Why You Should Thank Your Body

How often do you thank your body?  How often do you curse your body?  If I had to guess, you probably curse your body much more than you thank it.  If I’m wrong, I’m glad.

I often hear my clients, and myself, curse their bodies for not looking a certain way.  They shake their heads when they fall out of a balance pose, they get frustrated when they can’t get into a pose, and they are annoyed when their muscles burn too much.

What we fail to recognize is how many amazing things our body is busy doing for us every day.  Do we have to think about our heart pumping, our lungs breathing, or our blood flowing?  Are most of us able to walk, talk, and breathe with little effort?  Our body does all of this for us regularly, not to mention the added work it does for us during a yoga class.

Instead of cursing your body when it is sick, thank it when it is healthy.  Instead of cursing your body when a workout is hard, thank it for the strength it has.  Instead of cursing your body for not looking a certain way, thank it for all that it is capable of.  Start treating your body with the respect it deserves and appreciating it for the awe-inspiring abilities that it has.

Let It Go

It’s hard to be around children lately without hearing the hit song, “Let It Go.”  While they are just singing to a new, but already beloved, Disney movie, Frozen, I can’t help but think that their boisterous voices serve an additional purpose–to remind all of us to “let it go.”

Whatever your “it” is–stress, anger, self-criticism–whatever it is, let it go.  Give yourself the freedom and permission to move past and replace that “it” with something that better serves you.

So, next time you hear that song, feel free to sing along, but also, use it as a reminder to let it go.

Giving the Benefit of the Doubt

Someone cuts you off on the freeway.  A coworker is snippy with you.  The barista at your local coffee shop is rude to you.  What do you do?  How do you react?  Do you get angry back?  Do you hide your frustration, but call them a bitch or an a-hole in private?  My natural inclination is the later.  I will smile and be polite, but then eye roll and ask “what is that person’s problem?” when I’m alone (or complain to my husband when it’s just the two of us).  Last night I decided I should take a different route.  When someone in your life is short with you or when a stranger acts cold, why not give them the benefit of the doubt?

I know it’s often easier said than done.  It feels good to be frustrated with them.  Sometimes it feels like they deserve your annoyance, especially when you feel you have no fault for their behavior.  But, giving them the benefit of the doubt is better for both of you.  

We never know the reasons behind someone’s words or actions.  Sometimes we can venture a guess, but we are never able to completely understand what drives another person’s behavior because we aren’t walking in their shoes.  Moreover, being angry only takes away from our own joy.  When we waste time and energy being negative, we have less room for positive emotions.  

Next time a client is demanding, your brother doesn’t return your text quickly, or your waiter treats you like a burden, let it go.  Cut them some slack and practice giving the benefit of the doubt.  Both of you will benefit.

Keeping a Mindset of Presence

Earlier today I found myself thinking, “it’s only Wednesday!?”  For some reason I’ve been a day ahead all week, and the realization that it was “only Wednesday” was not a positive one.  I quickly tried to make my mindset more positive by changing my thought process to “it’s already Wednesday,” but quickly realized that that wasn’t the best mindset either. Rather than either of these statements, I should be saying, “it’s Wednesday.”  It is Wednesday.  That’s neither good nor bad, it’s neither yesterday nor tomorrow, it’s Wednesday.

How often do we get caught up in looking ahead and wishing away our days?  It’s the time of year when a lot of us are either counting down to the holidays or wishing they would be over already.  Either way, we are looking to the future and wishing away our present.  Then with each new year, we talk about how fast the past year went by and how time keeps moving faster.  But, yet again, we start wishing away our time.  Every Monday, counting the days until Friday.  Every work day, counting the days until vacation.  We live in the future, longing for whatever day it is that we are looking forward to, and then fixate on the past, wondering where all our time went.

Why not embrace a mindset of presence?  Looking at the year, day, or moment we are in and accepting it.  Letting ourselves truly live right where we are, right now.

So, it’s Wednesday.  Yes, Wednesday brings me one day closer to Friday.  But Friday brings me one day closer to Monday.  So, I’m going to be in today, this Wednesday, right here, right now.  I’m going to stop wishing my life away, and I challenge you to do the same.

Unconditional Gratitude

How often do you practice unconditional gratitude–being grateful for your life exactly as it is in this moment?  Unconditional gratitude is an attitude of thanksgiving that is present regardless of one’s circumstances.  It appreciates life exactly as it is in this moment, both the good and the bad, the big and the small.

Unconditional gratitude recognizes that even if your circumstances aren’t ideal, there is something to be grateful for.  Even the negatives in our life serve a purpose.  Maybe they are there to mold us or to make us appreciate the good.  Unconditional gratitude recognizes that there is room for thanks in every moment.

