Transitions

Transitions abound. We have settled in Seattle and now it's time for me to stop using the 'we just moved here' excuse and get started with the things I have neglected over the last few months with all the chaos. It's time.

Some of those things are:

Yoga- I did it for the first time today (after a few weeks of "I really need to start that up again") and boooooooooy...did I feel the several month lapse. I am not flexible to begin with- yoga just helps me look less UN-flexible - and today my muscles were screaming for me to stop, well, USING them. Sorry muscles. It's time.

Art- I have an Etsy shop that has been a long time coming where sell hand painted children's clothes. No stencils or templates, just me n' my paintbrush. Today I went to pick up some new items to paint and post. It's time.

Juicing- This is a new one. I have read and reread Kris Carr's Crazy Sexy Diet and there are several posts on here from when I was doing the 21 Day Adventure Cleanse. I have long been downing green smoothies, but never had a juicer to try that mode of green veggie consumption. Soon after we moved I scored a really affordable used juicer off a local list-serve I'm on. Really high quality, really expensive juicer, barely used, for waaaaaaaay less than I could ever buy it new (I probably couldn't buy it new). It was such an awesome score. That was several months ago and I kept putting off actually trying it out (it required that I READ DIRECTIONS. Very difficult. ) But finally yesterday I tried it and it was everything I thought it would be. I went out right away and got more good greens to stuff down the shoot and used it again today. It was great.

Mmmm tasty. 

Let's drink to transitions.

A Week in the Practice of a Budget Yogi- Monday*

This post is the first of a short series of posts that documents a week in the life of my Year of Yoga. I call myself a Budget Yogi because I mostly do DVD's at home. DVD's are fine for the most part; I really enjoy the collection I have. Would I like to practice more in a real live studio? Sure, but but it really depends on my bank account on any given day, as well as child care, so mostly it ends up being just me, my cluttered living room, a two year old, a dog or two, a cat, and an onscreen Rodney Yee. Rock on!

Today I came home at lunch to do my yoga for the day. I only work 5 minutes or so away from my house, so sometimes this is a nice option- especially if I know the evening is going to be busy. It's also a nice break from everything to come home to an empty house and to light a candle and mellow out for a half hour in the middle of the day.

The DVD selection for today's practice was Yoga for Stamina- a nice 20 minute flow that includes my favorite Tree Pose. :) My mood for today's practice was half way between 'Totally Distracted Lets Just Do This So I Can Check It Off the List' and 'Totally Blissed Out'. My mind wasn't completely on task, but I wasn't completely unfocused either.

What I have found during this year is that I'm not going to be Totally Blissed Out everyday. Some days it will just be a check off the list- but that's ok. I'm there, I made the effort to pull the mat out and practice, and my body will get the benefit. When I'm conscious of a mindset like that, I try to focus more and be present, but sometimes it just doesn't stick. On days like those, I concentrate on the fact that I made good choices in getting on the mat, even if I wasn't totally present. What matters on those days is that I showed up.

I think life is often like that, no?


*This post is also cross posted on my other blog Yoga for Kaylee

21 Day Adventure Cleanse- Day 15 -Monday, June 20th

Daily questions to be answered at the end of each day on Crazy Sexy 21 Day Adventure Cleanse: 

1. Did you abstain from coffee? Yes
2. Did you abstain from alcohol? Yes
3. Did you abstain from gluten? Yes
4. Did you abstain from animal products? Yes
5. Did you abstain from crack (aka sugar) and choose low-glycemic fruits and better alternatives such as stevia or agave? Yes
6. Did you dry brush today? Yup yup
7. Did you cleanse your sinuses with the good ol' neti pot? No...
8. Did you move your body for at least thirty-five minutes? Yes- Baron Baptiste DVD
9. Did you meditate for fifteen to twenty minutes? Yup. 
10. Did you chew your meals thoroughly and mindfully? Dinner...breakfast was juice and lunch was a smoothie- no chewing necessary! :) 
11. Did you laugh out loud and tell someone you loved him or her today? Yes!
12. Did you spend time in nature? Even five minutes is better than nothing.  Replanted a few plants in my garden- didn't take long, but was nice anyhow.
13. Did you get eight hours of uninterrupted sleep? Close
14. What did you eat today and did you juice? Fast day today! Went to the juice bar near my house for a large green juice for breakfast- I can't remember everything in it, but the major players were cucumbers, collards, and lemon. "Snacked" on water and tea. Lunch was smoothie with collards, banana, tiny bit of peanut butter, almond milk and dates- pretty decent. Dinner was baked sweet potato with Earth balance and cinnamon (no sugar!), plain black beans with garlic, and sauteed beet greens. Dessert was Sleepytime tea with almond milk and stevia. :) 
15. How much purified water did you consume? You can include fresh veggie juices in your calculation. A lot! but not as much as other days, I do better with this at work than at home, and I had to come home half day today. Sweet Baboo was sick.
16. What supplements did you take? B vitamin supplement
17. How was your elimination? TMI FOR A BLOG. :) 
18. What time did you stop eating? Three hours before bed is optimum. Ate dinner at 7:30, went to bed at 10, so...close.
19. How do you feel physically? Really good. :)
20. How do you feel emotionally? Pretty good. A little irritable off and on, but happy overall.

