A Mindful Yogi Peeper

My oh my what a big strong asana you have! Everyone does it at some point in the class when they turn their gaze to another's mat.  Your eyes widen in the awe of someone rocking an inversion or arm balance...wait a sec umm where should our focus be? In class our mat becomes our own personal world, but it is in our nature to visit other people's planet. Should I blush or feel guilty for my desire for my foot to go behind my head (the right does it...sometimes :))?  I mean we look at our teacher for direction, and I stare in awe wondering how my side crow with every take flight.  Now just to learn how and why we should be a mindful peeper.


My opinion is the world doesn't end if you take a mindful glance. It is important to look but remember to honor your body and prevent injury by knowing your limits. I admit that early on I was a stubborn and would kick, wiggle and roll in my attempt for inversions.  Luckily I was a rolling pro, but I should of been more aware and understood that I need to stop when my body began to whisper oh fudge we are gonna crash.  Traditional headstand became my most dreaded moment in yoga class. I would look around at everyone coming up with straight legs in an intermediate class and my butt was still in a dolphin plank.  So what if my shoulders were sinking and I was rounding my back...yeah stubborn remember?  I felt left behind and discouraged.  My peeping at others in class led to a feeling of jealousy at their grace and strength. Jealously doesn't belong on or off the mat so not a good sign. I needed to regroup stat!


We have our whole lives to do yoga and the posture will happen when the BODY and MIND are ready.  You can't forget about the mind and the part it plays in being stubborn too. Another thing is some yogis have an amazing mind body connection.  Their body flows in one fluid motion like a hamster spinning effortlessly on a wheel. My hamster tends to get his foot caught. It isn't the end of the world if that asana didn't happen today at that moment. Just because it doesn't happen one day doesn't mean that it is permanently out of reach.  I learned to slow it down and practice pulling my shoulders back and working my way up slowly. This meant not kicking and holding myself up with my legs tucked using my bhandas instead of failing them up and hoping for the best. One day it just happened. I wasn't harping on it and my body was plenty strong and knew what to engage and when. Add to that a beautiful breathe and that was all it took.


So my simple "peeping" glance at my fellow neighbors wasn't the end of the world. In fact it taught me to be  more mindful and understand my body more.  You should never be jealous of a fellow student. The posture will happen for you when the pieces are ready to come together. I have learned to smile when I roll, fall or side plant my face...oh crow. If someone is taking a mindful glance I want them to see yes there are others like you too.  Smile for your fellows yogis in the room so hopefully they won't get discouraged and understand we are all here together as one.  You will fly in your posture when the mind and body is ready.

Miss Wobbles

MR/MISS WOBBLES

Everyone has heard the saying weebles wobble but they don't fall down. Well yogis wobble and yes we sometimes fall down and that is okay!  The very first time you step into a studio class and see everyone in balancing poses thoughts might start racing through your head. The first being oh fudge there is no way that is happening.  Never fear because it okay to wobble, lean, twist...etc. I remember feeling like I didn't want to return because I looked so goofy in my balancing poses and tree pose was more of a baby shrub in a tornado Add to the fact that I learned to roll forward with grace when the term headstand was uttered.  What gets me through it is a great sense of humor. I smile and even see the smile on my teacher's face because she knows my body is trying to find a happy place of balance. Balance will always change day by day, morning and night and it will never be the same as your neighbor. Don't let any of this keep you from returning to a class.  We have our whole lives to practice yoga and everyday will be different.  Embrace being a Mr/Miss Wobbles and smile. Teacher's fall and wobble too and you will even bare witness to that in class.  Remember that yoga is fun too and you can smile and have an internal laugh because there are no judgments in yoga!

Green Monster Breakfast

Start off the morning with green monster power!

My tasty go to shake that has become a personal favorite made extra thick and frothy.

Ingredients

2 handfuls organic spinach washed

1 banana

1 cup almond/rice/soy milk

1 tbsp peanut butter

1tbsp ground flax seed

 honey to taste

about 4 to 6 ice cubes

Blend all the above ingredients without the ice cubes first. If it is too thick then just add more of the milk substitute.  Add the ice cubes if you want it nice and frothy.  I have taken this to drink after my yoga class for a nice pick me up :).

Quieting the White Rabbit

I'm late , I'm late, For a very important date. No time to say "Hello, Goodbye". I'm late, I'm late, I'm late. 

-White Rabbit via Alice in Wonderland

The poor white rabbit...wait a sec that is me! Okay so I admit that when I roll out of bed most days it sounds like the above quote. It then leads to stress and more mishaps as I try to pull my day together. Time to press pause. If we start this day off with this mentality it ends in shear disappointment. We have conceived of every possible thing on the planet that must get done, so we have already set ourselves up for an epic fail. Why do we do that? Even on my best days I realize I don't have the super powers to complete everything on my list. I do however have the power to slow down the mind.  You could also think of it as putting a gag in the bunny's mouth to stop that destructive train of that. How is it done? Take a big inhale and exhale...the breath!

If we can control our breath then we slow down the mind. Simple and anyone can do it. All you need to do is breathe which I assume is occurring or reading this might be difficult.  People with panic attacks already know of this concept because they have to regain control of their breathing to calm themselves down. I speak from experience and it seems like no simple task when your heart is leaping out of your chest as you lie in a bathtub trying to regain focus. Been there, done that and focusing on my breathing saved my tush every time. Just think of when you get scared or push yourselves to hard in the gym because your breath is the first alarm that something is up. Your breathing becomes labored which then sends the mind into a tail spin that impending doom is about to happen. Okay so telling your mind just to shut it would seem like the simple answer, but imagine that the mind is playing stubborn. Words won't work but by slowing your breathing and taking breathes in and out through the nostrils gives the body some comfort. Why is that? Breathing labored through your mouth makes your body think that it is starving for air...yeah I know an over reaction. Slowing your breath is like giving a pacifier to a baby to soothe it. We calm the mind and give it a chance to pause. We gain control back over what is going on and become aware of that very moment and tell our mind it is fine so please hush now. 

