Toward the end of my yoga class today, I was feeling a little weepy. Then during savasana, the tears really wanted to come. What the heck is happening? STOP! Afterwards, I sat up and here they come again. Flow-o-rama.
It turns out, this is normal. A little embarrassing, but normal. Yoga is all about connecting mind, body, spirit. You stretch your body, open and relax your mind, and feelings get released. It’s a good thing.
I’ve been staying at the beach and recently realized how healthy my nails look. There’s no polish on them and they’re clean, clear, and white. And then I was thinking about it, my skin looks and feels better too. Well, there’s a reason. The beach is a healthy place to be.
So going to the beach is kind of like going to a day spa no charge. I think I’ll make another visit tomorrow.
BTW: You can find this bench in Tulum Mexico!
I scrape my tongue every morning and can’t imagine not doing it now. During the night while we sleep, our bodies are still detoxing. That gunk on your tongue in the morning is bacteria, and that bacteria helps cause digestive issues and bad breath. If you’re thinking I brush my tongue with my toothbrush, it’s not the same. Trust.
Tongue scrapers are cheap. I think I paid $8 for mine. All you do is literally scrape your tongue with your U shaped scraper. I usually do it a 3-5 times every morning.
I have once again jumped on the vegan bandwagon and it has officially been one month. Here’s what I’m feeling.
I went vegan earlier in the year for 3 months and stopped due to how fat and mushy I was getting. This time around I am actually unintentionally losing weight. The difference is I’m keeping the breads/tortillas/pastas at a minimum. I’ve also implemented 3 veggies/fruits minimum per meal. Lastly, a handful of nuts is very satisfying when I’m feeling the munchies.
The hardest part of eating vegan is figuring out what to eat. I read somewhere it helps the beginner vegan to have 10-15 go to recipes. I probably have 3 at this point. So my goal is to get 10 easy vegan recipes under my belt to start the new year off with (and without chickpeas. Turns out, I hate chickpeas. Bummer.)
I’m so over smoothies for breakfast, especially with colder weather coming. And for whatever reason, eggs just aren’t floating my boat. I found this protein ball recipe on cottercrunch.com. A few of these with some hot tea made for a good breakfast. Per the website, each protein ball has approx. 78 calories.
I hate the thought of exercising and then I do it and feel great. So, why do I dread it? For me, it’s the starting that’s difficult. It’s putting on the yoga tape, getting in the car to go to the gym, stepping out the door to walk.
Now, I do yoga and exercises on the regular. What changed? I took the pressure off of myself. I didn’t say, “Tomorrow Im going to start an exercise routine… Tomorrow, I’m running 5k… This week I’m going to the gym 3x”. I just woke up one morning and did 3 poses of yoga. Why? Because I read about these poses and wanted to try them. And then the next morning, I did it again (just because). Before I knew it, it started feeling good to begin my day this way. My body started feeling stronger and I started feeling more positive. I slowly added more poses until I was doing a 20 minute yoga sequence. Now, I’ve added 5 exercises to that.
Sometimes, I skip sequences and sometimes I skip exercises, and sometimes I skip days, and honestly I’ve even skipped weeks. It’s all okay. I don’t beat myself up. It’s not a “routine” that I have to do. I’m not letting myself down by not doing it. It’s something I do because I enjoy it and I want to. No pressure is the key for me.
So my advice is tomorrow do a stretch, any stretch. And if you feel like it do another. And if you don’t, that’s okay. Maybe the day after tomorrow…if you feel like it.
I’ve been taking Rain Soul seed supplement for a week or so now. They say the benefits of taking these seeds help maintain healthy joints, immune system, cardiovascular system, as well as neutralize free radicals (I’m still not sure what free radicals are, but I’m happy to neutralize them).
It’s too early for me to tell if this product accomplishes all of the above, but I can confirm that I definitely feel more energy during the day. I have a month supply, so I’ll re-evaluate then. For now, more energy is a thumbs up for me.
I’m a constant tea drinker and am always open to trying new teas. The latest and greatest “super” tea seems to be Yerba Mate. Yerba Mate is said to:
Sounds good to me….until I tried it. The taste of Yerba Mate reminded me of tree bark combined with smoke. It is not a tea I could drink on it’s own. After a few failed concoctions, I finally found a way to drink this wonder tea. Combine it with Mint Tea. The mint completely overpowers the Yerba Mate. Drink on!
Drinkable Yerba Mate:
Here’s three products I’m loving.
Olema Rose Wine. So good and reasonably priced at $14.
Native Deodorant. Native contains no aluminum, smells great, and works better than any other deodorant I’ve tried.
Wanderlust, A Modern Yogi’s Guide to Discovering Your Best Self. This book provides a perfect introduction to yoga including workbook style prompts to help you be the best you.
I’m almost 2 months into my yoga routine, Kundalini yoga to be specific. Do I feel better? For sure. Kundalini yoga focuses a lot on the spine. My back feels more flexible and in return my whole body feels more pliable. In general, I feel lighter mentally and physically. Take a look below at 15 possible benefits you can have from yoga.
