Create a personal yoga practice centered on your needs, philosophies, and abilities using human-centered design as your guide.

1. DESIGN A YOGA PRACTICE
THAT FITS YOUR LIFE
Sarah Atkinson
Principal User Researcher, Optum
Yoga Practitioner & Teacher
Owner, Health Reveler Yoga & Well-being

2. Optum ValuesIntegrity Compassion Relationships Innovation Performance
At Optum, we are dedicated to helping people live healthier lives and
helping make the health system work better for everyone.

3. HUMAN-
CENTERED
DESIGN
EMPATHY INSIGHTS IDEATION PROTOTYPE

4. WHAT IS YOGA?
Asana
(Physical
poses)
Pranayama
(Breath)
Meditation
Withdrawal
of the
senses

5. What do you want to cultivate
more of in your life?

6. Meet Ellie
What Ellie wants:
Success.
Happiness.
Abundance.
Health.
What this means to Ellie:
A promotion at work.
More time with friends and family.
More "me time”.
Eat healthier.

7. Autoethnography

8. Subjective Personal Self-observation
Writing Sketching Audio/video
Self-reflection

9. The Five Koshas
Physical
Energy
(Breath)
Mental
(Thoughts and emotions)
Wisdom
(Intuition)
Bliss
(True self)

10. Sketch

11. Write

12. Journey

13. A typical day
Time of day Morning Mid morning Late afternoon Evening
Setting Home
Just getting up
Work
Just finished
budget meeting
Friend’s house
Just left birthday
party
Put the kids to bed
Sitting on the
deck, watching the
sunset
Physical Have a headache
Shoulders tense
Mild headache
Shoulders tense
Shoulders still
tense, but more
relaxed overall
Restless, but
getting more
relaxed
Energy (Breath) Shallow Rapid, steady Rapid, shallow,
choppy
Smooth
Mind &
emotions
Big budget meeting
today
Frustrated
Unmotivated, don’t
want to get up
That went well
Excited
That was fun but
I’m worried about
the drive home on
icy roads
Had a good day,
Not sleepy
A little worried I’ll
be exhausted
tomorrow if I can’t
get some sleep

14. Moments
I wake up with headaches a lot and often
feel unmotivated to get going.
I feel tense throughout the day, even after
a good meeting.
I feel content when I’m watching the
sunset from my deck.

15. Stories and inspiration

16. Feeling content
I’m relaxing on my deck, watching the sunset. A cool
summer breeze and the sweet scent of honeysuckle
flow all around me. I feel happy and content.
When I feel stressed during the day, I will think about
this moment.

17. “Everywhere, it seems, rainbows are joyful. I began
to make a list of things like this, ones that I heard
over and over again: beach balls and fireworks,
swimming pools and treehouses, hot-air balloons
and googly eyes and ice-cream sundaes with colorful
sprinkles. These pleasures cut across lines of age,
gender, and ethnicity. They weren’t joyful for just a
few people. They were joyful for nearly everyone.”
― Ingrid Fetell Lee, Joyful: The Surprising Power of
Ordinary Things to Create Extraordinary Happiness

18. I see myself running across a vivid
green field, pulling a rainbow along
with me. I feel like I’m floating as
effortlessly as the clouds.
Any time I need to let go of worry and
lighten my mood, I will visualize this
moment .

19. Flying kites was one of my favorite things to do
when I was a kid. I would always pick the most
colorful kite and when I started to run and the kite
started to fly, I felt free. There was nothing in that
moment but me and my kite.
When I meditate, I will visualize myself flying a
colorful kite that carries my worries away and
releases them.

20. Prototype

21. Design your practice
After work
Sequence to release tension
from sitting at my desk all day.
Mid morning
Chair yoga sequence
to refresh and refocus.
Deck meditation.
Morning
Tune into my breath.
Kite meditation to let go of
worries.
Nighttime
Savanasa.
Listen relaxing music.

22. Practice and reflect

23. Commit to your yoga practice*
Morning
After work
I don’t want to wake up with headaches anymore.
I’m going to commit to the morning practice I
designed to help me breathe and focus.
According to my autoethnography, I’m usually tense
for most of the day almost every day of the week.
I’m going to commit to at least one round of the
yoga sequence I found to release tension and calm
my mind after work.
*Always consult your physician before beginning any exercise program.

