6 Tips to Get the Most From Your First Yoga Festival

Recently I attended the Brooklyn Wanderlust 108 5K run, yoga and meditation festival and had such a fantastic time getting my “chi” in gear that I pondered and gathered the best advice for all of you future yoga festival attendees to have the most wonderful time possible, too. (By the way, Wanderlust will be arriving in Austin November 6 to 9!) So if you’re planning to attend Wanderlust or another yoga festival, here are six things you need to know before you go! The first tips are from my experience, and the final two are from the pros!

6 Things to Know About Your First Yoga Festival

1. Get out of your “shy zone” and get ready to meet some cool people. At Wanderlust I found myself chatting up everyone from the hardcore yogis at the main stage to the wanderers who explored every vendor booth available, and I discovered that people who choose to spend a day at a yoga festival are usually warm and friendly. So don’t be afraid to strike up a conversation!

2. No matter what the weather forecast says, be sure to bring sunblock. Spending my summers in foggy Santa Cruz taught me that the sun’s rays can penetrate the darkest clouds so be sure to protect your skin!

3. Be sure to check out all of the vendor booths. Do this at all yoga festivals, but especially at Wanderlust where you will never be lacking yummy healthy treats to snack on plus local merchants offering all kids of wares to sample — and most of them for free!

4. Don’t worry about not having a “yoga body.” No matter what your age, size or shape, you CAN do yoga and it will thrill you to look around and see the variety of folks doing sun salutations and warrior poses. Enjoy the body you have and appreciate what it can do.

5. Don’t over-pack. After attending the Brooklyn Wanderlust I would say the most you need to make sure to bring are your yoga mat and a change of clothes in case the weather changes. People want to make the yoga accessories as important as the practice, but yoga is all about minimalism, says Alexandra Mingione, yoga ambassador for Pongo Power.

6. Embrace the phrase “rain or shine.” Of course yogis love practicing outside in the sun, but there are pluses to practicing when the rain falls. At the Wanderlust 108 Brooklyn event, innovative yogis put their mats together to create a huge slip ’n slide to keep the fun going, says Kimberly Small of Wanderlust.

Have you attended a yoga festival recently? What is YOUR best advice for first-timers? —Margo