21 Day Adventure Cleanse- Day 12 -Friday, June 1th

Daily questions to be answered at the end of each day on Crazy Sexy 21 Day Adventure Cleanse: 

1. Did you abstain from coffee? Yes
2. Did you abstain from alcohol? Yes
3. Did you abstain from gluten? Yes...until 7pm when I had a veggie sub with my dad for Father's Day
4. Did you abstain from animal products? Yes
5. Did you abstain from crack (aka sugar) and choose low-glycemic fruits and better alternatives such as stevia or agave? Yes...I even said no to the tons of candy brought to my staff meeeting
6. Did you dry brush today? I did! :) I finally got little loofah mitt things and I dry brushed before I got dressed today at 3:30am! Woohoo!
7. Did you cleanse your sinuses with the good ol' neti pot? No...ugg...really not good with this one. Even though I have one and use it when I'm sick!
8. Did you move your body for at least thirty-five minutes? Yup, pretty active today.
9. Did you meditate for fifteen to twenty minutes? Yup. 
10. Did you chew your meals thoroughly and mindfully? I remembered at breakfast,  forgot the rest of the day.
11. Did you laugh out loud and tell someone you loved him or her today? Yes! Lots! Good day today.
12. Did you spend time in nature? Even five minutes is better than nothing.  Yes! It was wonderful!
13. Did you get eight hours of uninterrupted sleep? No...more like 6...it was my early morning.
14. What did you eat today and did you juice? I did not juice, but drank tons of water and tea. 
15. How much purified water did you consume? You can include fresh veggie juices in your calculation. A lot! I carry a cup with a lid with me all day long and keep it filled. 
16. What supplements did you take? B vitamin supplement
17. How was your elimination? TMI FOR A BLOG. :) 
18. What time did you stop eating? Three hours before bed is optimum. Ate dinner at 7:00 went to bed after ten, so did well with this today- I had tea before bed, but no food.
19. How do you feel physically? A little bloaty today, but good otherwise.
20. How do you feel emotionally? Good today.

21 Day Adventure Cleanse- Day 10 -Tuesday, June 15th

Daily questions to be answered at the end of each day on Crazy Sexy 21 Day Adventure Cleanse: 

1. Did you abstain from coffee? Yes
2. Did you abstain from alcohol? Yes
3. Did you abstain from gluten? Yes
4. Did you abstain from animal products? Yes
5. Did you abstain from crack (aka sugar) and choose low-glycemic fruits and better alternatives such as stevia or agave? Yes
6. Did you dry brush today? I did! :) I finally got little loofah mitt things. 
7. Did you cleanse your sinuses with the good ol' neti pot? No...
8. Did you move your body for at least thirty-five minutes? Not quite 35, have a really early night tonight, so I had to do my 15 Minute Yoga video on my lunch break.
9. Did you meditate for fifteen to twenty minutes? Yup. 
10. Did you chew your meals thoroughly and mindfully? I remembered at breakfast and dinner, forgot at lunch and snacks.
11. Did you laugh out loud and tell someone you loved him or her today? Yes!
12. Did you spend time in nature? Even five minutes is better than nothing.  Not enough of this today...
13. Did you get eight hours of uninterrupted sleep? Close
14. What did you eat today and did you juice? I did not juice, but drank tons of water and tea. 
15. How much purified water did you consume? You can include fresh veggie juices in your calculation. A lot! I carry a cup with a lid with me all day long and keep it filled. 
16. What supplements did you take? B vitamin supplement
17. How was your elimination? TMI FOR A BLOG. :) 
18. What time did you stop eating? Three hours before bed is optimum. Ate dinner at 7:30, went to bed at 8:30...so...not three hours.
19. How do you feel physically? A little crampy in the intestines, but fairly good besides that.
20. How do you feel emotionally? Ok...optimistic about the future.

