Yoga in Motion: 100,000 Steps for Perinatal Mental Health

We’ve reached $750!

Day 3 Step Count

Day 1, Week 1: Beginning

I’m so excited to share the beginning of my journey: 100,000 steps of yoga in support of the Gidget Foundation, raising funds for the mental health of parents. 💜

Each week I’ll set a sankalpa (intention) before practice — a kind of pre-game reflection — and close the week with a post-match reflection on what I learned along the way.

✨ Week 1: Begin.
We all have to start somewhere.

I began practicing yoga in my early 20s at the local gym. Uni was stressful, and during every exam period I’d find myself in class with my mum. Through my 20s, my practice was on and off — I’d show up, then disappear — because I hadn’t yet found the open heart or purpose to stay.

Almost two years after having my son, I stepped back onto the mat. This time was different. Yoga became transformative — the final piece I needed to help me heal and recover from postpartum depression.

Something my teacher Emma always reminds us is that yoga doesn’t complete or heal us on its own. The practice simply reveals what has always been there. That truth has carried me through: yoga both healed me and returned me to the person I was always meant to be.

I feel so privileged to share this journey with you — step by step — while raising funds for a cause that’s so close to my heart, and the hearts of many others.

🧡 From my heart, to yours.

Setting Sankalpa: The Heart of My 10-Week Yoga Journey

In yoga, Sankalpa is a Sanskrit word that means intention, resolve, or heartfelt desire. It is more than a passing wish or a goal—it is a sacred vow that reflects your true nature and guides your actions.

Breaking down the word itself gives us insight into its depth:

• San means a connection with the highest truth.

• Kalpa means vow or rule to be followed above all others.

Together, Sankalpa becomes a living reminder of alignment—an intention that is not about striving toward something far away, but about embodying it in the present moment. This is why it’s often phrased in the present tense, as if it’s already true:

• “I am whole and healed.”

• “I trust the process of life.”

• “I live with compassion and clarity.”

Sankalpa can be used in many ways: at the beginning of a yoga practice, during Yoga Nidra when the mind is most receptive, or simply as a guiding principle woven into everyday life.

My 10-Week Sankalpa Themes

For my 10-week yoga fundraiser, I’ve chosen to anchor each week in a theme—a Sankalpa—that reflects both the inner journey of practice and the collective purpose of raising awareness and funds. Each theme is a reminder to pause, breathe, and reconnect with intention:

• Week 1 — Begin: “Every journey begins with a single step.”

• Week 2 — Breathe: “Breath is the anchor in every moment.”

• Week 3 — Strength: “Strength is found in body, mind, and spirit.”

• Week 4 — Flow: “Life, like yoga, is a flow of transitions.”

• Week 5 — Soothe: “Stillness and rest are powerful forms of healing.”

• Week 6 — Balance: “Balance is a practice, not a destination.”

• Week 7 — Compassion: “Compassion is strength expressed as kindness.”

• Week 8 — Growth: “Growth is the quiet work of persistence.”

• Week 9 — Stillness: “In stillness, we find space to heal.”

• Week 10 — Integration: “Integration is where breath, movement, and purpose meet.”

Each week’s Sankalpa becomes both a personal intention and a shared invitation: to move, to breathe, to reflect, and to connect with something greater than ourselves.

This fundraiser is not only about completing 100 yoga classes—it’s about practicing with heart and purpose, and inviting others to support a cause that deeply matters along the way.

Yoga in Motion: How 100,000 Steps of Yoga Works

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love the annual Stepathon challenge at work—a friendly competition to see how many steps we can take in 30 days. What I’ve always appreciated is that it’s not just about walking: all kinds of physical activity can be translated into steps.

For this fundraiser, I wanted to bring together two things close to my heart: yoga and perinatal mental health. Yoga was a cornerstone of my recovery from postpartum depression and anxiety, giving me space to reconnect with myself and to heal. It’s also why I’m now working towards becoming a yoga teacher, with the dream of supporting pre- and postnatal parents as they navigate the transformative—and sometimes very challenging—season of early parenthood.

To make this challenge possible, I’ve researched step equivalents for different yoga practices, based on guides from other step challenges. Here’s how I’ll be counting:

💫 Vinyasa / Stronger Flow Yoga
~95 steps per minute → 60-min class ≈ 5,700 steps

🌙 Yin / Restorative Yoga
~20 steps per minute → 60-min class ≈ 1,200 steps

🌸 Slow Flow Yoga
~70 steps per minute → 60-min class ≈ 4,200 steps

🚶 Walking Meditation / Breath Work
~55 steps per minute → 15-min ≈ 825 steps

✨ My target: about 10,000 yoga steps per week, for 10 weeks = 100,000 steps total!

I’ll be practicing both in class and at home—not only to stay on track (toddler interruptions are inevitable!) but also to highlight how accessible yoga can be as a home practice.

Closing thought

Every pose, every breath, and every step of this challenge is dedicated to parents who may be struggling in silence. My hope is that through this fundraiser, we can create more awareness, provide more support, and remind every parent that they don’t have to walk this path alone. 💜