Unconditional gratitude acknowledges even the smallest of joys.  In my kids yoga class, we wrote down what we were thankful for.  My adult mind started focusing on the “big” things, my home, my family, my job.  Then the kids reminded me that even the littlest of blessings, like “orange chicken” are worthy of thanks.

Take time, right now, to be grateful for your life exactly as it is in this moment–appreciating the good and the bad, the big and the small.  That is unconditional gratitude.

Meditating…It’s not as scary as it sounds

What do you think of when you hear the word meditation?  Buddhist monks?  Sitting motionless for hours on end?  Chanting om’s?  Specific hand positions?  While those things can be part of meditation,  but they don’t have to be.

Meditation can be as simple as breathing.  When you focus on your breath, you are meditating.  When you focus on a mantra, an intention, or a positive quote, you are meditating.  When you stroll on a beach or at a park without any intended destination, you are meditating.  Meditating can be a simple as closing your eyes and preparing yourself for a presentation or interview.  It can be as basic as taking a bath at the end of a long day.  Meditation is whatever you choose to make it, but it is important.

We all need some meditation in our lives.  The world is loud and fast-paced.  We fight traffic, try to get ahead at work, and deal with screaming children.  If we don’t take time to meditate we can become easily overwhelmed, anxious, and unhappy.

So today, whether your meditation comes in the form of prayer, deep breathing, or an evening stroll, take some time to meditate.  It’s not as scary as it sounds.

Who Really Matters

In the age of social media it’s easy to feel surrounded by “friends” and “followers.”  We see pictures of people’s lives and feel like we are there.  We “know” about the children, marriages, and even meals of “friends” we haven’t talked to in years.  Sometimes we even peruse photos of people we have never even met, acquainting ourselves with the details of their lives.  We live in an illusion of popularity, yet often still feel lonely.  That’s when it’s important to focus on who really matters.

Who are the people in your life who you can call in the middle of the night?  Who do you most want to share your successes with?  Who loves you even at your worst?  Those are the people who really matter.

Friends come and go, success comes and goes, beauty comes and goes, but there are a few constants–those people who have always been there and always will be there.  They matter.  Value them, love them, make them feel important.  Let go of the need to know what everyone is doing, and instead devote your energy to those who really matter.

Who you THINK you are vs. Who you ACTUALLY are

Have you ever let who you think you are hold you back?

Maybe you don’t think you’re a runner, you don’t think you can get into that yoga pose, you don’t think you’ll get that job, so you don’t even try.  I often hear my clients say, “I can’t do that,” “I’m too old,” “I’m not flexible.”  We let who we think we are prevent us from trying.  Or, if we do try, we assume we will fail.

It’s that attitude that keeps us from reaching our full potential.  We sell ourselves short and start to become the person we thought we were–too old, too inflexible, too out of shape, too inexperienced, too shy.

Stop letting the person you think you are hold you back more than the person you actually are.  Trust in your abilities and give it a try.  If you fall, you can always get back up, but if you never try, you will never know what you could have achieved.

Disconnected connection

Recently my husband was without his cell phone for almost a week.  Even writing that, it seemed like much longer.  During the time that he didn’t have it I realized how dependent most of us are on our phones, social media, etc.  It’s hard to sit quietly, or even sit while watching tv, without checking twitter, looking at pictures on instagram, playing words with friends, or reading news stories.

Originally our phones were a way to connect, but the smarter they’ve become, the more we use them to escape.  We don’t have to really be with the person we are with because our phones can distract us when the conversation is slow or boring.  The threshold for boring has even been lowered.  It’s rare to be in such an engaging setting that no one is on his or her phone.  We know all the details of our facebook “friends'” lives, but we begin to forget the person next to us.

If you find yourself disconnecting from your life because you are so connected with your phone, I challenge you to set it down and be present.  Practice disconnected connection–disconnecting from your phone so you can connect with the world around you.

I’m tired of your complaining!

Are you a complainer?  How many times do you complain in a day?  If you’re like me, most of your complaints go unnoticed.  They’re little complaints, ones that slip out without much thought–I’m tired, I’m hungry, my back hurts, I don’t like the way I look today, this line is so long, you loaded the dishwasher wrong.  They could be construed as mere observations, but generally they’re negative.

I’m challenging myself to go a week without complaining (A week!? I know, but shoot for the moon and you’ll land among the stars, right?), and I’m challenging you to join me.  This week silence those negative thoughts before they become complaints.  My guess is that as they get less of a voice, they’ll become quieter, and maybe, just maybe even they will start to go away.