Non forcing

Total 360 Yoga October 2026 Blog

Non forcing

In yoga, you might hear, " Don’t force it; allow it.  I found this the hardest thing to learn in Yoga.  Welcome to the October 2026 Total 360 Yoga Blog.  In this blog, we will explore the concept of non-forcing.

Have you ever tried to get down into a split and it’s not happening?  You ask yourself why. Well,  if you didn’t warm up or stretch, that’s an answer. If your mind is not with your body, that is an answer.  This concept of non-forcing is hard because we want to be like everyone else in the class or in society.  We may have put someone on a pedestal, and we want to be like them.  Yet their experiences are different from ours and allowed them to get there.  

What does forcing something really do for us?  It brings us anxiety and suffering.  We remember that we couldn’t do it last time either; we think we will never be able to get it in the future.  We are disappointed with ourselves for not solving it.  These are all just examples of the physical body.  

The mind is an entirely different element with regard to not forcing.  The mind is constantly moving, thinking, guiding, and evaluating, and when we tell our mind not to force something, it doesn’t understand the concept.  That is why meditation and mindfulness help the mind and the body come to understand the concept of non-forcing.  When we slow down the mind and get it to stop racing and ask ourselves what we are trying to get to, not when, what? This changes the concept and helps us take steps. Mindfulness breaks down the societal expectations, pedestals, or ideas that we have about getting it.  We forgive ourselves when we get caught up in our thoughts.  

Letting go truly is the best way not to force something. A Buddhist once said, " Let go of the outcome. Do the activity, help the person, go to work, but let go of the outcome.  You need to sell your house, prepare it, and let go of showings or offers; allow it to come to you.  You want to hold your head high.  Let go of the outcome, go to class, work the technique, release the mind; it will come.  

We tie ourselves up in anxiety about what has to happen when; in reality, the universe knows when it will, so give it back to the universe and just be.  I wanted to open my Yoga studio in 2005 with my martial arts studio, but I couldn’t get enough people.  I let go of it, and in 2019, yoga slowly began to grow in my life.  By 2022, I was an RYT 500 with 12 certifications. The class naturally came once I let go.  Now I don’t think about a number for the class; if I help one person, then teaching the class is worth it.  

We have an active choice in our lives. We can find peace, stay in the present, know that everything is impermanent, be non-judgmental, and allow things to come, or we can stress, press, create anxiety, doubt, and suffering.  It’s ultimately up to each person to decide their path.  Try not to force.  

Author

Michael Rodgers, Creator, Total 360 Yoga