Next Lifetime
Posted: June 5, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: Bliss, blogging, exercise, fitness, free range, freshly pressed, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, kettlebell, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, paleo, passion, perspective, pilates, running, trail running, walking, whole foods, WOD, yoga, Zen 7 CommentsAdopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience-
Surrounding us is an odd “thing“, one that we rarely take time to notice and more often than not, have come to take for granted: This little thing called “Life.” Many of us search the entire span of our existence for peace, zen, bliss, the perfect pose, best 5k time, serenity and yet? These same things can be found in places that we overlook each and everyday. Even in a quiet summer field, life continues to flourish and live, eat and exist in a natural way, adapting and overcoming the world we merely “exist” in …
… A small doe emerges from the cracks of a wheat field and wanders up to the man-made nature trail, alongside the many busy feet and tires that tread next to her, encroaching on her survival. Interesting, this stunning animal, living, overcoming and flourishing despite our encroachment upon her natural environment; oblivious to our presence, just as we are to our own presence.
What if we paused for a second to take notice of this natural beauty? Is this an annoyance to you, throwing your pace off, adding seconds to your precious run time? One can only wonder…
Notes:
Have we lost focus on the true purpose, the true use of our senses? How can we become self-aware when all we do is tune out our own beating heart and the beautiful world we live in?
Roll If (ya) Fall
Posted: May 31, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, courage, crossfit, exercise, fitness, free range, freshly pressed, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, Musing, musings, natural, paleo, passion, pilates, Risk, running, walking, whole foods, WOD, yoga 5 CommentsThere is no intensity of love or feeling that does not involve the risk of crippling hurt. It is a duty to take this risk, to love and feel without defense or reserve-
Avoidance of any kind of risk, big or small, is a byproduct of our fear of the unknown and needless to say: This avoidance of fear will lead to a very bland, uneventful life. Bangers and mash anyone, anyone? If we never took risks, you can rest assured that the blog posts we are reading this morning would not be Draconian in nature. No “second thoughts” before the big event tomorrow morning or lamenting nauseously about getting injured, again. By taking a risk, we embrace the courage of doing something we have never done before, even if it makes us look goofy, takes us out of our normal comfort zone and pushes back the boundaries society has firmly placed on us. Exploring the unknown, the sense of accomplishment and determination to push harder are all “things” that come as a direct result of having courage, taking risks in our daily life.
Courage generously gives us the willingness to explore and deal with the changes and challenges that will come our way. Having read this little bit, I implore you to go back and re-read the post from Wednesday, in a new light.
Notes:
If you take the time to look around yourself this weekend, noticing what others have attained and wishing that you had the same? This mental foreplay you are experiencing provocatively shows you that you can create this same reality for yourself. Each one of us has the incredible ability, deep inside us, to create real lasting change in our lives. It takes infinite amounts of courage and determination, its hard although once we embrace these driving forces? We can change and we will change.
During your weekend run, bike ride, yoga class or even your 6am TRX class. Chase away the doubts in your mind and live the life, as you have created, as you imagined.
No Pun Intended
Posted: May 21, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, crossfit, exercise, free range, freshly pressed, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, kettlebell, kindness, life, love, lululemon, lust, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nebraska, Omaha, paleo, passion, pilates, running, trail running, Walk, walking, whole foods, WOD, yoga, Yoga Rocks the Park 16 CommentsYou may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us. And the world will live as one-
I often feel like I’m cycling into a 40 knot headwind when it comes to writing about mindfulness, wellness and other stuff here on this blog-o-thing. From the yoga fashionistas who regard me incredulously when I say that “looking good” is a selfish goal to set in yoga class, to the pervasive but iniquitous message that we all just need to participate in more mud runs, be more extreme, elite, hardcore in order to live a healthier life, my increasingly strong belief that we are going about this all wrong is not a popular one to say the very least.
Every now and then I meet up with some kindred spirits during a walk or brisk bike ride, who confirm what we see every day, but choose to ignore: Despite being a society hopelessly obsessed with health, longevity, exercise and taking pictures of food, we are in fact unhealthy, unhappy and bereft of many of the simple joys of life as a direct result of our obsessions.
