This Is What Happens to Your Body When You Do Yoga for 30 Days Straight

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Welcome to Month of Me, where every day in January, we'll be publishing a new fashion, beauty, or wellness article featuring a first-person account of shaking up an old habit, pushing beyond a comfort zone, or simply trying something new. Follow along for 31 days of storytelling, including what it's like to quit alcohol for 80 days, try Beyoncé's very strict diet, or completely overhaul your closet.

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(Image credit: Kelly Morris)

Name: Kelly Morris, graphic designer, Who What Wear and THE/THIRTY

What did you try? I practiced yoga every day for 30 days, focusing on handstands, forearm stands, headstands, and any other arm balances in my practice.

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(Image credit: Kelly Morris)

Why did you try it? I've done 30-day yoga challenges in the past and I always come away from them with renewed motivation and feeling so much stronger. I always think back to when a teacher just said offhand, "You never regret taking a yoga class." I think about that constantly. Very few things make me feel as strong as yoga—physically and emotionally. In the last year and a half, I went from never having attempted any kind of inversion to doing headstands in most of my classes. It takes people years to master a handstand, so I had no expectation of truly nailing it in such a short period of time, but I wanted to have a specific focus this time around on these poses that take of time and dedication.

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(Image credit: Kelly Morris)

How did you prepare? I know from the past that I have a habit of doing too much too quickly while exercising and not taking time to recover properly, so I knew that I needed to be strategic in order to avoid injury or major setbacks. Most of my preparation was dedicated to setting aside my ego and accepting early on that progress was going to be slow, especially because I was starting this challenge after a four-week break from yoga. Logistically I had to really look at my schedule and plan much further ahead than I was used to in order to fit in classes. In that process, I also realized that I couldn't avoid practicing at home this time, which is something I have always been put off by. I have a hard time staying focused at home without the external motivation of a teacher and a room full of people.

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(Image credit: Kelly Morris)

Any challenges? I found a new appreciation for practicing yoga at home. Initially, I was scared that I wouldn't be able to challenge myself, that I would give up and get lazy, that I wouldn't be able to come up with a good sequence of poses to do, that being in a space where I usually don't do yoga would throw me off. I was using a studio and teacher and a room full of people as a crutch, and I needed to get past that. Instead of relying on someone else giving cues, correcting my posture, or motivating me, I had to do that for myself.

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(Image credit: Kelly Morris)

How did you feel afterward? What kind of changes did you notice? Not going to lie, once the month was over, I was so ready to take a break. I was excited to not have to work out my schedule ahead of time and take a day to do absolutely nothing. But I also feel proud of myself. There were a lot of nights after a very long day when I would have otherwise tapped out to go home and sit on the couch but had to go to yoga instead. I realized that just meant that I had all the more reason to go, just for the sake of decompressing productively. When I started I was having a lot of trouble sleeping because of stress, but exercise, particularly at night for me, helps alleviate that so much. I was even reverting back to clenching my teeth at all hours, and that just melted away after yoga. I've most noticed how stiff I can be first thing in the morning or from sitting at a desk all day, and I have a renewed motivation to just hop onto the mat for 30 minutes as soon as I wake up or when I get home from work—it feels so good to work out everything from the day that gets stuck in my hips or shoulders and to reset my train of thought.

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(Image credit: Kelly Morris)

What did you hate? My biggest complaint is that there isn't a class at any given time of the day to suit my mood. I only go to one studio and I am limited to whatever their schedule is and sometimes it doesn't always fit. There isn't a Sunday evening class, which I think is a huge miss—there's nothing better to alleviate the end of a weekend with a yoga class.

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(Image credit: Kelly Morris)

Any advice for anyone who's thinking of trying it? Don't think about it, just do it. When it comes to doing inversions in class, don't ever feel scared or embarrassed because what's the worst that could happen? You fall on your face or onto the person next to you and then it's over, that's all. That's the only way to learn.

Take a look below at the products that I used during the 30-day challenge:

Disclaimer

This article is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to be used in the place of advice of your physician or other medical professionals. You should always consult with your doctor or healthcare provider first with any health-related questions.