Kindness
Posted: October 28, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout, Yoga | Tags: blogging, compassion, cycling, fitness, friends, happiness, healing, health, karma, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, natural, Omaha, passion, pilates, running, simplicity, writing, yoga 5 CommentsI will survive: if the hell rejects me, there is always the paradise-
You’ve done it again. Woke up late, head swirling around like the foam on top of your favorite latte, which you won’t be able to enjoy this morning. The shower, still cold as you dash off to clear the newly formed frost on your car. Hair still wet and your wallet left inside on the counter … Learning of this whilst stuck in traffic of course. Here we find ourselves in a bad mood of epic proportions!
…
Take a moment to pause, loosen your grip on the steering wheel and set the gadget down next to you. Ask yourself in this precious moment, “What is my attitude toward myself right now? Am I relating to myself with judgment, with mindfulness, warmth, and respect?”
The way of healing begins with kindness.
The gesture of kindness may include saying “Yes” … “This is what’s happening right now, I can handle this.”
Notes:
Through practicing offering ourselves and others the gesture of kindness, we gradually discover that our response to life becomes increasingly spontaneous and natural. In time, we recognize it as the most authentic expression of who we really are. Who would have ever thought that being kind would be a “cool” thing to do?
Espac(I)o
Posted: October 23, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout, Yoga | Tags: blogging, compassion, cycling, exercise, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, paleo, passion, perspective, Physical exercise, pilates, Podium, recovery, running, space, trail running, whole foods, writing, yoga 7 CommentsWe are not supposed to all be the same, feel the same, think the same, and believe the same. The key to continued expansion of our Universe lies in diversity, not in conformity and coercion. Conventionality is the death of creation-
As kind, passionate human beings, our curious minds, when unclouded and unburdened, can create limitless ideas to change the world. However, to engage in such inspiring thoughts, we must first clear some space between our ears to do so.
Meditation is a powerful, yet simple tool to remove blocked energies in our minds. It requires letting go of that which no longer serves us. But first, we have to identify what those “things” are.
In my case, it was trail running and racing, competing to win. My body and my family suffered greatly over the last three years due to my attention being elsewhere. As many of you know, running can be easy enough to start and enjoy, although to maintain conditioning, to be in the best possible position to win takes a great effort. After many years, I finally let go of running-competing that had meant so much to me, once upon a time, my own personal fairy tale. My weary body had limped across one too many finish lines, leaving a hole in my heart where self-love and compassion could have resided.
To fill the void left by turning away from what I thought I loved, I entertained feelings of remorse, regret and apology, as if I owed those around me something better than what I had to give them through boasting about a podium finish …
Yet the strangest “thing” occurred recently. I shed a single tear of farewell, then set about cleaning up other space(s) in my world that had experienced equal neglect: my beautiful and cool son, my bikes that needed more attention than a glancing stare walking past them in the garage, my $$$ yoga mat rolled up neatly in the living room. Having experienced the delightful levity of a space.
Notes:
I’m starting to take my dreams seriously, clearing space so that they have room to grow. Be well today, and please take care.
(e)Strecho
Posted: October 21, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout, Yoga | Tags: blogging, compassion, Dhāraṇā, friends, gluten free, Gravel, happiness, health, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, mind, motivation, musings, Namaste, natural, nature, non-attachment, Omaha, paleo, passion, perspective, pilates, Practice, Practices, Religion and Spirituality, running, trail running, whole foods, WOD, writing, yoga, Yoga Wisdom 9 CommentsLook around you. Everything changes. Everything on this earth is in a continuous state of evolving, refining, improving, adapting, enhancing…changing. You were not put on this earth to remain stagnant-
There is much more to yoga than twisting into poses on a sweaty, $95 Prana Revolution yoga mat early one Sunday morning.
Quick example, one of the ways of applying yogic principles away from our mat is by developing non-attachment, focusing on what we are doing in the moment … Practicing not getting caught up in the drama and uncertainty swirling around us. When we practice yoga in class, we are reminded to breathe into the movement, release tension, surrender, disconnecting our mind from discomfort. Practicing non-attachment away from our practice allows us to disconnect our mind, from wanting “things” to be different and worrying about the future. Our mind(s) is then free to stretch, explore, and tap their true creativity.
