5 Ways Yoga and Movement Helps My Acting Career

Yoga and acting; go together like avocado and toast. Separately, they’re tasty; but, together, it’s explosive. Hang with me here.

To get really proficient at doing a handstand, what does it take? Determination. Practice. Flexibility. Focus. Skillset. Maybe some natural talent. Guidance. A touch of letting of the outcome and being present at the moment.

Starting to sound a bit more like the characteristics and mindset of the profound and impactful actors we see on set and screen? Thought so.

Personally, I’m not sure which came first in my life, acting and storytelling, or yoga and movement. Depends on what you qualify as defining moments. But, I will say, in my more recent years of going full force into acting and producing, yoga continues to be a catalyst for my successes that have come and continue to grow.

What’s inside: my top five ways yoga has amplified my acting career, and creative pursuits in general.

1. FLEXIBLE MINDSET

Disclaimer: I taught yoga professionally for around 8 years living in both Boston and Miami prior to going back into production, content creation, and acting. When I first started teaching yoga, fresh out of teacher training, I used to write out each and every one of my sequences, and hand drawings of yoga stick figures (which I have yet to still launch an NFT collection based on — an article for another day). Like a yoga “script” I would follow that sequence to a pulse, knowing what was coming next.

As I developed as a teacher in the course of my first few years, I would make the sequence out of pure fun and exploration; but something changed. I knew the moment I walked into that studio, or saw the yogis that had come to practice, I had to be ready to throw the sequence out the door.

Maybe it’s “yoga improv”. The flexibility I learned mentally from teaching and practicing yoga gives me the agility to go with the flow (for an overused phrase and hashtag in the yoga world) for each project that I’m fortunate to collaborate with.

2. CONSISTENCY

If I’m working towards a split, and I practice one a year, good luck to me to not pull a hamstring jumping into it. However, if I’m practicing daily, or every other day, staying consistent with the practice, the progress shortly follows.

The same goes for acting and creating. It’s all a muscle, that needs to be flexed, groomed, strengthened, stretched, put to its limitations, and massaged with consistency to allow the progress to continue.

You’re only as good in life as you are in your habits. Stay consistent. Keep my head down. Schedule it in. Make it a habit. Then it becomes a lifestyle.

3. CALMS NERVES/ANXIETY

Landing a role can be exciting; but, all the prep work that leads up to it, including the audition process, can wreck even the most trained actor’s nerves. And, that’s just getting the part. Then, there are the actual film and shoot dates, character tests, and all the other “less glamorous” parts leading up to it.

Or, are they? Yoga can be a powerful tool to retrain the mind and give anxiety a place to go hide behind the curtain. Instead of putting my mind where the anxiety wants to go, I’ll adapt my mind to focus on “this is exciting” replacing the word “anxiety” with “excitement.” Breathing, moving, and finding flow with some stretching before an audition, going on set, having a call, or any other potentially stressful part of the production process I find a game-changer, in order to be present, focused, and let go into the character.

4. NICHE SKILLSET

Ever seen "Yogi" on a breakdown? “Yogi 25-35 basic knowledge a must, advanced preferred.” I have loads of times. And, even for martial arts or dance requirements, I find yoga can be a skill set that can overlap with that area.

We know, as actors, the more skill sets and niche talents we have, the more valuable we can be for a specific role. Yoga is one more of the tools in the toolbox that I can put into a pitch or comment section that can stand out from the 1000+ submission pack.

5. ENERGY/POSTURE

Unless you’re auditioning for Shrek, or some other hunchback figure or someone strategically describes as being insecure, the posture you carry says a lot about your confidence as an actor and as a human. When you’re crouching forward with rounded shoulders, the body posture is screaming “I’m closed off, and lacking confidence in myself. By the way, don’t look at me, and definitely don’t pick me.”

Maybe a bit dramatic, but, hey, I’m an actor. The point, when your posture has confidence, it can help your audition and on-camera (and off) presence hold confidence as well. In addition, proper posture also increases your overall energy and can help manage whatever life demands have on your call sheet.

Have you tried yoga yet? If the word scares you, call it stretching. You can start now, just by breathing. It’s that simple. Inhale. Exhale. There you go, you’re officially a yogi.

Here are Some of My Yoga Videos to Help You on Your Yoga Journey!

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