This has to be one of the most common mistakes in doing Yoga

sumit685
Jan 23
2 min read

One of the most common mistakes I see in doing yoga—especially after years of teaching—isn’t about flexibility, strength, or motivation.

It’s pacing.

We simply don’t know how to pace ourselves.

Here’s what I mean.

We walk into class feeling inspired, maybe even fired up. We start a pose and push hard… too hard, too fast. Or we come back to yoga after a break and expect our bodies to perform the way they did months—or years—ago.

For a few moments, it feels okay.Until it doesn’t.

Suddenly we’re exhausted. Frustrated. Out of breath. Mentally checked out.We’ve run out of steam halfway through the class.

I see this clearly in standing poses—especially poses like Half Moon or any pose we hold for close to a minute. Students go all in right away. Every muscle gripping. Every ounce of effort spent in the first 10–15 seconds. And then, halfway through, the body gives in. The mind checks out. The pose collapses.

What if we did it differently?

What if we started with less—less effort, less gripping, less urgency—and let the body find the pose first? What if we stayed steady, breathed, and saved something for the final 10 seconds? That’s when you gently push. That’s when you grow. That’s when the pose actually teaches you something.

Less in the beginning. More in the end.

I see the same pattern when students sign up for their first 30 days. They come in strong, push hard the first few classes, go almost every day—and then, within a couple of weeks, life catches up. The body feels tired. Motivation drops. And slowly, they disappear.

The intention was good.The pacing wasn’t.

And if I’m being honest—I’ve done this myself more times than I can count.

The truth is, yoga isn’t about how intense you start. It’s about how steady you can stay.

The key isn’t intensity.The key is consistency.

And consistency requires something we often forget: gentleness at the beginning.

Yoga, like life, isn’t a sprint. It’s not about proving something early on. Life rewards the ones who pace themselves—who know when to soften, when to breathe, and when to lean in a little more toward the end.

Yoga isn’t a performance. It’s a relationship—with your body as it is today, not as it used to be. Some days you’ll feel strong. Other days you’ll feel tight, tired, or rusty. None of that is wrong. It’s just information.

The practice is learning to respond wisely instead of reacting aggressively.

So the next time you step on your mat—or restart your practice—try this: