Take a Moment to Affirm Your Strength April 29, 2009

My meditation practice is a wondrous thing. Lately, it has been a lifesaver. Seems like every time I turn on the TV or radio, or log on to my favorite sites, there’s more news of layoffs. So I am seeking strength from my daily affirmations more than ever before. My morning meditation seems to be where this is taking place most often. Before I get ready for work, I offer thanks for the job I have. But I also find myself seeking strength to get through the day, and survive these tough times. So far, so good. My daily affirmation simply consists of telling myself “You possess the strength to get through whatever today brings. No matter what the day holds, you will be stronger at the end than when you started.”

It really does calm me and prepare me for a demanding work schedule and all the bumps that can go with it.  Much like many other businesses, the organization I work for is trying to do far more with far fewer people and resources. It’s just reality right now.  But it can also be a test some days. Weaving this affirmation into my meditation practice is now mandatory for me, and it is helping me bring down my anxiety level several notches, too. I’ve also noticed that quiet deep-breathing exercises at the beginning of the day, just before I begin to interact with my peers and supervisors is also very helpful. Using both of these techniques, I am discovering that I can start out on a more relaxed footing than if I dive right in and start treading water immediately.

What are your affirmations? I’d love to hear about them. How do they help you improve your life?

C’mon. Share

Peace.

A Little Yogic Tip to Help Soothe Your Tummy April 18, 2009

Ever wonder why you feel bloated, have acid reflux or indigestion? Well, to a certain extent it’s because you’re not digesting your food properly. Here’s a little yogic tip that might help you ease some of these symptoms before you eat. Breathe. That’s right, breathe. We’re all rushing around most days before we sit down and eat, which pushes our nervous systems into the “fight or flight” mode. Unfortunately, for a lot of us, actually sitting down and eating a meal is a luxury.

That’s just not healthy, and can leave you feeling quite uncomfortable. But when we feel safe and relaxed, we’re better able to do a lot of things, including digesting our food properly. So before you begin your next meal, sit down, relax and take several deep, diaphragmatic breaths. You’ll find you digest your food more easily, and experience far less bloating and indigestion.

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Use Your Meditation Practice to Embrace Change April 10, 2009

It’s human nature to bristle against change. Whether you’re facing a job loss, illness, or the death of a close friend or family member, change can be tough. But meditation and focusing on the present can really help. Helping yourself adjust to change can be as easy as making a list. Think about what has changed in your life over the past six months or even days. You can probably come up with a number of things. They can be as simple as losing a few pounds, changing your hairstyle or a new friend that you’ve made.

Life changes, and we should become comfortable with it, not push against it. The concept of nonattachment goes directly to this idea of change. Learning not to become attached to people, situations, anything is healthy. You might think it’s important to develop attachments, whether it’s to the people in your life, your job or even your car. And even though nonattachment sounds sort of unappealing and scary, it can be very fulfilling. It releases you from the limits that normally surround us, and allows us to see life as a force that moves through us, not something we must expend our time and energy trying to control.

When we embrace impermanence or nonattachment, we embrace the concept of no self–which helps us lose the egotistical ”I.” It will take some time to get there, and many never will. But our pursuit of this less self-centered approach to life is healthy either way. To ultimately lose the “I” means we have reached nirvana–and that would be a truly beautiful thing. But sometimes the getting there can be just as rewarding. Peace. Image: Newscom

A Simple But Important Lesson April 5, 2009

Spending time with yourself is a very important thing to do. We’re not really conditioned to believe that this is healthy or normal. Being with others, being popular, that’s what seems to matter most.

Being single and divorced, I fought this sense of “aloneness” for quite a while. I love being with people, especially the people I care about. But there is a unique value to being alone with oneself, and appreciating who and what you are, and what you believe. You can’t get to know yourself until you really spend time with you–your thoughts, ideas and desires–and get to know them well.

Even through meditation, I have found this to be challenging. I still hear the internal negative chit-chat that comes from inside of me. But I’ve learned over time to listen to it more closely and tie it to it’s appropriate emotional “anchor.” For example, if I am feeling as though I am not achieving what I want to at work, my mind often wanders to thoughts about what I am not doing correctly, not what I could do better. I have trained myself to focus on the latter. Of course, we can all feel burdened over mistakes or missteps we feel we have made. But the point is to fix the problem or issue, not assign blame. This negative self-talk was not helping me, and over time I am learning to transform it through my thoughts and meditation.

My goal now is to move from self-hate to a platform of self-love. I can always come up with areas in which I am not reaching my goals. This is not productive. I am now training myself to focus on what I have done right, and try to build upon that.

Practicing self-love through meditation is helping me to learn how to open myself up to unconditional love from others that I may have missed in the past, as well as love from the universe. I haven’t always been able to accept that, but I believe that as I continue to work on it, my life–both emotional and material–will improve and thrive.

I’m also learning that self-love comes from within, much like self-loathing. If we don’t love ourselves, and don’t project that love externally, than how can we expect others to love us?

The journey begins within. It’s not the easiest place to start. But it is the most fruitful.

Image: Newscom

Peace.

Soothe Your Sciatic Nerves With a Simple Seated Twist April 1, 2009

Do you experience tenderness or pain along your sciatic nerve? It’s not an uncommon pain. The longest nerves in our bodies, there are two sciatic nerves, one in each of our legs. These nerves originate from several nerve roots that exit the spinal cord. Whether you’re active or not, at some point along the way you might feel the discomfort that comes from these nerves being aggravated in some way.  Here’s a pose that can help.

