I looked at the calendar today, and lo and behold, the 2-day Avon Walks’ for Breast Cancer are right around the corner!

As a survivor, I have to do my part and put this reminder out there.  The first weekend event is scheduled for April 4-5 in Houston, Texas.  There are nine events scheduled across the nation, including: Washington, DC; Boston; Chicago; Rocky Mountains; San Francisco; Los Angeles; New York and Charlotte.

The money raised goes to breast cancer research, and helping under-insured women and men receive the care they need.

To learn more and sign-up (please!), go to Avon’s Walk for Breast Cancer website. 

Thank you for your support and peace.

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Your Chance to Help Fight Breast Cancer is Coming Soon!

Spending time with yourself is a very important thing to do.  We’re not really conditioned to believe that this is healthy or normal.  Being with others, being popular, that’s what seems to matter most.

Being single and divorced, I fought this sense of “aloneness” for quite a while.  I love being with people, especially the people I love.  But there is a unique value to being alone with oneself, and appreciating who and what you are, and what you believe.  You can’t get to know yourself until you really spend time with you–your thoughts, ideas and desires–and get to know them well.

Even through meditation, I have found this to be challenging.  I still hear the internal negative chit-chat that comes from inside of me.  But I’ve learned over time to listen to it more closely and tie it to it’s appropriate emotional “anchor.”  For example, if I am feeling as though I am not achieving what I want to at work, my mind often wanders to thoughts about what I am not doing correctly, not what I could do better.  I have trained myself to focus on the latter.  Of course, we can all feel burdened over mistakes or missteps we feel we have made.  But the point is to fix the problem or issue, not assign blame.  This negative self-talk was not helping me, and over time I am learning to transform it through my thoughts and meditation.

My goal now is to move from self-hate to a platform of self-love.  I can always come up with areas in which I am not reaching my goals.  This is not productive.  I am now training myself to focus on what I have done right, and try to build upon that. 

Practicing self-love through meditation is helping me to learn how to open myself up to unconditional love from others that I may have missed in the past, as well as love from the universe.  I haven’t always been able to accept that, but I believe that as I continue to work on it, my life–both emotional and material–will improve and thrive. 

I’m also learning that self-love comes from within, much like self-loathing.  If we don’t love ourselves,  and don’t project that love externally, than how can we expect others to love us? 

The journey begins within.  It’s not the easiest place to start.  But it is the most fruitful.

Peace.

Post from: Blisstree

A Simple But Important Lesson

I’ve never been one to spend a lot of time working on my lower back.  I’ve always figured it kind of takes care of itself.  That’s probably why I often find myself feeling tense and stiff in my lower back and up through to my shoulders.  I just don’t pay enough attention to it.

Here’s a quick and simple pose that will offer your lower back a bit more of the attention it deserves.

The Locust Pose or Salabhasana:

-Lie on your stomach, arms at sides, palms down and chin resting on the floor

-Inhale deeply and lengthen from the top of your head down to your toes

-Exhale and press down toward the floor with your pubic bone

-Inhale again and lift your legs, arms and head off the floor

-Hold this pose for 5 breaths

-Each time you inhale, lift up a bit more, and as you exhale out again, relax into the pose and slow your breaths

This pose is great for strengthening your lower back and torso.  It’s easy, quick and effective, too.

Until next time.

Peace.

Post from: Blisstree

Strengthen Your Lower Back with the Locust

“Bellyfit: Strong Women, Strong World.”  I love it!  I am sad to say that this fitness phenom is not available in the U.S. (girls, can you send it south?). 

According to the website, “Bellyfit is the fusion fitness experience for women that blends the power and wisdom of ancient cultures, with the research, technology and trends of the modern world.” 

During the first half hour of a Bellyfit class, instructors mix belly dance, Bollywood, Bhangra and African dance. The second half of class focuses on Pilates moves, yoga stretches and Mudra meditation.  How awesome is that?

Bellyfit is based on the principle of diversity, and was created by a woman who left an abusive, difficult life and developed this unique and inspiring program.   So jealous my Canadian friends can enjoy this, wish we had it in the states, too.

To learn more about this unique workout, click here.  I may have to drive across the border to get an
up-close look at what this is all about.  Anyone out there who has tried it, I’d love to hear more about it.

Sounds like a really fun, great idea.

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Bellyfit–I Want It!

Want a great stretch that focuses on the feet?

It’s easy, quick and effective, and if you run or walk a lot, it’s a wonderful way to stretch your heels.

Downward Facing Dog–Heels Down

-With your back facing the wall, bend from the Downward Facing Dog, bringing your heels up against the wall

-Adjust your feet so your heels press into the wall, and your toes remain on the floor

-Don’t worry if your feet don’t completely touch the floor at first, they will get there over time

-Press your pelvis and tailbone up into the air and towards the wall

-Make sure your weight is evenly distributed between your hands

-Continue to keep reaching your chest toward your knees

-Hold the pose with your legs up one minute or longer

-When you’re finished, bend your knees and return them to the floor

Just like the Hamstring Stretch, this is a great pose for runners, especially if your heels bear the brunt of your runs.