Is complete non-attachment in today’s world realistic? Are you reading this post on your iPhone? Our innate sense of control is an illusion at times. Disappointment in life is inevitable, although pursuing and actively seeking to develop a strong practice of non-attachment can help us realize that we don’t have to choose to get stuck, mired in a bog of cynicism and hopelessness.
Notes:
Hidden within our narrow focus, among the 8 Limbs of Yoga, lies ishvara-pranidhana, which is a way to explore staying connected to something larger than ourselves. Non-attachment is just one varietal of surrender, where we recognize no one can truly control the events of our day or other people in our lives.
Aimless Love
Posted: October 17, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: Arts, Billy Collins, blogging, compassion, Creative Writing, cycling, exercise, Fall, fitness, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, happiness, health, hope, kindness, life, love, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, passion, perspective, pilates, Poetry, Prose, running, Thursday, trail running, writing, yoga 26 Comments…
This morning as I walked along the lakeshore,
I fell in love with a wren
and later in the day with a mouse
the cat had dropped under the dining room table.
In the shadows of an autumn evening,
I fell for a seamstress
still at her machine in the tailor’s window,
and later for a bowl of broth,
steam rising like smoke from a naval battle.
This is the best kind of love, I thought,
without recompense, without gifts,
or unkind words, without suspicion,
or silence on the telephone.
The love of the chestnut,
the jazz cap and one hand on the wheel.
No lust, no slam of the door—
the love of the miniature orange tree,
the clean white shirt, the hot evening shower,
the highway that cuts across Florida.
No waiting, no huffiness, or rancor—
just a twinge every now and then
for the wren who had built her nest
on a low branch overhanging the water
and for the dead mouse,
still dressed in its light brown suit.
But my heart is always propped up
in a field on its tripod,
ready for the next arrow.
After I carried the mouse by the tail
to a pile of leaves in the woods,
I found myself standing at the bathroom sink
gazing down affectionately at the soap,
so patient and soluble,
so at home in its pale green soap dish.
I could feel myself falling again
as I felt its turning in my wet hands
and caught the scent of lavender and stone.
(I)mage
Posted: October 16, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: American Idol, Biggest Loser, blogging, Bob Harper, compassion, crossfit, cycling, family, fitness, free range, freshly pressed, friends, happiness, health, Holley Mangold, hope, kettlebell, kindness, life, Lincoln, Lincoln Nebraska, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, NBC, nebraska, Olympic weightlifting, Omaha, Omaha Nebraska, paleo, passion, perspective, pilates, running, trail running, walking, whole foods, WOD, writing, yoga 8 CommentsI am not an angel,” I asserted; “and I will not be one till I die: I will be myself-
Before we get started with the usual jibber-jabber a few important notes:
Two women I sincerely look up to and love are back in the news. Holley Mangold is on this seasons run of The Biggest Loser (whatever this is). Her passion, authenticity and spirit are simply beautiful and empowering! Long time readers keenly know I have been on the Team Mangold bandwagon for quite some time and I hope you hop on as well! Also in the news is my dearest friend Anne. Anne and her relay team consisting of some rather dashing and lovely young ladies took first place in the annual Market to Market relay between Omaha, Nebraska and Lincoln, Nebraska. I learn more from Anne than she will ever learn from me, brilliant performance!
… What follows is a draft I started yet never got around polishing up to post. What you read below is unedited, pouring out of my heart and thoughts concerning weight, sensuality and image. Taboo topics to so many …
A woman or man who is worried about their appearance will never be able to relax enough to let their true sensuality and spirit shine upon us.
If we are insistently worried about our tummy overhang and flabby arms, we become tense to the world. Far too many of us spend countless hours staring in a mirror and in our lovers arms on alert for reassurances from them, that they are indeed attractive enough to “us“.
If we look deeply enough in their eyes, in our own hearts we will indeed see that we really are: Beautiful and Sensual.
If we are ashamed of our shape, the damn number on a scale – We will be stilled. We will not feel entitled to being seen in public and between the sheets, we fade quietly into the background of not wanting to seek attention, never allowing our brilliance to shine.
Notes:
I loathe sharing self-serving advice, prefacing statements … Learn to feel and love your body, express your passion openly onto this beautiful world. Be the Lilly of the Night that opens its petals, openly defy the description(s) the world has placed on you – Shine.
CultFit 