Stress is an inevitable part of life, however being able to monitor it with breath and introspection can change the outcome of many situations. Ideally stress will begin to subside with the tools discovered in yoga.
Over time the body will become stronger and yoga poses will feel much more accessible. Discovering body awareness and incorporating appropriate cues from instructors can take a practice to another level. Yoga will never be easy, however the body builds up strength to support the practice in time. Certain daily activities that felt difficult before will get easier. Activities such as walking up stairs, balancing to put on shoes or picking up children can become less challenging.
Although many people do not initially turn to yoga for weight loss, it is a surprising bonus. The pure and detoxifying feeling the body experiences after practice sends people in a healthier direction. The body begins to crave nutritious foods and denies heavy meals.
Learning tools to incorporate breathing and body awareness into scenarios that are mentally or physically demanding will change the outcome of many situations. Letting go of self-medication with food, alcohol, or prescription drugs is difficult. However in minor cases, replacing self-medication with yoga can help. The residual buzz from a yoga practice can deliver some of the happiness people struggle to find.
Releasing things that no longer serve or fulfill are some of the first steps toward change. Like-minded individuals, and better decision-making replace toxic relationships, negative friends, and harmful environments.
Some people have been known to try vegan or vegetarianism at least once. There are teachers that promote non-harming and compassion to living beings with emphasis on a plant based diet. Some bodies can handle not having meat while other bodies need it. The best advice is to do what fits for the individual. What works for one, may not work for all. Ask a doctor if uncertainty arises with diet.
Many of the postures in yoga strengthen the spine and the muscles surrounding the spine. The majority of the work is to maintain a tall spine in each pose. A great yoga class will train the practitioner to take daily habits such as a hunched over body out of the practice. Overtime, students will learn techniques on how to carry the body in everyday life. Some yoga poses and classes strengthen the abdominals, which improve the posture quite a bit.
There are so many poses and ideologies in yoga that make the practice a lifelong journey. There is always another variation to achieve or a style to discover. One of the most gratifying feelings is when accomplishing a posture that seemed so difficult in the past. Noticing changes in the body and advancement in the practice gives a person that confidence they may have been searching for. Whether it is an inversion/arm balance or holding plank pose for an extended period of time, these small achievements ignite a positive sense of self.
Bringing attention to areas of a person’s life that may have gone unnoticed in the past is the first step toward mindfulness. Maybe its deciding to stop wearing high heals, or forgoing the pain medication for small aches and pains, or possibly holding back on negative thinking. Maybe it’s noticing how many chips are consumed in one sitting or how the body is sitting while eating those chips. Shedding light on these little moments that are overlooked so often can change how life is lived in a positive way.
In time, tight muscles will release. That stiff and achy feeling when getting out of bed or right into downward facing dog won’t be as common. All bodies are different. Some people are extremely flexible and hypermobile, while other’s bone structure won’t allow for a super flexible practice. Finding the appropriate flexibility for each body type is the healthier way to think about it. Forcing or pushing the body to become flexible like the person on the neighboring mat is not a safe decision. It is extremely important to balance that flexibility with strength.
The yoga practice can become addictive because of the mental relief it offers practitioners. Yoga is a lifetime practice with so many different postures, variations, and lineages. Some people practice intensely on a consistent basis to achieve their goals faster. This is when injury occurs. Many people learn the hard way and ultimately realize that a safe, strong practice will result in longevity of the muscles, bones, ligaments, and tendons.
Depending on which route is traveled in the yoga world; learning about the body is an incredible discovery. How often does a person cross their legs every time they sit, with the same leg over? Understanding how body patterns and daily routine can affect well-being is tremendous.
Life can be very hectic and stressful with to-do lists and priorities. The mind eventually becomes cluttered putting up roadblocks in our path to clarity. The physical yoga practice is helpful with clearing the mind, however the meditative aspects of yoga can change thoughts drastically. A daily meditation practice is known to clear the mind and bring clarity to situations in which we feel limited.
Depending on the person, there will be interest in becoming a yoga instructor. Even if teaching isn’t the goal, some become certified to understand the practice on a deeper level. Spirituality is a huge part of the path of yoga. Studying yogic philosophy or reading up on spiritual teachings can help. Learning more about who you are as a person is a growth process unlike anything else.
“I have found that if you love life, life will love you right back.”- Arthur Rubinstein. Learning to move through life from a place of love is one of the best feelings in the world. Whether it is love for one’s own body, other people, or the love of life in itself, positive outcomes normally result in this way of thinking.
Yoga can turn a person’s world upside-down, literally and figuratively. Diving into a yoga practice in order to gain wisdom, peace, and physical strength is one of life’s best-kept secrets. As time goes on, life will continue to change for the better with the help of a little thing called yoga.
via yogaclub.com
