Emotional Reactions in Yoga

You made it to class early enough to find your spot on the right side of the room. You have just finished an amazing flow with your favorite yoga teacher. As class is winding down and you come into bridge pose, from out of nowhere tears fill your eyes and begin rolling down your cheeks. You weren’t even feeling sad today, so what is going on? 

Emotional reactions in yoga are very common. Anger, sadness, joy, and many other emotions can surface when we come to our mats. When we commit to the yogic path through the physical practice of asana (postures), we are doing much more than just stretching our muscles.

Read more in my article on MyFitnessTunes.

Yoga For Cyclists

Today, in a training course for indoor cycle instructors, I realized that I had made my 10th remark about (and sales pitch for) the benefits of yoga for cyclists.

Cycling is a very limited range-of-motion sport that requires major energy output from the lower body.  It can also create neck and shoulder tension, postural problems, and ultimately injury if not balanced with other activities. 

If you’re logging a lot of miles in the saddle, and aren’t balancing out your workouts with yoga, read on. 

New Yoga Resolution?

Here we are again, the gyms are full of folks with great intentions and new resolutions.  In looking at the research, I learned that almost half of American adults make resolutions each new year.

Among the top new years resolutions are promises to lose weight and exercise, and this year, ‘giving yoga a try’ made it to the top of several lists.

So what about you?  Are you ready to give yoga a shot?  I have spoken to a lot of new exercisers this week, and many of them say they would like to try yoga but…

(read the rest of my article on MyFitnessTunes.com, click here)

The Tree Bark Diet

I finally found it.  The real magic potion.  

After 30 years of watching people turn to infomercials, pills, fads, surgeries, I finally found the cure to our nation’s obesity problem.  It’s the Tree Bark Diet.  A scientifically designed and proven formula that will melt fat off of your thighs, waist and arms.  It’s 100% natural, made from the bark of rare trees found only off the coast of Africa.  And think about it, have you ever seen a fat tree?  Each pill costs $10 but you only have to take one pill a day for a guaranteed 5 pounds a week weight loss. 

Now…if you are still reading and you believe me, I am going to quit my fitness career and open a donut shop.  Why do we believe these type of claims?  Because they are much easier for us to consider than the tried-and-true, time tested and proven facts.  If we want to lose weight, we have to move our bodies more and eat with better awareness.  Period.

For over 30 years, I truly think I have heard it all.  And I live in my own little bubble I guess, because I keep assuming that the average consumer has heard it all too.  So I’m continually amazed when someone asks me what I think about XYZ diet or product.  So here I present to you 8 ways to clean up your eating and change the way you feel and the way you look.  Warning…these are all things you have heard before.  But remember, common sense is not common practice.  We, as a nation, are losing the battle.  And as Yogis and Fitness Practitioners, I feel we have an obligation, and an opportunity to ‘Be The Change”. 

