If you’re on Instagram, you’ve probably come across them – the #yogachallenge. I recently participated in my first yoga challenge on Instagram. So now I have a better understanding of what it’s like, what it takes to do one, and why you should join a yoga challenge on Instagram.
First of all, what the heck is a yoga challenge?
A yoga challenge lasts for anywhere between a couple of days up to a month. The gist of it is this: one or several people host a challenge under a specific hash tag on Instagram. As hosts, they organise a daily yoga pose that any participants in the yoga challenge are to bend into, photograph, and post on their accounts under the challenge hash tag. The hash tag then allows the hosts and other participants to find each other.
Anyone is welcome to join and although there are prizes involved in a lot of these challenges, it’s not a “battle of the poses”. Everyone participates at the level they are at. It ends up being a fun and creative collaboration between a bunch of yoga lovin’ Instagrammers.
You’ll find me on Instagram @BananaBloomblog
I tried a 16 day yoga challenge – here’s what it was like
I hopped on the daily pose bandwagon after an Instagram friend of mine encouraged me to join one that she was taking part in. The challenge was hosted by the two yoga girls Iris (@theseaismycupoftea) and Eline (@heysunshinesister) and went under the hash tag stretchthatsmile. Iris and Eline would post the “pose of the day” each morning along with a question for each participant to answer in the caption to their own post.
If I were to pick something that was difficult about the challenge it would be keeping up. I was a little bit late hopping on the challenge and had three days to catch up on. I also kept finding myself falling behind, so I was snapping two or three photos at a time to catch up again. Not that falling behind is a problem, it’s meant to be fun! So you do the challenge to the best of your abilities.
A couple of the poses were quite advanced ones that I’d never tried before, which was great! It pushed me past my comfort zone and allowed me to surprise myself with what I am capable of doing. I was thrilled when I nailed eight angle pose the first time I ever tried it!
Aside from my asana successes, the questions to answer each day were one of the things I enjoyed the most about this challenge. Not only did they give me something to write as a caption to my photo (we all know how difficult it can be to think of a little text blurb to our photos). The topics were on reflection, goals, and success, which all really got my mind going and my thumbs typing.
5 Reasons Why You Should Join a Yoga Challenge on Instagram
There’s probably hundreds, if not thousands, of yoga challenges going on Instagram at any one time. So finding one will not be difficult. A simple search of the hash tag “yoga challenge” is a good place to start. Here’s why you should join a yoga challenge on Instagram.
1. You’ll learn something new
Since these challenges span several days or sometimes as long as a month, you’re getting upwards of 31 poses to do. Depending on your level of practice, you might find that you are introduced to some new poses that you’ve never tried before.
2. It’ll allow you to challenge yourself
Trying new yoga asanas means you’re likely going to be challenging yourself. Figuring out how to get into advanced poses and seeing how far you can breathe into them is both fascinating and can be a real boost of confidence.
3. Be part of a community and find new friends
Participating in a yoga challenge under a specific hash tag pretty much automatically includes you in a community. Everyone under that hash tag have the challenge in common so you have something to talk about and cheer each other on about. The hosts of the challenge will also sometimes stop by (depending on how big the challenge is and how many people are involved in it) and leave a comment or like your photo. Expect to connect with some new people and gain some new Instagram friends!
4. You’ll gain inspiration and knowledge
As mentioned above, a yoga challenge can introduce you to new poses you’ve never tried before. On top of that, they can inspire your own practice, and teach you how to get into intricate poses. In a lot of challenges, the hosts will give a step-by-step description of how to breathe into a pose. And if nothing else, you’ll learn the names of the yoga poses you’re doing, which can come in handy at yoga class – you’ll know just what to do when your teacher says “utkatasana”.
5. You’ll be motivated to get on your mat
Let’s be honest. You’re not always going to be motivated to roll out our mat and do yoga. If you’re a beginner it can be very difficult to know what to do once you’re standing on your mat. Joining a yoga challenge gives you that extra motivation to roll out your mat on a daily basis, and once you’ve done your pose of the day you might find yourself inspired to do a little flow – bringing you one step closer to #yogaeverydamnday.