21 Day Adventure Cleanse- Day 9 -Tuesday, June 14th

Daily questions to be answered at the end of each day on Crazy Sexy 21 Day Adventure Cleanse: 

1. Did you abstain from coffee? Yes
2. Did you abstain from alcohol? Yes
3. Did you abstain from gluten? No, ate a fair amount of gluten today.
4. Did you abstain from animal products? Yes
5. Did you abstain from crack (aka sugar) and choose low-glycemic fruits and better alternatives such as stevia or agave? Yes
6. Did you dry brush today? No...
7. Did you cleanse your sinuses with the good ol' neti pot? Yup
8. Did you move your body for at least thirty-five minutes? Yes, did Baron Baptiste's Yoga for Athletes
9. Did you meditate for fifteen to twenty minutes? Yup. 
10. Did you chew your meals thoroughly and mindfully? Forgot to be conscious of this again today.
11. Did you laugh out loud and tell someone you loved him or her today? Yes!
12. Did you spend time in nature? Even five minutes is better than nothing.  Not enough, but I did spend some time looking at my pretty flowers in my garden.
13. Did you get eight hours of uninterrupted sleep? Close
14. What did you eat today and did you juice? Too tired to list it all out... :)
15. How much purified water did you consume? You can include fresh veggie juices in your calculation. A lot! I carry a cup with a lid with me all day long and keep it filled. 
16. What supplements did you take? B vitamin supplement
17. How was your elimination? TMI FOR A BLOG. :) 
18. What time did you stop eating? Three hours before bed is optimum. Ate dinner at 8, went to bed at ten...so two hours, not three.
19. How do you feel physically? Tired.
20. How do you feel emotionally? Tapped out. I was frustrated and overwhelmed and weepy in the evening, was blaming it on things that wouldn't really cause all that- so I'm projecting obviously, but I am not sure what I am projecting yet. Hopefully it will come out eventually through this process.

21 Day Adventure Cleanse- Day 8- Monday, June 13th

Daily questions to be answered at the end of each day on Crazy Sexy 21 Day Adventure Cleanse: 

1. Did you abstain from coffee? Yes
2. Did you abstain from alcohol? Yes
3. Did you abstain from gluten? Yes
4. Did you abstain from animal products? Yes
5. Did you abstain from crack (aka sugar) and choose low-glycemic fruits and better alternatives such as stevia or agave? Yes
6. Did you dry brush today? FAIL.
7. Did you cleanse your sinuses with the good ol' neti pot? No...
8. Did you move your body for at least thirty-five minutes? Didn't get the whole 35 today, it was a juice fast day and I was a little tapped out. Did some restorative yoga though.
9. Did you meditate for fifteen to twenty minutes? Yup. 
10. Did you chew your meals thoroughly and mindfully? Well, I drank my meals until 7pm, so that was easy. Dinner I made a conscious effort to chew chew chew.
11. Did you laugh out loud and tell someone you loved him or her today? Yes!
12. Did you spend time in nature? Even five minutes is better than nothing.  Yes! I came home at lunch and took my dogs for a walk in my beautiful neighborhood. It was great. They were blessed, I was blessed, we were blessed.
13. Did you get eight hours of uninterrupted sleep? Not quite 8, but close.
14. What did you eat today and did you juice? Fasting day! I did not juice, but I got juice. I really need a juicer, but there is an awesome juice/raw bar not too far from my house. Got a green juice for breakfast, and got a smoothie for later, drank lots of tea and water. Had small amount of black beans and sauteed kale for dinner to break the fast. 
15. How much purified water did you consume? You can include fresh veggie juices in your calculation. A lot! I carry a cup with a lid with me all day long and keep it filled. 
16. What supplements did you take? B vitamin supplement
17. How was your elimination? TMI FOR A BLOG. :) 
18. What time did you stop eating? Three hours before bed is optimum. Did well with this today- had dinner at 7, went to bed at ten. 
19. How do you feel physically? Felt great most of the day, a little tired later.
20. How do you feel emotionally? Pretty good, some mood swings.