24. Reflect
What have you noticed?
Physical
I’m no longer waking up with headaches, but I still feel tense throughout the day.
Energy
I automatically breath easier in the mornings now.
Mental
I’m still unmotivated to get out of bed in the morning.
Wisdom
I’ve been more creative at work; I’m not analyzing every little thing.
Bliss
Not yet.
How might you revise or expand your practice?
I’m going to add sun salutations to my morning practice to help energize me.
Physical
Energy
Mental
Wisdom
Bliss

25. Wisdom
“Don’t think about making art, just get it done.
Let everyone else decide if it’s good or bad,
whether they love it or hate it.
While they are deciding,
make even more art.”
¾ Andy Warhol
Intuition
Experiential
Beyond intellect

26. Revised practice
Morning
Continue to tune into my breath
and do the kite meditation I
designed.
After work
Add “legs up the wall” to my after
work sequence to help me detach
from my day and be fully present
at home.
Morning
Add sun salutations to create
some energy before I start my
day.

27. Summary

28. EMPATHY INSIGHTS IDEATION PROTOTYPE
Journey
Moments
Autoethnography
Five Koshas
Design Your Personal Yoga Practice
PRACTICE & REFLECT
Stories
Inspiration
What do you want to cultivate more of in your life?
What changed after you went through the process?
Active Practice & Reflection

29. 1 Autoethnography
Use the five koshas as the framework.
Record your observations multiple times a day for at least a week.
2 Journey
Use your self-study to create a detailed map of a day in your life.
3 Moments
Notice points in the journey that jump out at you.
4 Stories & inspiration
Create stories from positive moments.
Look to inspiration to shape your stories.
These will become your meditations.
5 Prototype
Design your yoga practice.
Let your moments guide you.

30. 6 Practice
Commit to your yoga practice.
Start small, with what you need most.
Do your practice.
Let your wisdom guide you.
7 Reflect
What do you notice? Use the five koshas to guide your reflection:
¾Physical
¾Energy
¾Mind & emotions
¾Wisdom/intuition
¾Bliss
What has changed?
How might you revise or expand your practice?
Go back to any point in the process as often as you need.

31. Notice.
Withhold
judgement.

32. Breathe.
Breathe

33. Thank you
Sarah Atkinson
linkedin.com/in/sarahanya
sarah_atkinson@optum.com
@healthreveler
sarah@healthreveler.com

34. Appendix

35. Alertness – Square breathing
Square breathing can help you shift your energy. It activates the
parasympathetic nervous system to help create a sense of calm while
increasing alertness. And square breathing can be done anywhere at
anytime.
1. Find a comfortable position and close your eyes.
2. Begin by taking a deep inhalation followed by a slow, gentle
exhalation.
3. Then, softly inhale through your nose to a slow count of 4.
4. Hold at the top of the breath for a count of 4.
5. Then softly exhale through your mouth for a count of 4.
6. At the bottom of the breath, pause and hold for the count of
If it’s helpful, focus on a neutral or positive image in your mind. Pull
from your autoethnography for a more personal connection.
inhale 2… 3… 4
hold2…3…4
exhale 2… 3… 4
rest2…3…4
breathe

36. Calm and balance – Nadi shodhana
Nadi shodhana follows a pattern of inhaling and exhaling through the left and right nostrils while building awareness of how the breath travels through the body. It can be
tremendously effective for creating a sense of calm and balance within a few rounds of breath.
Choose a comfortable seated position on the floor or in a chair with your feet flat on the floor. Lengthen the spine allowing the neck and head to rise toward the sky or ceiling.
Close your eyes.
1. Start by noticing your breath. Tune into your breath for a few rounds, then take a full, deep inhalation followed by a slow, gentle exhalation.
2. Fold the tips of the index and middle fingers inward until they touch the palm at the base of the right thumb. You will alternately use the right thumb to close the right nostril
and the right ring and pinky fingers (together) to close the left nostril.
3. Close the right nostril with your right thumb. Exhale softly through the left nostril. Keeping the right nostril closed, inhale through the left nostril and deep into the belly. As
you inhale, allow the breath to travel upward along the left side of the body.
4. Next, close the left nostril using the ring and pinky fingers of your right hand and simultaneously release the right nostril. Exhale through the right nostril. Feel the breath
down the right side of the body.
5. Keeping the left nostril closed, inhale once again through the right nostril, allowing the breath to travel up the right side of the body.
6. Then again, use the right thumb to close the right nostril as you release the left nostril. Exhale through the left nostril, surrendering the breath back down the left side of the
body.
This same pattern continues for each additional round: inhale through the left nostril, exhale through the right nostril, inhale through the right nostril, exhale through the left
nostril. Repeat this alternating pattern for several more rounds, focusing your awareness on the path for your breath. Keep the breath slow, gentle, fluid, and relaxed throughout
the practice.
When you are ready to close your practice, complete your final round of nadi shodhana with an exhalation through the left nostril. Relax your right hand and place it
comfortably in your lap. Slowly allow your breath to return to normal. As you do, notice how you feel. Notice your state of mind and any sensations you feel in your body.
Flutter your eyes open and when you are ready, continue with your day.