The past few months have shown us how important our social relationships are. We want to feel connected to each other and appreciate our time together more. Yoga with your partner is a wonderful opportunity to feel especially close. You're probably already one of the 2.6 million Germans who practice yoga. But what about your other half?

Getting your boyfriend or girlfriend to do yoga can be a real challenge. In this article, you'll find the right arguments to inspire your partner to flow through asanas with you—all without having to force them onto the mat.

Yoga fosters relationships

Yoga brings balance, both internally and externally.

The fact is, yoga is good for you. Bringing body and mind into harmony only works if we take the time to listen. Yoga helps us pay attention to our bodies and observe our thoughts. In this way, we strengthen our relationship with ourselves. We respect our bodies and learn to understand them better. We are rewarded by feeling completely well.

Practicing yoga as a couple offers an additional benefit: the presence of your partner. Through shared exercises, you elevate your awareness to a new level and connect with your partner's body and mind.

Studies have shown that couples who try new activities together can experience an increase in both relationship quality and physical attraction. Learning new skills together is not only fun, but also gives you the opportunity to spend time together and share a meaningful experience.

In fact, your sex life can even benefit from it. The better you know each other's bodies, the better you and your partner can connect. Beyond that, partner yoga offers several advantages that not only strengthen your relationship but also your health.

Why is it worthwhile to do yoga with your partner?

First of all, what could be better than combining two things you love? Practicing yoga while spending time with your loved one – that can only be beneficial. Yoga for two strengthens your motivation, improves your communication, and has a calming effect.

1. Twice the motivation

Ever experienced a lack of motivation? Then you know that it's much easier to get going when you're not alone. Just the thought of making time for each other is motivation enough to roll out the mat.

2. Improve your communication

For the partner poses to work, you need to rely on each other completely and communicate constantly, both verbally and nonverbally. This requires a lot of trust and openness.

Physical touch can be a language in its own right. It's a way to convey a sense of care and express deep emotions without using words. Conscious touch has the power to tell another person that they are seen, valued, loved, and accepted.

3. Get into the flow together

Being in flow with each other means understanding one another, even without verbal communication. According to a study by the British Psychological Society, coordinated nonverbal movement, such as that found in rhythmic breathing (Pranayama), can help couples feel more attuned to each other.

The mutual adaptation of movements helps to increase empathy and bonding. Since you rely on each other to remain balanced and strong in the partner asanas, you must become one. You can find more on the topic of shared flow in our article AcroYoga – Together you are less alone .

4. The Power of Touch

While most yoga exercises help to find relaxation, yoga with a partner offers a special bonus. A study published in Psychological Science found that couples who held hands experienced an immediate reduction in stress.

Simply touching your partner can therefore reduce anxiety and help you cope with nerve-wracking moments. In partner yoga, you experience this phenomenon particularly intensely through sustained physical contact.

If these advantages are not yet compelling enough to convince your partner of the new shared hobby, the following arguments will certainly be a game changer.

Yoga for him: These 3 arguments will get your partner to do yoga

Let no one say again that yoga is not for men.

1. Is yoga not for men?

You can easily refute this myth by pointing to Patrick Broome, the yoga instructor for the German national football team . Yoga is gradually finding its way into training programs not only in football but also in many other professional sports. So you can easily disprove the argument that yoga isn't for men.

If he still has doubts, you can choose an (online) course led by a male yoga teacher as additional motivation.

Because some men simply adapt better to a male teacher.

2. Yoga is a full-body workout

Following the motto "No pain, no gain," some athletes focus solely on building muscle. If you don't break a sweat, it's not a real workout, they think. Well, then you can show them just how sweaty yoga can be with a round of power yoga.

Yoga allows you to train all muscle groups in your body, even those you didn't know existed. And just like with other workouts, you can focus each session on a different area of ​​the body. Yoga is a wonderful way to prevent muscle groups from atrophying and to maintain flexibility while building muscle.

3. Yoga helps you unwind

Breathing techniques like pranayama are a great way to encourage your partner to open up to the more subtle aspects of yoga. Men are at least as stressed as women, and sometimes even more so. If your partner is stressed after a long day at work, breathing techniques can work wonders.

Of course, we can't guarantee that any of these tips will turn your partner into a devoted yogi. But it's worth a try to plant the seed of yoga in their mind. Once the seed germinates, you can start right away with the following partner yoga exercises for beginners.

Beginner exercises for yoga for two

Partner yoga: from shared breathing exercises to daring acro-yoga poses

A gentle way to start is by breathing together, back to back.

For this exercise, sit back to back in a comfortable position with your feet resting in a cross-legged position. Straighten your posture, shoulders away from your ears, arms relaxed.

Now you begin to alternate breathing. When your partner inhales deeply, you exhale. Repeat this for ten breaths. This breathing exercise helps you practice mutual mindfulness, relax together, and feel connected.

Afterwards, you can try the following exercises:

Giving and taking:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FlaGpGDDIK

This exercise only works if you are fully aware of how you can support each other. A wonderful challenge that teaches you to give and receive in balance.

Release:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4Mn8p2QhNY

Learn to release tension and open your hips through gentle pressure and the weight of your partner. This exercise also helps to let go of negative emotions.

Assume:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KN0d_0g1VUM

Be grateful and learn to accept your partner's support. You'll feel a little lighter right away.

Connection:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18BE3839LvU

Fancy a yoga pose to relax together? This exercise lets you breathe deeply together and feel very close to each other.

Tip: For the more adventurous among you, we recommend trying Acro Yoga exercises.

If you're already comfortable with the basic partner exercises, there are numerous inspiring videos for advanced practitioners, such as the one from the AcroYoga team Noga Schwartz and Roi Silberberg: https://fast.wistia.net/embed/iframe/00a7lonzzy?popover=true

You're single, but still want to try partner yoga?

Try partner yoga with your girlfriend

Don't worry, partner yoga isn't just for couples. You can grab a good friend, as friendships are also strengthened by this type of yoga.

Become one

Partner yoga creates a connection between you and your partner, both physically and emotionally. You find your shared flow, perhaps get to know each other even better, and have fun together at the same time.

So get your arguments ready and convince your partner to do yoga together.

...and don't forget your LUVIYO!