Why don’t we always do what we know is good for us to do?

I have trouble sleeping and know that if I practice yoga just before bedtime I’ll get to sleep quicker, sleep deeper, and sleep longer. Easy, right? Not so much. I’m not sure why, but adding yoga to my pre-sleeping routine has not been easy.

When I was a kid my folks took me to parties and rather than put me down for bedtime would let me just run out of energy and fall asleep, wherever. I often slept under the coffee table, right in the midst of all the action. They prided themselves in letting me raise myself. Although that resulted in many advantages, such as self-sufficiency, I still tend to want to stay up until I fall over because I don’t want to miss any action. 

For the last 6 weeks I’ve been monitoring my behavior-change success, or lack thereof, using a phone app, Way of Life. I use the free version, which can be used to track 3 behaviors. I’m tracking Exercise, Meditation, and Yoga. My exercise routine has improved dramatically since I started walking with a friend every morning. Often we meditate after finishing our walk, but not always. My friend is not a yogi though, far from it. He’s pretty down to earth. When I looked at my results in the app it became apparent that I was doing great on exercise, pretty good on meditation, and simply lousy on yoga. I think this shows the power of having an accountability partner.

Regarding yoga, last night I did great. I had about a 30-minute yoga session followed by 7 ½ hours of sleep, the most I’ve gotten for a long time. This morning I ask my friend to consider yoga with me every night at 10 PM. He was having none of that.

I am convinced, intellectually, that I need yoga at night for my wellbeing. My unconscious, reptilian-brain, little-kid “elephant” does not know that though. He wants to keep going until he drops. My conscious, frontal lobe, adult “elephant rider” needs to train the elephant. I am open for elephant-training suggestions.

Following the 12-step pattern, I realize staying awake ‘til I drop is an unmanageable habit I am powerless over, an insane pattern to continue, and yet I believe there is hope and turn to another power for help – you (Steps 1-3). I often hear the One speak through others. In fact, I have come to rely upon it. For me yoga is part of the meditation practice mentioned in the 11^th step. So, got any thoughts on how to increase my success at incorporation of yoga into my nighttime routine? I’m all ears; elephant ears in fact.