Listening to Your Body: Going for the Long Run Instead of the Now

For the last week and a half, my yoga practice looked, on paper, very boring. During the past week and a half, I did Rodney Yee's AM Yoga. Everyday. For a week and a half. And it was just what my body was asking me for. I just had to listen to it.

AM Yoga is what I call a 'Relax-y Stretchy' practice. Not too physically taxing, probably doesn't burn a lot of calories, but very beneficial nonetheless.

One day about two weeks ago, I was feeling really drained. The thought of doing any kind of yoga was not really what I wanted to think about. Was I burning out? Would I be able to continue this project? I wanted to sit on the couch. Rest. Sleep. Anything but Downward Dog or Push-up Pose.

So I did what I usually do when I'm feeling that way. I did AM Yoga. Most of AM Yoga takes place while lying down. It's so non-taxing that I can keep a heavy hoodie on the whole time. And thick socks. There's only one downward facing dog and you only stand up once. Perfect. Thank you, Rodney Yee!

The next day, I felt the same way- so AM Yoga made a reappearance. Same with the day after that. Once I regained more energy, I was ready for something new, but then I pulled something in my shoulder (not yoga related) and couldn't lift my arm over my head without pain- so AM Yoga it was again. At that point, with more energy, I wanted to do something more athletic- I had calories to burn after all!

"You're going to get out of shape!", my brain told me. "All you eat is- as we speak- GOING TO YOUR THIGHS!"

I quietly listened to my brain...and then told it "to not be silly...doing too much right now would be detrimental" and again slipped AM Yoga into my DVD player. I really did want to do something a little more challenging, mostly because I felt like I needed to be burning calories (that is a hard mindset to re-set as a female, I think). BUT...I also needed to heal my shoulder. Pushing myself could mess it up more, and could put a major damper on the rest of my Year of Yoga. So despite my "I need to burn calories NOW" mentality, I went with the "I need to heal for the long run" reality. So I kept playing that AM Yoga DVD day after day until my shoulder felt better. Then I did it one more day for good measure.

I'm glad I did. Today I was able to do the more athletic (and aptly named) Yoga for Athletes by Baron Baptist. That's one of my faves and I've had it forever. Tried and true. Tomorrow I'll probably do Yoga for Stamina with Rodney Yee. Also tried and true.

My week and a half of "easy" yoga had not caused me lose strength or flexibility. It healed my shoulder fully and I was downward dogging it up on the mat today- just as strong and actually MORE flexible than before (thanks Relax-y Stretchy yoga!).

The moral to this experience: Listen to your body. It's usually smarter than you. :)

Donations!

I am so excited to report that Kaylee's adoption fund is a little bit bigger today!!! Thank you to anyone who has donated based on this project, and thank you to all of those who are keeping Kaylee and this project in your thoughts and prayers! Its working!

Since the donations go through Reece's Rainbow, I don't find out who donates and that is ok- but if you'd like to let me know privately of your support, or if you'd like your name to appear on the right of the Yoga for Kaylee blog as a sponsor (first name only is ok), please email me! I'd love to get a list of sponsors going! If you'd like to be anonymous...that's ok too, though. :)

Thanks again for all the support! It means a lot to me, but it means even more to sweet Kaylee.

Yoga for Kaylee

As you might have read in previous posts, in November 2010 I gave myself a goal to do yoga six days a week every week for the month of November and that this was an attempt to breathe life back into the 'once in awhile' yoga practice that I had not-so-much-going. Then when I completed the month of November, I realized how much I really enjoyed the daily yoga practice and was starting to see some benefits, so I decided to do one more month. Then I decided to do a whole year.

Since then, I completed one and a half more months of yoga and discovered Reece's Rainbow. I spent every night for a week pouring over the faces of the beautiful children who need families, wishing there was more that I could do. One little girl's face kept coming back to me, and I wished there was something else I could do for her. After much more scouring of the website, I found out that I could be a 'Warrior' for her- by making a commitment to advocate and try to raise awareness and funds for her adoption grant. That is something I can do.
Not long after, while I was doing one of my daily yoga practices, I realized- why don't I do my Year of Yoga for Kaylee! People raise money for marathons and triathlons and all kinds of things- why not for yoga?

