Awaken
Posted: March 9, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, Giving thanks, gratitude, happiness, health, hipster, life, love, natural, passion, Reality Award, Spring, Sunshine Award 6 CommentsI would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder-
Every day presents us with a generous gift; every breath we take is a blessing upon our souls.There is nothing to take for granted in this fleeting, A to B life we live. Much of what we experience,day-to-day is petty, an annoyance to our drab routines. We become impatience far too easily, loathe the people we virtually “follow” … Building and releasing anger is our daily libation.
Not everyone in the world embraces the harsh reality above, please take a moment to introduce yourselves to two very inspiring bloggers this morning:
Random Encounters of the Inquisitive Mind
Award Notes:
There’s something very uplifting about being considered for an award. I am sincerely filled with a sense of pure gratitude, thank you for taking the time to put forth your purest thoughts.When you first open your eyes tomorrow, as your mind slowly drifts off into sleep, fill the moments in between with gratitude.
Key to the Highway
Posted: March 8, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, exercise, fitness, free range, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, kettlebell, life, love, lululemon, meditation, motivation, natural, paleo, passion, perspective, pilates, running, smile, Smiling, walking, whole foods, WOD, yoga 13 CommentsHope, Smiles from the threshold of the year to come, Whispering ‘it will be happier’…-
Did you happen to know that your gorgeous smile is actually contagious? Not my smile mind you, yours! The little nugget of your brain that is responsible for facial expressions, smiling when happy or mimicking another persons smile resides in the cingulate cortex (this is but one part of that squishy thing between your ears). Smile at someone today or with someone today, it’s likely they can’t help but smile back. If they don’t? Their either preoccupied taking a pic of their feet, a Detroit Red Wings supporter or they’re making a conscious effort not to smile back at you.
Looking at the bigger picture, each time you smile at a person, their brain triggers them to return the favour. You are creating a symbiotic relationship with a complete stranger that allows both of you to release mood enhancing chemicals in your brain. These very same chemicals activate reward centers and help you live a brighter, healthier life. WOW! All of this from a simple smile 🙂
Here’s the deal peeps: This kind of information is fleeting and falls on deaf ears far too often. No one wants to read a bloated self-serving book about smiling and magazines don’t fly off the shelf informing readers to smile. We can’t always control what happens to us, however I will guarantee (with complete confidence) that gracing your picturesque face today with a smile can seriously change your internal and external experiences in life. Your smile is something that should be worn at every available opportunity. Less Lululemon and more smiling!
*Science content has been removed due to it being boring and tedious.
The Workout-
A gentle early morning Walk, whilst Smiling and enjoy the company of a Friend.
Notes:
Quick reminder that tonight is your chance to get a sneak peek behind the CultFit curtain. A dashing group of us will be attending the Buddhist Boot Camp book signing and Q&A session at The Bookworm in Omaha, NE this evening. I’m curious to ask Timber Hawkeye his thoughts about smiling?!?
Also over the weekend I will be putting together the annual CultFit Meetup calendar. Sadly, there will be only a handful of running events this summer although all the cool kids these days ride on two wheels … If you know of an event in the Midwest you would like us to attend? Please email me at: cultfit@gmail.com
In the Fade
Posted: March 7, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: Meditation Practice Leave a commentFeelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor-
*originally published on CultFit.org sometime ago
If you continue to do what you’ve always done in the past … You’ll get what you’ve always got coming to you. If the same old ‘things‘, same old ‘self‘ don’t work anymore? Maybe it’s time to do something about them? Each and every morning we wake up, we have a choice to make: To continue the painful status quo or to move forward in life towards a brighter future. I encourage each one of you reading today to let go the of past negatives, start building (like today) towards a brighter future. It is only when we surrender to ourselves that we can experience the joyous present.
Surrender and open yourself to embracing whatever comes your way.
Meditation Practice-
*This particular meditation practice uses cloud imagery, you may also like to use: Cars, yoga moms … really, anything you can imagine going past you.*
Begin with a standard lead into visualization practice: First you need to become aware of your breathing.