How about we abandon the idea of exercise as a virtuous counterbalance, absolve ourselves of the guilt that inevitably accompanies unfulfilled resolutions, tune out the constant exhortations to “get ripped”, lose weight and instead embrace the simple pleasure of putting one foot in front of the other, simply because we were born with the ability to do so and we too often don’t.
Let’s cut right to the heart of what’s wrong with our attitudes in regards to mindfulness and wellness. Despite the thousands we spend on failed gym memberships, seldom used exercise equipment and wearing the latest fashions to yoga class. We are tormented by self-loathing, guilt and doubt. We live in a world where our motivation to move is increasingly thwarted and sapped at every turn. The next time you stare out the gym window—you know the one, where everyone around you is trotting along on a dreadmill despite the fact that the sun is shining and it’s a beautiful day outside? Ask yourself: Why is going for a run, a bike ride or walk outside such an absurd idea?
Notes
Look to a simpler place for your satisfaction this morning. Hint: It’s not in the latest edition of Shape or the ever so popular Yoga Journal. What you find may surprise you …
If you see some random dude(s) doing a spot of yoga in a park this weekend? Wave hello and join us!
Why is it always this way?
Posted: May 20, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: compassion, fitness, free range, gluten free, gratitude, happiness, health, hipster, kettlebell, kindness, life, lululemon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, paleo, passion, pilates, running, walking, whole foods, WOD, yoga 8 CommentsEverybody will get their wants, when they heartily want-
How much time did we waste wanting “things” this past weekend? Searching for a new pair of minimalist running shoes, a new GPS gizmo for the bike, the latest and greatest all natural yoga mat? Wanting to be thinner, healthier. In today’s world it seems we are always caught up with wanting and searching for newer and better “things“.
Did you wake up this morning eagerly chasing after the “things” you could not find the prior two days? When we spend all of our time wanting we leave little room for the possibility of ever having a calm, peaceful state of mind. Our mind becomes like a playful dog, panting and drooling at your feet, waiting to chase after the next ball. Better yet, just like a like a dog, many of us are rather adept at chasing after our own tail! The direct result of all this play time is that our mind becomes unfocused. We focus more on what might happen or could happen, rather than what is actually happening right now. So in chasing after the next great “thing“, we miss out on the present.
For many of the kind folks reading today, there is the real daily grind of reality and there’s what they think life should be like if they had more stuff to make it better. The space between the two is usually equal to the level of disappointment and frustration when things don’t go as we’d like them to. Somewhere in the middle lies acceptance of things as they are and a greater sense of appreciation for the small “things” in life.
Notes:
The start of the week is an excellent time to take a moment or three to reflect on what, or who, you are most grateful for. Not wanting things to be better, just content for what you have.
Hold Om
Posted: May 14, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, crossfit, dancing, emotions, exercise, family, free range, friends, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, kindness, life, love, lululemon, lust, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, paleo, passion, pilates, running, trail running, whole foods, WOD, yoga, Zen 26 CommentsThose who do not move, do not notice their chains-
Can someone please answer this seemingly “simple” question: What the heck is progress?
Let’s narrow our focus on yoga for our conversation this morning … Progress on your trusty yoga mat looks and feels rather different from a straight gravel road shooting up over the horizon. After a few sips of juniper berry infused mead, I like to think of progress on the mat as more of a dance, the rumba to be more specific. Two steps forward, one step back, a smile, loosening up a bit, three steps forward, two confident steps back. We seem to find our own pace, our own rhythm even if it takes a few drinks.
Progress with yoga often gets worse, much worse before it gets better. Being a dude I didn’t know this initially and I thought I was losing control of both my mind and body. I was confused (this is very easy for me) because I thought that yoga was supposed to strengthen me both spiritually and physically – Instantly.
What I didn’t know at the time was that this dance backwards was the very beginning of taking a few gentle, confident steps forward. I had to regress before I could start once again to creep ahead. Just like an infant crawling on their little hands and knees, I needed to learn how to roll over, sit up, fall down and crawl before I could walk (literally).
Sometimes I didn’t want to get up after falling down. Looking back, I don’t know how I got up on my feet again after the trying times, life. Eventually I did. Then I stumbled and fell again back onto my mat. Clumsily I rose to my knees, then to my shaky feet once again. This morning I stood straight after riding my bike to work. This is my dance in life.
Notes:
Learning to love yourself, to take care of your emotional and physical self. This is how I define progress.
CultFit 