You’ll find your feet feel nicely stretched and relaxed in no time.

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

A Great Stretch for Your Feet

I’m getting ready to run a half-marathon in May, and even though I am not going all the way this year, I am finding that running and yoga are not only a great fitness combo for health, but some of the stretching and yoga poses really come in handy during training.

Even to this day, my legs tend to get stiff after a long run.  I thought that after a few years of this, the stiffness would go away, but it hasn’t totally.

One of my favorite stretches for my legs is a Standing Hamstring Stretch.  Here’s the run-through (sorry, bad pun):

-Place a chair in front of you

-Raise your right leg onto the seat of the chair, with your knee pointing upward, hips level, and quadriceps fully engaged

-Deepen the stretch, leaning forward from the hips into the bend

-Hold anywhere from 30 seconds up to several minutes

It’s that simple and that easy.  I now do this before and after my runs as part of my warm-up and cool down.

See ya on the road!

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Running and Yoga: Stretch Your ‘Strings

Do you experience tenderness or pain along your sciatic nerve?  It’s not an uncommon pain.  The longest nerves in our bodies, there are two sciatic nerves, one in each of our legs.

These nerves originate from several nerve roots that exit the spinal cord.  Whether you’re active or not, at some point along the way you might feel the discomfort that comes from these nerves being aggravated in some way.

Here’s a post that can help.  It’s the Simple Seated Spinal Twist:

-Sit on the floor cross-legged

-Keep your right knee pointed forward and on the floor

-Bring your left leg up, bending at the knee 

-Lean slightly to the left, distributing your weight equally onto both sitting bones

-As you twist to the left, gently pull your left knee toward your right chest, resisting the pull by pressing your knee into your hand

-Hold this pose from 30 seconds up to several minutes

That’s it.  Work this into your practice if you are experiencing discomfort in your sciatic nerve, and you will soon see some relief.

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Feeling Sciatic Pain? Try a Simple Seated Twist

It makes sense, but this I did not know.  The most productive time for us to try and detox our bodies is during a full moon.

Why?  Because the full moon pulls not only at the waters in our oceans, but also those within our bodies, which makes this an easier time for us to release toxins.

The full moon is also believed to be the best time for us to begin a spiritual practice.

To see a calendar of the full moons through 2010, click here.  You’ll find the dates and the specific times of day when the moon enters this phase.  Our next full moon is March 10, so you have about 10 days to plan your next detox!  Talk about a healthy “save the date..”

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Trying to Detox? Shoot for the Moon

Ever wonder why you feel bloated, have acid reflux or indigestion?  Well, to a certain extent it’s because you’re not digesting your food properly.

Here’s a little yogic tip that might help you ease some of these symptoms before you eat.

Breathe.  That’s right, breathe.  We’re all rushing around most days before we sit down and eat, which pushes our nervous systems into the “fight or flight” mode.  Unfortunately, for a lot of us, actually sitting down and eating a meal is a luxury. That’s just not healthy, and can leave you feeling quite uncomfortable.

But when we feel safe and relaxed, we’re better able to do a lot of things, including digesting our food properly.

So before you begin your next meal, sit down, relax and take several deep, diaphragmatic breaths.  You’ll find you digest your food more easily, and experience far less bloating and indigestion.

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Sitting Down to Dinner? Take a Deep Breath!

I am constantly in a battle with myself, over myself.  Seriously.  One minute, I am feeling strong and confident, but the next–after listening to someone else’s negative interpretation of a situation–I find myself slipping right back into the negativity.

I know I shouldn’t, I know it is a lot of noise I should just tune out, but It can be challenging to do so.  I can attribute this bad habit to a small extent to being single and living alone–at least that’s part of it. I often sink into deep thought about work, my life, etc., because I lead a quiet, thought-filled life.  But that’s a good thing, too.  I just need to train myself to think and focus on the positive more than I do.

Meditation is helping me with this.  I am allowing my mind to take me wherever it wants to go, and logging those thoughts as i go.  It is very revealing.  Based on my “thought logs,” I have been able to detect which situations bubble up to the surface the most to my conscious mind.  I have disciplined myself to then sit down and really think through each item, and how it could manifest in my life–both good and bad–and what steps I can take to help guide myself to a more positive outcome.

I don’t know about you, but my brain doesn’t seem to ever turn off, so I have a lot to work with   It really is making a difference, though, and is making me a lot more effective when it comes to dealing with difficult situations in my life.

I really encourage you to give it a try.  So often our thoughts can incorrectly direct us to a less than positive outcome, because we allow them to overwhelm us, and become self-fulfilling prophecies. 

Instead of tuning them out, work with them.  It can be a little scary sometimes, but it is so much better to take a solutions-based approach to managing your emotions and thoughts than to allow them to shape your destiny in a less than desirable way. 

Peace.

Image: Newscom

Post from: Blisstree

Turn Down the Negativity