Let’s imagine that you are on a beach. A beach that is beautiful, sunny and pleasantly warm (we ruled out all beaches in Nebraska). As you lay comfortably on this beach, you can feel the sun warming you. You can hear the rhythmic sounds of the water playing against the sand, and you can smell the rich beach smells (pleasant – not the sweaty old folk).
As you look out on the open sky, you notice a few clouds as they drift by. You see them come into your field of vision from one side, carry on and pass in front of you and disappear on the opposite side. As you lay on the beach, watching these clouds go past, you begin to notice that each of the clouds has a particular shape and each of them behave a bit differently. There’s one that looks like a smiling face, full of joy and another one appears full of happiness, along with a few others that look sad and angry.
As you lay on the beach, watching the clouds float past, you start to notice that each of them brings with them the emotion that it’s named for. When joy comes, you feel joy springing forth from within you, and maybe you wish you could reach up and capture it and keep it from leaving. But, no matter how hard you try, the cloud comes into view, and then drifts away. When anger comes, you can feel it coming upon you, filling the sky with a bleak darkness. you wish that you could push it away, trying to get rid of it, but, no matter how hard you try, anger comes into view, and then drifts away … Peacefully.
As you lay on the beach, in Stillness. Watching the clouds float past, being fully Aware. Comfortable in the emotions that each cloud brings, until they continue out of view.
Notes:
Make today the day you focus on what matters most: Your new self.
The Greatest
Posted: March 7, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: appearances, Atisa, Awareness, blogging, Buddhism, Buddist Boot Camp, everything, exercise, fitness, happiness, health, hipster, hope, Humility, life, love, lululemon, meditation, non-attachment, paleo, passion, peace, Peaceful mind, self-mastery, Selflessness, serving others, walking, WOD, worlds way, yoga, Zen 2 Comments… achievement is selflessness.
The greatest worth is self-mastery.
The greatest quality is seeking to serve others.
The greatest precept is continual awareness.
The greatest medicine is the emptiness of everything.
The greatest action is not conforming with the worlds ways.
The greatest magic is transmuting the passions.
The greatest generosity is non-attachment.
The greatest goodness is a peaceful mind.
The greatest patience is humility.
The greatest effort is not concerned with results.
The greatest meditation is a mind that lets go.
The greatest wisdom is seeing through appearances.
― Atisa
Notes:
Be inspired today, in whatever you choose to do.
Daytime Dilemma
Posted: March 6, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, exercise, fitness, free range, gluten free, Gratefulness, gratitude, happiness, health, hipster, Humility, intensity, kettlebell, kindness, life, love, marathon, meditation, motivation, natural, paleo, passion, pilates, running, trail running, walking, whole foods, WOD, yoga 9 CommentsFinally, from so little sleeping and so much reading, his brain dried up and he went completely out of his mind-
We’re going to talk about courage, mindfulness and being vulnerable, again for what seems like the millionth time. Scurry along if you like although it would be nice if you stuck around for a minute or two.
Going out on a fragile, weathered limb, chances are you’re not perfect. Big deal, you are vulnerable to the whims of the world. What makes you courageous is that upon waking up each morning, you are willing to step into a wide-open space, without a care in the world.
Here’s the bit I hoped you stuck around for: Authentic folks really do not want to see perfection; We want to feel and share connections with others. When we try to present ourselves as the perfect version we can possibly be (like all of your Facetube friends)? We leave little to no room for creativity, failure, humility and error. Seriously Dear Readers, look around yourself this morning at the yoga studio or at the starting line this coming weekend. It’s in the effort of trying without the fear of failure that we know what works and what does not, it’s a process that we begin every morning. Each day, each moment is unique.
If we feared failure, we’d never roll out of bed, show up at yoga class and step out into the world. Life is more interesting when it is risky, rich and served messy. Life is not a box of hand dipped artesian truffles.
Notes:
I would like to leave you today with the following thought: Take the time to present yourselves with a wide open, pure heart today. Display your inner kindness in such a way as to actually move other folks to bare, pure emotions.
CultFit 