(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 …
Desert Wind(s)
Posted: August 5, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, fitness, free range, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, happiness, health, hope, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, pain, passion, Patience, perspective, pilates, running, Suffering, trail running, whole foods, WOD, yoga 4 CommentsRivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day-
What does patience mean to you personally in regards to mindfulness and living an authentic life?
Patience: the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, difficulty and annoyance without getting angry or upset.
What are we to think after reading this definition of patience I pulled from a dusty dictionary? You may be asking: “Will I encounter delay, difficulty, or annoyance in my life?” All of us share a universal answer: (we) can’t recall a single day in our lives when at least one of “three” –delay, difficulty and annoyance … Didn’t make an appearance.
Throughout the years, my reaction to the presence of any one of the three was to get “angry” a little “upset” and completely “ticked off.” Then early one winter morning I realized that my normal response served only to make an already unpleasant situation, worse, much worse. Thus began my journey to making a conscious effort to respond to “delay, difficulty and annoyance” differently than I had done before. On the worst days? The best I could do was to simply “tolerate” their presence in my life. Although with practice, just like riding a bike and doing the yoga thing, I was better able to “accept” them kindly, with a smile and as an inevitable part of daily life.
When we start to weave tolerance and acceptance into delay, difficulty and annoyance … We sit up straight and start to notice a few things. Firstly, patience is a gentle way of treating ourselves with compassion. Keep in mind Dear Reader: Compassion is the act of reaching out to those who are suffering … Including ourselves.
Secondly, I noticed that being patient gave me a feeling of calmness that makes it infinitely easier to ride life’s ups and downs without being tossed about aimlessly. Seeing the correlation between patience and enhanced self-compassion and awareness convinced me of the value of practicing patience.
Notes:
I suffer deeply when I stray from the path of patience, lack of patience is a stress response to whatever is going wrong in my life. Stress firmly grips both my mind and my body … Cultivating patience is my way of taking care of myself, which is the heart of self-compassion. the calm acceptance of life as it is, right now in this precious moment
Now how does one share to the world, the hyper obsessed runners and fitness aficionados that the idea of suffering and stress from punishing our bodies is NOT taking care of ourselves?
Hello My Old Heart
Posted: July 24, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, exercise, family, fitness, free range, Freinds, freshly pressed, friends, gluten free, happiness, health, Heart, hipster, hope, jogging, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, nature, Omaha, paleo, passion, pilates, running, trail running, whole foods, WOD, yoga 10 CommentsThere is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure-
We all have dreams and aspirations. Most of our dreams are left to the dark confines of our mind(s), acting only as seemingly unattainable realities that are nice to think about one busy summer morning in July,a means to escape the daily reality we find ourselves in, right now.
Does it have to be this way?
Each one of us has the incredible ability, the unwavering will and desire that can be a driving force for attaining the most amazing dreams and aspirations we can possible dream up. Why settle for anything less than the life you imagined for yourself?
It doesn’t have to be this way…it doesn’t have to be this way at all.
When we realize the barrier to living our lives in a way (our way) that we feel would make us content and happy sits comfortably between our ears, our own mind? We toss aside the self-imposed limits, socialistic norms, expectations of others!
I want to live my dreams – my life and chase away the doubts that burden me!
Notes:
Why settle for anything less this on this beautiful morning than that which brings you incredible joy, ecstasy, and happiness … Today, tomorrow and forever?
The General Specific
Posted: July 23, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, failure, freshly pressed, happiness, health, hipster, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, passion, perspective, pilates, running, success, walking, whole foods, WOD, yoga 13 CommentsThere’s nothing more intimate in life than simply being understood. And understanding someone else-
We’re taught early in life that deep, passionate joy – love, can be found if we follow our most intense desires. It turns out though that these desire(s) are frequently pushing us into a personal hell. A hell riddled with loss, injury and suffering at every turn.
Since I started to explore my path towards developing a real – tangible joy, a healthy love of life. I learned that taking the time to explore failure and learning how to understand the subtle differences between success and failure is paramount. How many of us have started new fitness routines, taken up yoga or running with a sense of new hope, finding a new love … Only to find that they lead us right back to the pains we’ve experienced time and time before?
Many of us has taken center stage and acted out our personal “myth of lost love found.” The attributes of our failures, success and desires are unique to each one of us, these attributes are deep, personal and must be explored and understood if we wish not to repeat them … Farther down our amazing path(s) in life
Notes:
If you walk away after reading patiently this morning, carrying one single thought throughout the rest of the afternoon , it would be this: Follow your heart exclusively. I believe this to be the kindest path to love.
Other Direction(s)
Posted: July 19, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, freshly pressed, happiness, health, Heart, hipster, kindness, life, love, lululemon, lust, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, Omaha, passion, pilates, pride, running, Struggle, Touch, walking, whole foods, WOD, yoga 6 CommentsI was never really insane except upon occasions when my heart was touched-
What could possibly call into question every small way that I interact with my surroundings? Years ago I would had been surprised, shocked at what was happening to me, not today, not anymore.
This brilliant morning, while the sun gently warms my skin, I am deeply aware of how non-violence has been completely woven into the fabric of my being. Over the years I have unprotected myself, repeatedly injured myself, sufficiently enough to feel the love of protection and with it, the drawing down of my truly nonviolent options.
This morning, I am stronger than the day before …
By early morning light, I discover peace, inner sustenance – purpose to soften the compression of violence that once defined me, to fully expose my heart to others, to find intention, to love. At night, when I drift away and my conscious mind is no longer present, the deep structure of protection takes center stage again … My sleep is disrupted, defined, brilliant. I realize that I have yet to make full contact with the deepest vulnerability hidden within the warmth of protection.
Notes:
I struggle in this vulnerable moment to find a deeper understanding of peace, non-violence and not choosing to protect myself all those painful years ago. I fully realize that I have yet to experience tenderness toward the act of protecting.
Take care and be well this weekend.
CultFit 