It is a practice anyone can do anywhere and enter meditation. Some people I think hear meditation and go I could never sit that long, hum, chant or find the time. My little secret...just sit everyday even if it is for 5 minutes. Hey you can sit longer and I do when I get the chance, but just do it everyday. Think about your daily schedule and I promise there is at least 5 minutes in there to start.  I roll out of bed and no I am not a morning person by far,  but I go to the bathroom and walk the dog. It gets me out of my zombie state and then I plop my tush down and meditate. What is meditation? Wow it deserves its' own post but the short of it is working on being aware all the time. Aware to pause see what is going on upstairs in the head and gain control. To be present at that very moment and tell the mind no you don't need to go there.  Imagine those 5 little minutes of sitting there and  focusing on the breath will shut that little white rabbit up and lead to a happy day. Heck yeah I will bite and give it a shot!  Find a place where you can sit comfortably or even find a chair with feet on the ground. Try eyes closed or even open and focusing ahead at something. I tried looking at a candle and yeah that went to a dark place for me and distracted me more. Then I tried looking at the smoke of the incense burning before I got to closed eyes. Give whatever you thing will work a shot.   Listen to your breath and how it fills your body with life a.k.a. prana our life force. Anytime your mind goes wow I want a tall soy chai latte and it will go somewhere, but bring it back to your breath. The breath is beautiful and notice the quality because without that breath giving your body life Starbucks is not happening. You learn that by using your breath that you can quiet the upstairs, and trust me it will put up a fight. The mind is very stubborn and doesn't wanna give you control, well I say to that sit and show it who's boss. 

I get asked well how do I know I am doing it right? Ready for this one...you will know when it happens. Wow so not the answer you are looking for but imagining concentrating as the first step, then just being there and aware without having to concentrate. Play around with it because it does not happen after just 3 times of sitting. I have ocd and anxiety issues and it took months to get there, but everyday I sat made my day better. Before I could freak and start an ocd tic or ritual I was able to pause. If only I could explain what a blessing it is to get my mind to take a pause.  It is worth it I promise!  I get to control my mind and make it pause when it beings to stress or see that dang white rabbit.  

Give it a try  everyday to work on your breath and meditating. Will it always be quiet when you meditate...umm no this is life! Dog barks, hubby/wife asks for breakfast, kids are up, but you can still do it. It is an amazing tool that we can carry with us at all times. Just breathe and you will be able to get through whatever the day may bring, where ever the mind may go and have the ability to put a sock in the rabbit's mouth. 

Shy Yoga Newbie

             Okay, I will be the first to admit that my introduction into a studio class almost never happened. I was a closet dvd person too shy for even my husband to watch me do yoga. One day I finally couldn't take it any more with trying to learn on my own. With lots of deep breathes I cracked open my laptop and went straight to Google. My first studio choice wasn’t based on reviews, but the simple fact of they fit into my work schedule. I called with my voice already feeling shaky and hung up on the kind gentleman that answered the phone. Yeah wasn't looking too positive…I tried again. He told me the beginner vinyasa class was a good choice and to come in. Alright seemed simple enough until I refused to leave my car for 20 minutes trying to think of any reason to skip out.  I caved and finally walked in and met the nice man who I so rudely hung up on. I got shown around and laid my mat down by the door for easy escape.  The teacher introduced herself to me and had the warmest smile on her face. Okay I felt calm and in good hands. It probably took 5 more classes later before I would even stop to talk to anyone. When class was over I rolled up my mat and was gone before someone even had the chance to say boo. I finally braved up and asked about taking more classes including the intermediate vinyasa. Now I am finishing teachers training.

             My whole point is that no matter how shy you think you are you can take a studio yoga class.  You will find at a good studio that there is nothing but welcome people with no judgments.  That warm smile that my teacher gave me was all I need because by the end of class my shy tush had a smile too. The hardest part for people to realize is NO ONE IS STARING AT YOU! Yeah hard to believe I know, but everyone’s world is their mat and the teacher.  It is a hard to sell anyone on that until they get in the class. Our focus is on the breathe and not the bodies next to us.  If you are super shy talk with the studio manager, and they can tell you which classes have generally less people or more if a crowd helps you to feel comfortable.  When you get there and look around the room you will see other just like you with worry on their face. YOU’RE NOT ALONE! 

             A few things though that might occur sending you fleeing for the hills, chanting, teacher adjustments or the strange noises your body may make. I won’t go into too much details as they will be addressed in later posts, but yes there might be a chanting of an om. If you have no clue or choose not to chant that is perfectly fine.  You can sit nicely and just work on your breathe.  No one will stand above you with a whip waiting for you to chant on command.  I believe you pay extra for that one…jk.  I went to the studio because I wanted to learn the right way which meant my teacher had to touch my body to help understand what in the world it should be doing.  Most teachers will make sure you see them coming and let you know what they are trying.  They come to you with good intentions. If it bothers you tell them your okay and they might verbalize or show you the correction.  As teachers we want to help you! Last but not least your body may make noises. It will happen sometime in your yoga class life. There is no avoiding it. Just smile and know that you made space in your body or helped someone smile and go deeper in there pose...again it happens to EVERYONE.

            Hopefully at this point you are not recoiling back in your chair going hell no or insert whatever other language might spring to mind. All of us start somewhere being either dvds, books or a friend. We all come for different reasons and are nervous the first time we throw our mat down. So call a studio, drive and take a look from the outside, but if you find your toes have made it in through the door…the hardest part is over. You’re in and on your way.