What the Heck is Ayurveda?

"Ayurveda is about vibrant living. The word means 'Science of Life.' It helps us to find health and wellness by living life in balance. Many scholars consider Ayurveda the oldest continuously practiced form of healing. It originated in India more than 5,000 years ago. Ayurveda understands each person is a unique individual—with our own personalized health needs. This ancient science is often called the 'Mother of All Healing' because it provides tried-and-true principles for simple, daily food and lifestyle choices. Balance, well-being and vibrant living are all within reach with Ayurveda." ~Elizabeth Stites

I am very excited to be presenting a workshop this weekend with Ayurveda expert Liz Stites. We are presenting Yoga and Ayurveda for the Season. We will be focusing on how to make the most of the Kapha Energy or Energy of Spring. We will present easy tips, techniques and yoga poses to keep you in perfect harmony through this change of seasons. Please join us at Shine Yoga Center in Hyde Park from 2-4 pm. Shine pass holders can use your class pass. For everyone else it's just $15 for a great class and info you can use in your everyday life. I hope to see you there! If you aren't able to make this workshop but are interested in learning more about Ayurveda please visit Liz's site www.ayureka.com.

The Luck o' the Irish

I'm hoping today really does bring some luck as I start a new newsletter. Please click the link below to check it out for today's dose of inspiration. In this issue  I'm reflecting on the events of Japan over the last week in relation to the resilience and joy of the Irish heritage. I've also included my favorite Irish Blessing. Once you visit the newsletter link, please feel free to join the list and share with friends. If you are on Facebook, I've also started a company page for Flourish Unlimited ~ Yoga + with Kate Noble. I'll post that link below as well. I hope you have a great day! Kate

Click here for >>>The New Newsletter

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Spring Cleaning

Oh yes! It's that time of year in my little part of the world. Although it's not officially spring yet, Mother Nature has begun her work in this next growth cycle. The sun is shining a little more; coaxing life from sleep. The winds continue to scrub away old debris. As the heavens have opened up, the earth is recieving a deep and rich soaking. The rivers are over-flowing with energy and every where you look nature is sprouting and budding; the gray of winter is steadily coming back into full color.

In my last post, I spoke of how I've been mildly ill for oh too long now. In the midst of this "illness," I remembered a friend once commenting that she viewed illness as the body's natural way of detoxing. I'm trying to keep this in mind as I move through this cold/flu/fever/whatever. Synchronistically, I ran into my friend, Ann, for a brief moment at the grocery store a few days after remembering her remarks.  Later that week she ended up commenting the very same sentiment in response to my blog. I have this little game I play that when three "hits" on a certain subject show up in my life, I imagine that "spirit" is working to get my attention or to verify an experience I've been going through. So, I'm going with the idea that my body is doing it's own spring cleaning or detox and I am continuing to be gentle with myself to support the process.

This little event has also inspired me to begin a new feature where I will "Spotlight" some of the inspiring people in our community. I have certainly benefited from the wisdom and talents of so many and am excited about the opportunity to pass on their insights. Ann has graciously and enthusiastically offered to be my first "Spotlight." We'll be working on a little interview this month so that I can share this remarkable woman with you. Helen Keller said it well, "Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." 


Happy Spring Cleaning, Detoxing, Fasting and Whatever Else you might be doing to transition from the season of winter to spring. Look for Ann Segal's interview to come. In the meantime you can visit her website at www.annsegalphotography.com

Sometimes You Do Everything "Right" and It Still All Goes "Wrong"

For any of those of you who have been following along here, I apologize for my absence. I have been sick for over three weeks - not full on sick but definitely not functioning at my best. So, as I've spent the last two months (and really the last 10 years) talking about the importance of a healthy lifestyle to  stay well, I can't help but feel a little hypocritical for being "under the weather" for so long now. I guess more than anything though my illness is a small reminder of our own individual vulnerability. The truth is that while what we do does matter, it isn't everything. There are so many other forces at work in our lives than what we personally control. Because we can't control everything it is helpful to have an internal anchor to help us stay afloat when the seas get rough. 

The concepts of yoga are instrumental in helping each of us connect more fully to the internal anchor that is always present in our hearts and minds. A key element of the Anusara yoga style is to "look for the good first." By doing this we can begin to transform all the things that have gone "wrong" in our lives into experiences that allow us to connect with and understand the big picture of life more fully. The next time something "goes wrong" for you, perhaps you can look a little deeper and ask yourself what strength you might gain by moving through this experience. Life is certainly full of difficult challenges and we can either let them break us down or get stronger from them. 

