The Amaranth
Posted: August 15, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, compassion, family, fitness, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, happiness, health, kindness, life, love, lululemon, Matthew Rohrer, meditation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, passion, Poetry, Prose, writing, yoga Leave a comment…
The Circle
Posted: August 14, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, compassion, exercise, family, fitness, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, happiness, health, hope, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, perspective, running, whole foods, WOD, yoga 9 CommentsI like this place and could willingly waste my time in it-
How often has a monarch butterfly alighted on your arm while riding your favorite path? Not this morning … Yet I do notice that when a certain quiet descends within, the blue jays and wild grouse venture close, still somewhat hesitant in their flight and chatter, although closer with less apprehension.
As I write this morning, my mind is populated by what is happening out on the surrounding roads. My daily routine has taken on its normal seasonal rhythm, the ebb and flow of gliding past bending branches, alongside randomly arranged rows of this seasons harvest.
Suddenly, there is a change.
My pulse quickens and I become alert when sparrows begin their anxious chorus then fall deadly silent. Without looking, I know they perch themselves, arched and frozen. Seeking to blend in with their surroundings, to avoid the searching gaze of a brown snake who lurks below. I know it is the silent one who mutes the sparrow, chatter does not break when I drift along the road like early morning fog.
Sadly, (for many of us) nature is clipped neatly into slices that fit into a weekend’s back country hiking trip and a fenced in playground, riddled with signs warning us of one hazard or another.
Notes:
What does my little rant have to do with practical matters in your neck of the woods? Nothing really, although I do have a feeling that cycling, being immersed in nature is precisely the solution to so many of the issues that have taken a hold of us.
Still (Time)
Posted: August 9, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: Bliss, blogging, compassion, family, fitness, free range, freshly pressed, gluten free, happiness, harmony, health, hipster, hope, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, paleo, passion, trail running, walking, whole foods, yoga 22 CommentsFreeing yourself was one thing, claiming ownership of that freed self was another-
Where self-criticism leaves us powerless and distraught, self-compassion and following our true passion in life is at the root of empowerment, learning, and inner strength.
It’s safe to say that common knowledge favors passion, right?!? “Follow your passion” random bloggers urge. “Give all your heart” reads another witty blog post title. Can we all agree that passion is pretty cool and a useful endeavor? Sprinkled kindly and with care, passion on top of passion, and everything else in life that follows will be pure bliss. So why not marinate yourself with passion and savor this “sauce of life?“
Ladies? Dudes? Come a little closer so know one will hear what you are about to admit … How many movies starring Hugh Grant have you watched with plots that center on this very question: Will J-LO (some woman) run away and madly fall in love with Hugh, choosing the frenzied, passionate hunk for a life filled with unpredictability and passion, or will she choose the man whose love is firm and deep, a man who is predictable and well … steady, loving?
Notes:
Passion can be tricky, really tricky and nasty at times. Passion is pure joy, when carried away by romance, or in the flow of yoga class, out on the trail, passion makes us feel vibrantly alive. Like the essence of a perfumed wind, delicious, delightful, not to be missed…and fleeting like an ephemeral flower in spring.
Be well and take care this weekend!
(A) Gentle Dissolve
Posted: August 7, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, fitness, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, pilates, running, trail running, whole foods, WOD, yoga 13 CommentsMy past is everything I failed to be-
I often find that “sometimes” I lose patience with myself. I want to think, feel and act differently than I do; naturally my inclination is to tell myself to just be different, in these ways: Think, Feel and Act differently. Spoiler Alert – When this doesn’t happen, I become frustrated and try harder, push and struggle even harder. Rather than making any meaningful progress, I just end up being brutally harsh with myself. Despite my best intentions, this approach does not and will not help – Shocker.
Maybe what some of us are failing to take into account is the part of ourselve(s), that’s not quite ready to change yet. No matter what the reason is, or what the excuse is today.
This is why folks … We need to approach “life” gently.
Notes:
Identifying self-criticism and practicing self-compassion? Who would had ever thought that a happier you would be a healthier you? Without ever doing some workout or whatever …
Mind(Full)
Posted: August 6, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, Earth, family, fitness, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, kindness, Kissing, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, nature, Omaha, paleo, passion, running, Truth, whole foods, WOD, yoga 9 CommentsWalk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet-
Where is your mind when you’re “working out – running- cycling – racing“? Is your mind busy planning tomorrow’s running route as a bottomless ravine moves closer and closer towards your aching feet? Is your mind still wrapped up in some excitement from earlier in the morning, replaying a conversation over and over again as you put another ice pack on your sore knee(s)?
When we are looking forward to the future or back into the past, then by definition we cannot be in the present moment.
Walking, slowing down the pace of life, mindfulness, turning off the phone, yoga and many other cool “things” provide us a wonderful opportunity to be present, mindful and aware, as opposed to being distracted, stressed and overwhelmed. Presence, mindfulness and awareness provide us an opportunity to train our mind and spirit, to understand what it means to be in the here and now, with a healthy sense of appreciation, patience, and a non-judgmental attitude. It’s also a fantastic opportunity to get back in touch with the world, the world in which you live in.
Notes:
*Read below
CultFit 