1. Get the good stuff in. 
   Think about what your body needs for optimum performance, instead of thinking about all of the things you ‘can’t’ have.  The minute I tell you what not to eat, you will think of little else until you finally break down and eat that thing (or more likely several of them).  But focusing on getting five servings (or cups) of fruit and vegetable each day helps curb the appetite for those other things.
2. Strive for a colorful plate. 
   A plate full of colorful foods means you have many different nutrients.  If you have kids, let them help you choose different and colorful items from the produce section and think of ways to work new colors into familiar dishes.
3. Drink plenty of clear water. 
   Approximately 70% of our body is water, and our metabolic activity relies on adequate hydration.  If we can get in the habit of always having water with us, and drinking often, we might be able to kick the diet soda habit. 
4. Consider eating less meat. 
   My kids’ school now does “Meatless Mondays” which they, and I think is pretty cool.   If you need some encouragement, consider that the most common cause of death in the US is heart attack. 
Every 45 seconds someone in the US dies of a heart attack.  The average US man has a 50% risk of death from heart attack but  the risk to a US man who eats no meat, dairy or eggs is just 4 percent!  Plus, research shows that adults and children who follow a vegetarian diet are generally leaner than non-vegetarians.
5. Learn to prepare more of your own food. 
   Home cooked meals are obviously more healthy than fast food.  Meals eaten at a table with real silverware are bound to give you more nutrition (and satisfaction) than meals that come in a paper bag.  Maybe you could make cooking a once-a-week family experience.  Let meal preparation become something that everyone looks forward to, and sit down to enjoy your creations together.
6. Be bold when using spices.
   Not only do they favor foods, many of them also boost the metabolism and speed weight loss.  For example, cayenne and cinnamon are both spices that speed up the metabolism, and help with fatigue. Do a little research and a little experimentation.  Find out what spices you like and notice that you may have less desire for fatty or sugary, sweet foods.
7. Always eat breakfast.
   If you’re not a breakfast person, consider a smoothie for the road.  Throw an assortment of fruits, veggies, yogurt, and flaxseed.  Get creative.  If you’re still not convinced, how about this: among people who belong to the National Weight Control Registry, those who have maintained weight loss for at least a year, almost 90% reported eating breakfast at least five days a week. This suggests that starting the day with breakfast is an important strategy to lose weight and keep it off.
8. Slow down.
   Take your time to eat, and taste your food.  Not only will this help you enjoy your meals more, it will help you feel full faster and thus you will eat less.  Thich Nhat Hanh gives us some suggestions on eating with gratitude.  We can practice an eating meditation every time we sit down to eat by offering the following words: 
   • This food is a gift of the earth, the sky, numerous living beings and much hard work.
   • May we eat with mindfulness and gratitude so as to be worthy to receive it.
   • May we recognize and transform our unwholesome mental formations, especially our greed, and learn to eat with moderation.
   • May we keep our compassion alive by eating in such a way that we reduce the suffering of living beings, preserve our planet and reverse the process of global warming.
   • We accept this food so that we may nurture our brotherhood and sisterhood, strengthen our sangha and nourish our ideal of serving all beings.

If all of these things seem unreasonable, start with the one that seems doable. Every time we make one seemingly small change towards better health, it seems that three more positive changes follow, almost unconsciously.  Give it a try.  Or, send me a check for some tree bark.

Reach the Glass

Very often, our best lessons are learned from the warriors in our life who are fighting the most difficult battles.  Recently I attended a meeting for people with MS, and heard an inspiring story.  Abby, a beautiful woman who has struggled with Multiple Sclerosis for many years talked of the frustration of not being able to do the simple daily things we all take for granted.  She turned to yoga (in her chair) as a way of learning to relax and gain more control of her body.  What she didn’t expect was the improvement in her ability to do the small things, like reach her own glass of water. 

There are many benefits of a regular yoga practice, but consider these as you think about skipping out on your next yoga class:

1. Yoga helps increase range of motion in all of your joints.  So like Abby, you can reach your own glass, or get something off of a high shelf.  This may not seem like such a huge feat now, but as we age, a common complaint is not being able to get to out-of-reach items.
2. How quickly, and easily can you get up off of the floor, or out of a chair?  I have a 64 year old client who is giddy about the fact that yoga has helped him jump up off the floor like a kid.  Try it!
3. Is it getting harder to tie your own shoes?  I remember being pregnant and needing my husband to help me.  I vowed to never go there again.  Yoga keeps us flexible enough to reach down and tie our shoes, and maybe even give ourselves a cute pedicure.
4. Yoga helps with balance.  Notice a child next time you’re walking outside.  They look for every single opportunity to challenge their balance.  They walk on stones, curbs, fallen trees, anything.  But then we grow up and plant ourselves firmly on an office chair.  Yoga gives us many opportunities to stand on one leg, or balance our weight on our arms.
5. Yoga improves strength.  We learn in yoga how to hold our own body weight, and how to engage our core.  You may just find yourself moving a heavy object instead of asking for help!
6. Yoga helps improve breathing and circulation.  Two bodily functions we don’t think much about, but without them, we have nothing.  Yoga helps us breathe more deeply, and move toxins out of our bodies more quickly.
7. More than anything, a regular yoga practice helps us deal with the stress and craziness of daily life.  No matter where we are, and what is going on around us, taking a deep yoga breath, stretching our shoulders and standing taller gives us a new look at life.  And that’s something we can all benefit from.