I want to say a quick thank you to all those who have helped me over the past few weeks in the smallest of ways by covering for me at work, making me soup, helping with my kids, and just by being more gentle with me. This concept of being more gentle with people is one I will carry out of this last challenge. Being "sick" for so long has been a reminder of how possible and likely that someone may be walking along appearing to be completely normal on the outside but inside feels terrible. I think it's safe to say that most everyone really is doing the best they can with what they have. I think an extra dose of gentleness towards ourselves and each other is a great way to make the world a better place with very little effort.

Defining a Food Philosophy

Here we go…. The food topics are almost always guaranteed to get emotions going. Why? Because the chemical compounds in food react with the chemical compounds of our bodies and minds and we feel them as emotions. Yes, chocolate can make us “feel” elation, alcohol can make us feel more relaxed, caffeine can make us feel more alert, and so on. In more ways than one we are what we eat. Although, what we eat doesn’t necessarily make us “who” we are it certainly makes us “what” we are. We are made up of our body’s reactions to the components we consume. For this reason I think it’s very important for us to be eating what we “want” to eat rather than what we “feel” like eating. Because often what we want to eat is merely out of habit or addiction to the feelings that certain foods evoke. Notice the difference in the way you answer the two following questions:

1. I feel like eating ______________.
2. I want to feed myself _______________.

I really believe each one of us has an incredible amount wisdom inside of us that is just waiting for us to tap into. When we want to improve the quality of our life and health it’s very useful to take a step back out of the emotions of food and view our habits more objectively. Defining a food philosophy can be helpful for you to make healthy and empowering food choices. It can act as guide when you make food choices to help you stay on the track you want to be on rather than just satisfying a temporary and fleeting feeling.

The philosophy I use now has come out of years of my own struggles with food. I finally feel good about how and what I eat and I know that it also makes me feel better. (Feel free to visit my other blog  www.kateeo.blogspot.com for my personal story which I’ll be posting in a few days.) In a nutshell my personal philosophy is to eat as much natural and “primitive” food as possible. This means I try to think about the basic needs of my body in each season. If I lived before modern conveniences, which is what my body was designed for, what would I be eating? Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of items I indulge in and enjoy fully but I do work hard to eat and feed my family in a way that supports our bodies and minds so that we feel healthy and happy.