So I have now decided to not only do a Year of Yoga for my own health and well being, but to help raise awareness and funds for a little girl who needs a family.

I am keeping a separate blog for that project which is connected to a different email address (it also has my real name attached, so...now you know) :). Eco-ing Myself is kind of my personal thing, and I don't really want ALL my family and friends knowing about it. Maybe that sounds weird, but if I know some of my family (who I DO want to know about the Yoga for Kaylee project) are reading it, then I also know that I will subconsciously edit myself and that is something I don't want. I will still be posting about some yoga things here- I will probably cross post from there to here- but on this blog I will also be talking about food, my Read Through the Centuries Project (only two chapters left on The Scarlet Letter!), and other random thoughts and musings that I have. So please continue to read this blog if you are already doing so!  Most everything going on at my other blog will be going on here, but not everything going on here will be going on over there if that makes sense.

Also, please read along with my Yoga for Kaylee journey! I know the economy sucks and lots of us don't have a lot of extra, but if you'd like to sponsor me per month or just to make a one time donation- every little bit helps! The money goes directly into a fund to help Kaylee's future family cover the high costs of international adoption and is tax deductible. Many families want to adopt, but the financial aspect is daunting. Reece's Rainbow helps families realize their calling to adopt a special needs child by providing ways to offset these costs.

If you are not able to donate financially at this time- positive thoughts and prayers are very valuable! Your prayers for Kaylee, Kaylee's future family, and for a successful yoga fundraising campaign are much appreciated!

Thanks for continuing to read Eco-ing Myself. I truly enjoy writing this blog, and I truly appreciate all those who read it.

Namaste!

Loosely Coherent Thoughts on the End of One Year and the Beginning of Another

 I sit here on my couch, lights off, but a candle and Christmas lights glowing. I just finished my last yoga practice of 2010. I did Yoga for Stamina by Rodney Yee (a lot of my videos are Rodney Yee- I really like the way his sequences flow). As I stood in tree pose, I tried to make it extra strong- hoping that strength will carry over into 2011.

There are so many good things that happened in this decade, many happy things which make me feel truly blessed. There are also those things that, although I don't spend a lot of time dwelling on them anymore, I will be happy to leave behind. I am looking forward to what the next decade has to offer.

One thing I am really happy about is that in the last six months I have really made strides toward actively being the person I want to be. There are many components to that statement- I have mentioned some of them here- and I think my two Months Of Yoga in November and December really helped solidify those positive changes, bring them all together, and keep them moving forward. Even the last two weeks have produced more personal evolution towards the positive. I am grateful.

I had sort of a bummer morning, but I am feeling much better now. I think I needed to get the crying out so that I could release the negative and usher in the New Year focusing on the joy. There's really so much more Joy than Blah, but it's so easy to become bogged down in Blahville. I'm glad I cried my way out in time to enjoy the rest of the day. :)

This New Year, I am not making a resolution, but I am making a statement that I will continue my six days of yoga practice per week. It has been so very beneficial and I would be doing myself a disservice by letting it fall to the wayside or by being 'too busy'. With two months down, I would like to complete a year.  Not a year from tomorrow, but a year from when I started this journey which was November 1st. That's why its not really a new year's resolution, but more of a resolution to continue. To continue to practice the positive and life affirming changes that I've begun to implement; and to continue shedding things that aren't productive or beneficial to me anymore.

On this last day of 2010- both the year and the decade- I wish you joy, blessings, and peace. May your next year be better than the last, and your next decade be the best thus far.

Thanks for reading, I hope you continue to do so.

Best wishes for the New Year,

Hope

If I Can Do It...

For any of you out there that think that yoga is just for flexible, skinny, single people with lots of time and money, I would like to tell you otherwise. I am none of those things, but for two months I've had a very successful renewal of my yoga practice from long ago.

First: Flexibility

Flexible I AM NOT. I never have been. For example, in college I was in my dorm room stretching as far as I could go, when my roommate came in. "What are you doing?" she asked. "Stretching." I said.

She LAUGHED at me. "You can't even tell!" That was in college. When I was supposedly young and supple. Yeah, things haven't improved in that area as I've aged. You don't need to be bend-y. Just bend as far as you can. The benefits will still be there.

Second: Skinny

Lets just say sometimes my belly schlub gets in the way. We'll leave it at that.

