Pop Up?! Yoga
Published on June 18, 2013
Suitcase Yoga
So apparently there’s a trend called ‘pop up retail’ or ‘pop up stores’. It’s not a new trend (I admit, it’s not unusual for me to be a bit out of touch when it comes to popular culture). Anyway, the concept entails a space becoming available for a short amount of time (an hour, a day, etc.) to retail activity that wouldn’t generally occur there. The space may or may not be originally intended for retail activity and the merchandise being sold likely also has a permanent home elsewhere. For some reason, these pop up stores seem to excite people. I guess they create an air of exclusivity both because the location of these stores are not necessarily known in advance and also because the stock carried at these locations are inherently limited.
Okay, so why am I talking about pop up stores? Well, recently I took a vacation. On my vacation I did only one full yoga practice, but I did a lot of ‘pop up’ yoga, and I found it helpful, satisfying, and also kind of fun.
Here, in this photograph, we were waiting for our ride from the airport to our hotel. My back was cranky from the plane ride and standing was pretty much the last position I felt like being in. So…a backed up version of Ardha Baddha Padmottonasana using my suitcase.
I actually do pop up yoga at home too. Here’s a photograph of me passing the time in Ardha Uttanasana waiting for the kettle to boil.
Kitchen Yoga
I don’t have a picture of this one, but I’ve also been known to do Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana I & II using the bathroom counter or sink as a ledge for my foot.
Why do I bring this up? Well, I think people generally underestimate the value of pop up yoga. People often think that if they don’t have enough time for a full practice then it’s not worth striking a pose. I beg to differ. In my experience, not only is pop up yoga immediately gratifying but it also can be quite effective. You certainly are not going to reach new spiritual heights with an occasional yoga pose here and there, but who knows, you may prevent an old injury from acting up. In my opinion, some yoga is always better than no yoga!
Have you been known to engage in the occasional pop up yoga pose?