohol, it’s important to remember that you can attain professional treatment services in an inpatient alcohol rehab facility. Also make sure you read up on key topics like Alcohol Addiction Statistics to ensure that you become knowledgeable about alcoholism and some of the issues that may become pertinent to you as you move through the stages of recovery.

Conclusion

If you’re ready to take your yoga practice to the next level, don’t procrastinate. Instead, begin implementing the techniques outlined in this quick reference guide so that your practice becomes an increasingly authentic, organic, innovative thing that positively contributes to your quality of life and mode of interfacing with the outside world.