Third: Time

I have very little time for my practice, but since I committed to my 'Month of Yoga' in November, I had to MAKE time. Every day. Most days that meant rolling out my mat in the living room, next to the dogs, kid, and Little People Farm and Zoo sets and taking the time to practice. Here's a visual for you. This is from directly after today's practice:

Dog one wants to help!



Dog two wants to help!





The Little People Animals want to help!



Is it pretty? Not really the adjective I'd use. Is it peaceful, well...I've realized that peace comes from your MIND.

Take today for example. I'm sitting on my mat, trying to bend forward as far as my lack of flexibility allows, and the Sweet Baboo figures out that if he blows on the back of my neck, it makes a fantastic fart noise. That's right. There I am, trying to do a relaxing yoga sequence, and my son is making snotty fart noises on the back of my neck. Peace comes from your MIND.

Yesterday, this same kid decides that when I'm doing relaxation pose at the very end of my practice, it would be hilarious to stick his finger in my belly button. So, first of all, I am distracted by the fact that he can stick his finger ALL THE WAY into my belly button. Like, so it disappears (See point #2). Second, I have some one's finger stuck to the hilt into my belly button. Peace comes from your MIND.

Fourth: Money

I ain't got much. Funny how kids and pets suck all the extra funds out of you. This means that I can't really get to a 'real' yoga studio and practice very much. I have videos. I do one of them everyday. Do you need a lot of them? Not really. When I first started my practice way back when I was a poor grad student...I only had one Rodney Yee video with two 20 minute practices on it. (I also had to walk to school uphill both ways.) I did one of these two everyday for months. Did it get a little boring? Sometimes, but the benefits were so great- even with just one video, that I kept it up. I'm glad I did.

I still have that video. I still use it. Thankfully now I have a few more, but you don't need a lot. There's also a lot of resources on the web. Look for them...you don't need a lot of money.

So if you're interested in yoga but held back by various worries or concerns, don't worry!  I am the perfect non-flexible, non-skinny, non-rich, non-time having example. So if I can do it, you can definitely do it.

The benefits are so, so worth it.

Lessons from Yoga: Be Present

Today I had a life/yoga moment. Well two of them. One when I gave myself some advice and then again when I realized that what I was trying to do in my yoga practice is exactly what I was telling myself to do in life. Did that make sense? No you say?

Ok then, let me 'splain.

First, background: I am not fond of the 'going home' process. I never have been. I love the fact that my day is over and I get to go home, but I don't like all the things I have to do to get there. Like drive home, and walk up the sidewalk, and put my coat away. Stupid- I know- but for some reason I have always been this way. These things don't bother me on non-work days...so its work day specific.

Now that I have the Sweet Baboo, I add all the things that precede picking him up from daycare to that list. Again, I love the fact that I get to see him and take him home, I just don't like the things leading up to getting him there. Walking up the steps to his provider's house. Putting on his coat. Putting him in the car seat. I realize this is weird. I accept it.

Well, where yoga comes in, is that I don't dislike any of these actions as I'm doing them. I dislike them when I think of them before they occur- at 4:30 when I'm getting ready to get up from my desk and leave for the day. So today, I said to myself:

"Self, you don't have to do all these things right now. You only have to put on your coat and walk to your car. That's it. That's all you have to do right now. The way you can not get overwhelmed by "all the things you have to do" in order to get home and relax, is to only think about the step you're engaging in right NOW. Notice, dear Self, that I put "all the things you have to do" in quotes because "all the things" is a bit of an exaggeration on your part. I mean 'walking up the sidewalk'? That's being a bit dramatic is it not?"

I have done this kind of thinking before, but I sometimes forget, and it was good to remind myself. I mean, walking up the sidewalk? That is not a problem, and its not like when I'm facing the sidewalk I'm all "oh my goodness, I can not believe I have to walk this right now." Obviously it's not the steps themselves, but when I think about them at 4:30 when I'm still at work and they are standing between me and the inside of my house, that's the problem.

So when I was doing my yoga today, I found myself doing the same kind of thing: "ugg, I still have 15 minutes left" or "aw man, I still have those two hard poses to go". I realize that part of the problem is that I've done the videos I have so many times that I anticipate what's left, but that shouldn't matter, because each pose should stand alone. Yes, yoga poses flow from one to another, but each one should be valued and concentrated on while its being done. My problem comes when I am not present in the pose I'm doing at that moment. Once I started concentrating on the moment, I stopped anticipating future discomfort, and enjoyed where I was.