It’s the Simple Seated Spinal Twist:

-Sit on the floor cross-legged -Keep your right knee pointed forward and on the floor

-Bring your left leg up, bending at the knee -Lean slightly to the left, distributing your weight equally onto both sitting bones -As you twist to the left, gently pull your left knee toward your right chest, resisting the pull by pressing your knee into your hand

-Hold this pose from 30 seconds up to several minutes

That’s it. Work this into your practice if you are experiencing discomfort in your sciatic nerve, and you will soon see some relief.

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Turn Down the Volume on Negativity March 30, 2009

I am constantly in a battle with myself, over myself. Seriously.

One minute, I am feeling strong and confident, but the next–after listening to someone else’s negative interpretation of a situation–I find myself slipping right back into the negativity. I know I shouldn’t, I know it is a lot of noise I should just tune out, but It can be challenging to do so. I can attribute this bad habit to a small extent to being single and living alone–at least that’s part of it. I often sink into deep thought about work, my life, etc., because I lead a quiet, thought-filled life.

But that’s a good thing, too. I just need to train myself to think and focus on the positive more than I do. Meditation is helping me with this. I am allowing my mind to take me wherever it wants to go, and logging those thoughts as I go. It is very revealing. Based on my “thought logs,” I have been able to detect which situations bubble up to the surface the most to my conscious mind.

I have disciplined myself to then sit down and really think through each item, and how it could manifest in my life–both good and bad–and what steps I can take to help guide myself to a more positive outcome. I don’t know about you, but my brain doesn’t seem to ever turn off, so I have a lot to work with

It really is making a difference, though, and it is making me a lot more effective when it comes to dealing with difficult situations in my life. I really encourage you to give it a try. So often our thoughts can incorrectly direct us to a less than positive outcome, because we allow them to overwhelm us, and become self-fulfilling prophecies. Instead of tuning them out, work with them. It can be a little scary sometimes, but it is so much better to take a solutions-based approach to managing your emotions and thoughts than to allow them to shape your destiny in a less than desirable way.

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Don’t Forget Your Feet :-) March 24, 2009

We walk around on them all day long, but let’s face it, we don’t all focus much on our feet!

So why not give your tootsies a little break? It’s easy, quick and effective, and if you run or walk a lot, it’s a wonderful way to keep your heels stretched and relaxed.

Downward Facing Dog–Heels Down

-With your back facing the wall, bend from the Downward Facing Dog, bringing your heels up against the wall

-Adjust your feet so your heels press into the wall, and your toes remain on the floor

-Don’t worry if your feet don’t completely touch the floor at first, they will get there over time

-Press your pelvis and tailbone up into the air and towards the wall -Make sure your weight is evenly distributed between your hands -Continue to keep reaching your chest toward your knees

-Hold the pose with your legs up one minute or longer

-When you’re finished, bend your knees and return them to the floor

Just like the Hamstring Stretch, this is a great move for runners, especially if your heels bear the brunt of your runs. You’ll find your feet feel nicely stretched and relaxed in no time.

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Welcome Change March 22, 2009

It’s human nature to bristle against change. Whether you’re facing a job loss, illness, or the death of a close friend or family member, change can be tough. But meditation and focusing on the present can really help. Helping yourself adjust to change can be as easy as making a list. Think about what has changed in your life over the past six months or even days. You can probably come up with a number of things. They can be as simple as losing a few pounds, changing your hairstyle or a new friend that you’ve made. Life changes, and we should become comfortable with it, not push against it. The concept of nonattachment goes directly to this concept of change. Learning not to become attached to people, situations, anything is healthy.

You might think it’s important to develop attachments, whether it’s to the people in your life, your job or even your car. And even though nonattachment sounds sort of unappealing and scary, it can be very fulfilling. It releases you from the limits that normally surround us, and allows us to see life as a force that moves through us, not something we must expend our time and energy trying to control. When we embrace impermanence or nonattachment, we embrace the concept of no self–which helps us lose the all-important, egotistical ”I.”

It will take some time to get there, and many never will. But our pursuit of this less self-centered approach to life is healthy either way. To ultimately lose the “I” means we have reached nirvana–and that would be a truly beautiful thing. But sometimes the getting there can be just as rewarding.

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Relax Your Lower Back With the Locust March 20, 2009

I’ve never been one to spend a lot of time working on my lower back. I’ve always figured it kind of takes care of itself. That’s probably why I often find myself feeling tense and stiff in my lower back and up through to my shoulders. I just don’t pay enough attention to it.

Here’s a quick and simple pose that will offer your lower back a bit more of the attention it deserves.

The Locust Pose or Salabhasana:

-Lie on your stomach, arms at sides, palms down and chin resting on the floor

-Inhale deeply and lengthen from the top of your head down to your toes

-Exhale and press down toward the floor with your pubic bone

-Inhale again and lift your legs, arms and head off the floor

-Hold this pose for 5 breaths

-Each time you inhale, lift up a bit more, and as you exhale out again, relax into the pose and slow your breaths

This pose is great for strengthening your lower back and torso. It’s easy, quick and effective, too.

Until next time.

Peace.

On the Run With Yoga March 19, 2009

I’m getting ready to run a half-marathon in May, and even though I am not going all the way this year, I am finding that running and

yoga are not only a great fitness combo for health, but some of the stretching and yoga poses  really come in handy during training.

Even to this day, my legs tend to get stiff after a long run. I thought that after a few years of this, the stiffness would go away, but it hasn’t totally.

One of my favorite stretches for my legs is a Standing Hamstring Stretch. Here’s the run-through (sorry, bad pun):

-Place a chair in front of you

-Raise your right leg onto the seat of the chair, with your knee pointing upward, hips level, and quadriceps fully engaged

-Deepen the stretch, leaning forward from the hips into the bend

-Hold anywhere from 30 seconds up to several minutes

It’s that simple and that easy. I now do this before and after my runs as part of my warm-up and cool down.

See ya on the road!

Peace.

Image: Newscom