When I started meditating, I started in a Buddhist tradition, where there is a lot of emphasis simply on seated mindfulness meditation.

Something that I loved about yoga, when I started to learn how to combine an asana (physical) practice with meditation, is how much easier it made it for me to enter states of deep meditation.

Later I learnt that teachers would traditionally give different advice to students depending on their dispositions. Some people need more physical practice, others more meditation, others more devotion, more service, more mantra, more prayer, more tantra etc etc.. It was not a one-size-fits-all approach.

It was validating to me, in that there was nothing "wrong" with me for needing to prepare my body in order to have a deeper experience of meditation. It was also a great reminder of how diverse, rich and multifaceted yogic traditions are.

If, like me, you have found that there are times when trying to dive straight into meditation is a little, well, sub-optimal, you might like to try approaching it physically *first*. Relax the body through an intentionally calming asana practice, *then* relax the mind.

If you've explored physical yoga practices, you'll know that not all practices are alike. Some practices are actually very energising and invigorating! If you'd like to try a sequence that was designed specifically with relaxation in mind, you might like the "Yoga for Relaxation - Part I" class which is available to stream on-demand. It's a 30-minute practice, which requires relatively little strength or energy, and brings you into a lovely relaxed state, and would be the perfect preparation for meditation.

You can check it out here and either rent it for a week or sign up for an affordable membership and get unlimited access to the entire class library (which is growing every week).