That's exactly how it works in my life. I enjoy the drive to daycare. I listen to the radio, I may or may not embarrass myself by singing along so people next to me at the stop light can see me, I look at the pretty colors in the sunset. It's only when I take it as one of many steps, instead of on its own, that it causes anxiety and 'blahness'.

Don't let the anticipation of future blah (which most likely will not even occur) cause the present moment to be blah. At the risk of being cliche, each moment is precious, I should savor them individually as much as I can!

Month of Yoga- Complete!

I completed a month of yoga! Six days a week for the entire month. I did whatever routine I felt like I needed at the time- sometimes it was my hard core (well, hard core for me...hardish coreish let's say) Rodney Yee Yoga for Strength video. Sometimes it was my half hardish-coreish/half relaxy-stretchy Baron Baptiste Yoga for Athletes video. Sometimes it was my mellow-out AM Yoga video. Sometimes it was realizing that I need more than three videos if I'm going to practice yoga six days a week. :) 

I feel good. I haven't weighed myself, I haven't been worried about what I'm eating (as long as I continue working to eat as vegan as I can), and my clothes fit good enough and that's good enough for me!



So...I think I want this to continue, and since my Month of Yoga has been a success:

I'm going to do another one!

December!  Another Month of Yoga!









 My yoga road continues...








 


Namaste my friends. NAMASTE.

Update: Month O' Yoga

The Month of Yoga is going well. I've practiced six days a week for the last two weeks, and it's definitely helping me both mentally and physically. Physically, it's making me feel more balanced in my body. I can already see a tremendous difference in my strength and flexibility from when I started November 1st. It's also made me feel more comfortable in my skin. I feel happy that I'm doing something good for me, and the feeling of strength and relaxation stays with me through the day.

To help nurture the positive body-friendly feelings and to not give negative thoughts room to grow, I have made a conscious decision not to weigh myself during this time. (Sorry, boring weight discussion is about to follow, I apologize in advance.)

Usually I weigh myself every few days (I know, I know...), but it's not so much to see if I'm losing weight (I'm for the most part good where I am), but to make sure I'm not gaining anything significant.  Catch problems before they occur and make changes when only small ones are necessary, that kind of thing.

I feel that's a relatively healthy mindset and one that usually works for me. Until this the other day.  After making solid progress into my Month of Yoga,  I weighed myself as usual, but this time I found myself getting discouraged by what I saw (which was essentially, nothing). 

Hmmmm...now why would this be I wonder...?

So to find out, I had a brief conversation with Myself. It went as follows:

Me: "Self, why the discouragement?"

Self: "Well, since I'm doing yoga (which is exercise dontcha know) six days a week, I figured I could at the same time, lose those last ten pounds of baby weight still sticking around. You know, kill two birds with one stone, if you will."

Me: "Well, Self, first of all, we don't want to kill birds- we want to improve the health of our Body Mind. Losing weight isn't the point and if stepping on the scale minimizes the good feelings gained by our yoga practice, then we need to step off the scale and let it collect dust until the end of the month. Capiche?"

Self: "Eh, ok. I don't really like that scale anyhow. It's sort of a bummer."

So yes, no scale for me and Self this month. I'm doing the Month of Yoga for its holistic benefits. Losing weight, although it would be welcome (those last ten pounds are pesky), is not why I'm doing this- and if numbers on the scale lessen the joy of accomplishing my goal for the month, then they ain't worth knowing about.

So there. 

Namaste

I did yoga today. I haven't done yoga in what feels like forever. It's probably only been months, but in yoga time, that might as well be forever. It felt great. I have not been feeling so great. It helped.

I don't know why I haven't done yoga in so long, when it really does benefit me a ton. It seems like the more I need to do something- yoga, eating better, doing something creative- the more apathetic and the more excuses I develop. I need to clean the counters, I need to check my email, I need to pack my lunch, I need to make dinner, I need to take a shower before I make dinner. All things that are necessary at one time or another, but usually not necessary for me to do right then. Instead of yoga or art or writing, which help my sanity so much in times of stress, I choose counter cleaning and dishwasher loading.

I need to do that less. I need to paint, write, and do yoga more. I'll try to get those scales balanced.