Commit to your PRACTICE

I don't know about you, but for me November brings with it the stress and busyness of the the Holidays. I used to think when I got busy that my practice could become optional in order for me to "save time". What I found was that its especially when I don't think I have time for my practice, that is precisely when I need to MAKE time for my practice. We all have the same amount of time in the day and we get to CHOOSE what  we prioritize. I now know I must prioritize my practice, especially during the holidays so I can stay more sane, more calm, and more giving through this part of the year.

This doesn't mean I need to do the same two hour advanced practice every day, but for me I have found choosing a practice and doing it everyday helps me feel steady and calm.  

A yoga practice gives us the opportunity to PRACTICE being CONSISTENT and COMMITTED. If you need a little nudge to get more consistent in your practice, here it is: **nudge nudge wink wink**.

If you want to take it one step further, join me for a 40 day sadhna (personal practice).
I will be doing a 40 day practice starting November 11th (11/11 which an auspicious date with all those 1's and gives this day extra potential to shift our awareness) and ending on winter solstice (12/21).

To join me for this sadhna, all you have to do is pick a daily practice (list of suggestions below) and make a commitment to show up for your practice every day for 40 days. If you miss a day, that is OKAY. Use it as an opportunity to see how you feel when you do the practice and when you do not. A big suggestion is to pick something realistic, especially if this is your first 40 day practice. By completing a 40 day sadhna you build your practice muscles and you get a big self esteem boost. Pick something you can commit to doing everyday and then do it even when you do not want to (find out why below).

Here are some ideas:
5 sun salutation, 3 minutes of meditation
1 minute of meditation 2 x a day
11 rounds of a mantra (suggestions below)
108 rounds of a mantra (use mala beads to count)
Meditation 3 or 11 minutes
or your own thing

Suggestions:
Inhale: I love you, Exhale: Thank You
Inhale: Sat, Exhale: Nam
Exhale Breath Meditation: same count for inhale. retention, exhale for example: 5 count in, 5 count hold, 5 count out. Closed eyes gaze toward 3rd eye.

Mantra Suggestions:
The mantra: Om Shanti Shanti ShantiTranslation: Om Peace Peace Peace
May there be well-being for all,
May there be peace for all.
May there be wholeness for all,
May there be happiness for all.

The mantra: Sat Nam
*Sat is extended longer than Nam, radiate the mantra from the base of your spine to the center of your head
Translation:Truth is my identity

The mantra: (Siri Gaitri Mantra) Ra Ma Da Sa Sa Say So Hung
Why chant it: It Sends healing energy to ourselves and others.

The mantra: Om Namah Shivaya Gurave
Translation: I bow down to all the teachers and teachings that lead me from the dark to the light

The mantra: (Lakshmi mantra) Om Shrim Maha Lakshmiyei Swaha
Why chant it: purifies and cleanses your heart, opening doors of opportunities that will transform your life. This mantra cultivates abundance and the connection to the abundance that is every present with in.

The mantra: (Gyrati mantra) Om Gam Gaņapateye Namaha
Translation: Om and Salutations to the remover and installer of obstacles.
Why chant it: helps you move through obstacles.
 

If you do this please let me know which one you are doing, I would love to know!. Feel free to message me for support or if you have any questions. There is something so powerful about being consistent for 40 days,  because at some point you are not going to want to show up for yourself. When you choose to show up, even though you don't feel like it over and over again...... That feels AWESOME!

Get on the toddler ride

Have you ever been on BIG the emotional roller coaster ride? Where you are going back and forth between being so happy and “high” to being so sad and “low”. Where the position of where you are on the ride is dependent on what is happening externally to you.
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It is said we have three aspects of our psyche:
1st. The negative mind
2nd. The positive mind
3rd. The neutral mind
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If we live mainly in the headspace of positive and negative we stay on the roller coaster ride.
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If we can ground into the neutral mind we can be both OBJECTIVE and COMPASSIONATE. The neutral mind is like a scale.  It can SLOW DOWN, weigh and balance the information from the positive mind and the negative mind to give a more neutral and compassionate determination of our best path.
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In Anusara terms. The neutral mind is great at finding our optimal blue print, our most harmonious alignment within any situation.
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The neutral mind takes you off the advanced roller coaster ride and puts you on the toddler ride, much more calm and steady.
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I think one of the greatest tools we have as humans is the ability to, at any time, choose to strengthen our meditative mind. The more we develop it, the more we will be able
To access it instead of being stuck on the roller coaster ride of positive and negative dependent of external stimuli.
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Join us tomorrow @centeredcityyoga at 9:05am as we practice coming back to again and again our neutral mind and into greater optimal alignment body, mind and heart!
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Physically working on inner and outer spiral of the legs leading up to #utthitapadangusthasana B.

4

Enthusiasm is common. Endurance is Rare.

Did you know we have 72,000 channels (Nadis) in our body that life force energy (prana/ chi) flows through🌊?!?!
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This is like saying we are an instrument with 72,000 strings 🎻.
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How the life force moves through us gives us our presence and the vibrations give rise to our thoughts and feelings. These vibrations also influences our ability to maintain contentment or how easily our clarity is disturbed.
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When we can MAINTAIN clarity we can recognize IN THE MOMENT that there are nutrients in the pain we experience and we have the clear mindedness to remember that if we grip on to pleasure it is a liability to our clarity.
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We can use the body to adjust how the life force moves through us and we can learn how to keep ourself in deeper clarity and harmony.
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However it is very hard to keep this consistent clarity, we will never hold onto it perfectly. However we can develop the AWARENESS to know when we are moving towards harmoney or away from it. This practice is one of ENDURANCE.
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Join us tomorrow 9am @InBody for Anusara Yoga as we slow and steady practice our ability to have long lasting endurance vs. quickly fading enthusiasm.