Kindly Let Go
Posted: March 25, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, exercise, fitness, free range, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, kettlebell, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, natural, paleo, passion, pilates, running, whole foods, WOD, yoga 21 CommentsSick of it whatever it’s called sick of the names. I dedicate every pore to what’s here-
Beginning again is difficult work.
There is another way to approach the idea of “beginning again“. One that very well may be just as difficult, risky, tedious and rich … We can begin anew by “being kind” not only to ourselves but to those close by.
In our ordinary day-to-day encounters, at work, the gym or with our friends and family, we have countless opportunities to practice being kind, beginning again, building new relationships with ourselves and with those around us. Every morning we rise for the long day ahead, we can start fresh, letting go, beginning again.
When we embrace kindness, (beginning again) we encounter opportunities for deeper connections we very well may have missed in the past.
Notes:
To begin again is to let go of the belief that we can change what has already happened. To be willing to begin again this morning is to accept the harsh truth of our intentions and to do our best to stop berating ourselves endlessly. To begin again, takes kindness.
Life is Better
Posted: March 22, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, books, Buddha, Buddhism, culture, exercise, fitness, freshly pressed, Freshly Pressed is Overrated, Goal setting, goals, happiness, health, hipster, hope, inspiration, Knowledge, life, love, lululemon, marathon, Media, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, paleo, passion, perspective, pilates, running, whole foods, WOD, writing, yoga 16 CommentsBut he who has not first turned away from his wickedness, who is not tranquil and subdued, or who’s mind is not at rest, he can never obtain the Self by knowledge-
You belong here, Right now.
We all want to change in major ways. We want to be as thin as a sibling, a co-worker. As beautiful as the latest celebrities and as creative as the producers who make their inspiring films. We want to blaze trails as Kathrine Switzer once did and be still as Buddha.
Ambition in life is beautiful although it does have a Dark Side … All of us harbor the feelings of wanting to be like “somebody“. No outside goal, however noble, can ever make us feel complete in life. I want you to know that today, you are Somebody.
A small “thing” can and will go a long way in your adventurers this weekend. It doesn’t take an ambitious, grandiose goal to create a ripple effect in the stream of Life. Take your socks off and feel free to simply dip your big toe in. Everything is interconnected in life, be brave enough today to take the first small step. This may be ten minutes of yoga this morning or even going for a walk this evening. Immerse yourself in the wonderful effect of simple actions. Ten minutes too long? Maybe we can start by being in stillness, connected to our breath for one minute each and every morning?
Notes:
Today, you are creating a ripple effect in your life, initiating change not only in yourself, but in the stream of life we all swim in. Be well this weekend.
Sunshine: That’s my Jive
Posted: March 19, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, Catch-22, compassion, Eight Limbs of Yoga, exercise, fitness, free range, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, natural, Niyama, paleo, passion, perspective, pilates, running, trail running, walking, whole foods, WOD, Yama, yoga 2 CommentsMy fault, my failure, is not in the passions I have, but in my lack of control of them-
Niyama: A Simple Dudes Tale
Life unfolds in the present. Gotcha! However, every so often we let the present moment slip away from us, allowing time to float by unobserved. Squandering the precious seconds of our lives away as we worry about the future and ruminate about what’s happened in the not so distant past. We’re always doing “something“, yet we allow little time to practice stillness and calm.
Most of us don’t undertake our thoughts in awareness. Rather, our thoughts control every fabric of our being. Living in the moment (aka mindfulness) is a state of open attention on the present. When you become mindful, you realize that you are not your thoughts; you become an observer of your thoughts from moment to moment without judging them. Mindfulness involves being with your thoughts as they are, neither grasping at them nor pushing them away. Instead of letting your life go by without living it, you awaken to new experiences as they unfold around you.
Notes:
There are many paths to mindfulness and at the center of each, lies a Catch-22: You have to trust that the rewards of mindfulness will come and letting go of what you want is the only way to achieve this.
Never Come Down
Posted: March 15, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, crossfit, Emotion, emotions, fitness, free range, gluten free, Green Beer, happiness, health, hipster, hope, kettlebell, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, natural, nature, paleo, passion, personality, running, St. Patricks Day, Stars, whole foods, WOD, yoga 16 CommentsWe are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars-
Please take your shoes off before we embark on an early morning Walk and feel free to leave your clichés concerning “pints of green beer that are half-full and half-empty” at the door as well.
Optimism, is a proactive state of mind we often find ourselves in. Optimism is a belief that many of the outcomes we seek in life are indeed within our control. We cannot control all of the outcomes in our daily life although we do enjoy adapting our actions and emotions to reality as they unfold around us.
Pay little attention to the clichés about “positive thinking” as you meander through the rest of your day. Instead, begin to pay keen attention to your: Positive Doing.
For it is in our Positive Doing that we can begin to change the very core of our intention, creativity and reinvention. Oddly enough, positive doing is also a way of capitalizing on ‘Luck‘.
Notes:
Next week I will be writing (trying to at least) about Yama, Niyama, Pratyahara, Dharana and some other random stuff as well. So your patience as a reader will be on full display, thank you in advance!
While I have your attention, allow me a moment to say to each of you: “Thank you for your continued support of CultFit“.” The early days of blogging here were rather crass and down trodden, not something to look forward to everyday. What many of you have witnessed the prior two years is the gradual acceptance of ‘some dude‘ learning to be at ease and in harmony with himself. Nothing more and nothing less.
We often search for the solutions in our lives through inappropriate means (performing yoga to become flexible or enlightened is but one example). The thought(s) in the post above will resonate deeply next week, so please keep them in mind. Be well this weekend and take care.
Shadow Stabbing
Posted: March 12, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, crossfit, ego, exercise, fitness, free range, gluten free, greatness, growth, happiness, health, hipster, hope, Humble, Humility, jogging, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, natural, paleo, passion, perspective, pilates, running, spirit, walking, whole foods, WOD, yoga 3 CommentsA great man is always willing to be little-
Let’s engage in a rather broad conversation this morning shale we?
“What on your part constitutes growth”
Ripped abs, slimmer fitting clothes, blasting your back and chest performing super sets at the gym (don’t forget to pose in the mirror), bragging about numbers and how many reps fought through, taking a picture of yourself in some ridiculous yoga pose?
Humility may be one of the most misunderstood and under appreciated aspects of our daily experience. Humility does not necessarily mean lowering yourself below other folks, letting said people walk all over your very existence, cut you off in queue at the grocer or even treat you like you’re inferior to breathing the same air as they are. Embracing humility means being neutral, letting go of the urge to get the last word in, placing yourself above others and basically telling a bunch of self-righteous fairy tales. We expend far too much of our daily energy, squandered in the mindless striving for importance: Getting “ripped,” asking someone to admire your ass after an hour-long leg workout.
The stark truth of the matter is that you don’t have to get drawn into daily ego-competitions (sword fights anyone?!? Anyone …) and petty games anymore.
Notes:
We grow as individuals when we free our mind and spirit of the need to feel bigger, superior to those around us.
CultFit 