When you define your personal food philosophy, you might consider your own relationship with food. Is it a healthy one? Is your diet empowering you or is the majority of the food you eat merely satisfying hunger or cravings. There are so many factors that come into diet choices: time, convenience, taste, health needs, ethics, and more. You might ask yourself what factors are motivating your food choices. Do you feel good about what you are feeding yourself and your family or are there some little shifts you might like to make to nourish your body, heart and mind better. What do you want to feed yourself today and beyond? What are the small shifts can you might make to feed yourself better and how can you begin to implement them? Small changes over time have lasting effects. Having a personal food philosophy can help you navigate all the food advice that is out there in so many great books and websites. If you are looking for a place to start or some fresh ideas check out some of my recommendations listed below. I hope you eat well this week. Take care!

~~~~~~

Although I’m sure my mom takes credit for teaching me to cook and she certainly got me off to a good start, I really learned to enjoy cooking by watching The Food Network while nursing my daughter! Some of my favorite cooks on the network and website are Giada DeLaurntis, Robin Miller and Rachael Ray.

www.foodnetwork.com

www.rachaelray.com

www.wholeliving.com website and magazine

www.everydayfood.com website and magazine

I also am a big fan of the cookbook section of the library. I always have a few food philosophy and cookbooks checked out. I think the best diet plan book I’ve read in a long time is…

The Core Balance Diet by Marcelle Pick (not for vegetarians!)

Here’s Marcelle’s website.

http://www.womentowomen.com/programs/weightloss/howitworks.aspx?id=1&campaignno=womentowomen&adgroup=ag10corebalance&keywords=core+balance 

I also think Ayurveda is an amazing lifestyle strategy and you’ll hear more about that in the months to come. This one takes a little investigation to get going but once you understand some basic concepts it is a remarkable system for bolstering health. As I was typing this article based on Ayurveda came into my e-mailbox, check it out… http://life.gaiam.com/article/spring-detox-foods-shopping-list?utm_source=bluetext&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Life&RMID=2011_02_17_Glife_DetoxFoods_20PctBackCare&RRID=11851664

Want Love??? Be Love!

We're all looking for more love, aren't we? We're looking for love from the significant people in our lives, (some are looking for love from everyone they meet); we're looking for love in our work, in our hobbies and likely in every aspect of our lives. But where does that love come from and why do we expect others or outside experiences to supply it for us? Certainly we all deserve to be loved but if we want more love in our lives we have to be willing to give it out too.

As I contemplated "Love" for today's Valentine’s Day post, I seemed to hone in on altering Gandhi's great quote, "Be the change you want to see in the world" to "be the love you want to feel in the world." It seems to me, that our society is so focused on being "in love" that we forget that love really comes from within us. It's true that someone or something can spark the sensation of love within us but the source is still inside  — not outside. So if we feel that we're not being loved the way we're meant to be or if we don't feel like we are in love with our jobs, maybe it's up to us to tap into the love within and bring it out more fully. 

A large part of the Anusara-inspired yoga style that I teach is concerned with cultivating certain heart qualities like love, peace and vitality. During a yoga class or practice, we focus on a particular quality that we would like to feel more of. By contemplating on this quality and practicing with it, we can build more of it and increase our insight of how we can cultivate it in our every day lives. Self-love is an extremely important heart quality to cultivate. I think loving yourself sometimes gets a bad rap because I'm not sure that many people are really comfortable with loving themselves. Does it seem selfish? Does it seem elitist? I'm not really sure what the problem is but I do know that not loving yourself is a problem. When we don't love ourselves, we don't feel whole, satisfied or complete. When we go looking for something outside ourselves to fill that hole, we end up with dysfunctions, addictions and just as dangerous dissatisfaction and distress. The truth is no one person and no one thing outside yourself can complete you. So on this Valentines Day, I hope you'll take a moment to consider how you might be more loving to yourself. 

As much as love is a noun it's also a verb. Here's a few ways to be more loving to yourself: feed yourself nourishing food, drink plenty of water, breathe more deeply and easily, take care of your living environment, exercise, stretch, challenge yourself to remember what is special and unique about yourself, and I think most important of all is to do something that makes you sparkle. If you don't know what that is anymore make a commitment to find out. I also realize there is a point in life for many that doing what makes you really happy just isn’t possible anymore. I hope that if and when that happens to me I’ll remember that I still have the choice to rejoice in the happiness of others. Once your plugged into the source of love within, you open up a stream to send that love out into the world. When you give your love away, you’ll no doubt open yourself up to receiving love in return.

MC Yogi sings one of my favorite love songs and he’s giving it away for free download. Check it out here…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpVUih5nY9g&sns=fb

Why do Yoga?

Why not?!?

OK, so really why Yoga?...  Yoga for a million and one reasons! I came to Yoga when two separate paths converged at one transformational space. I found myself unexpectedly teaching yoga before I really knew what it was (more on that another day) and practicing yoga myself for pain relief. Yoga changed my life in so many positive ways.  I truly believe everyone can benefit from some type of yoga because it is such a diverse, empowering, and harmonizing field of insight. You'll hear a lot more on this along the way if you stay tuned to this blog but what you should know is that for as many personalities as there are in the world there are just as many "personalities" of yoga practice. Some are fast and flowing, others are precise and challenging, and still others are easy and relaxing. What I wanted to offer today is the most basic form of yoga I can think of. I'm attaching a link to the "Inspirations" page of my website. If you scroll down, you can click on the link "Anyone - Anywhere Yoga Chart."  http://www.flourishunlimited.com/inspirations.html

This chart has just a few very easy and basic yoga-inspired stretches designed to help you combat the less than ideal postures and habits we all experience most days. Because we spend so much time in a modified fetal position throughout the day, our bodies suffer effects from poor posture. By sitting at our desks, in couches and in the car for extended periods of time, we end up tightening the muscles of our hips, chests, shoulders and necks. As these muscle groups get tight, the core muscles of our trunks get weak. This combination often leads to back, neck and shoulder pain. Just a few movements done with self-awareness can help you bring your body, mind and heart back into better alignment. Yoga is fast and effective and I hope you'll try this short, easy routine.

New Moon Wishes and Goals

Happy Chinese (lunar) New Year! Today marks the first new moon of the new year. For a few weeks now, I've been talking about this time of year being a great time to either re-invigorate or to start work on small changes that might bring about increased vitality and harmony. I first became interested in using the Chinese New Year as a goal setting tool when I read an article by Katie Weber. Katie Weber is a Feng Shui constultant and writes a fantastic e-newsletter called The Red Lotus Letter. I tried to find that original article but wasn't able to. You might check out her website though which is full of cool insight and inspiration for increasing your life energy flow. www.redlotusletter.com She also has lots of fun info about the Chinese New Year.

In that article Katie recommended making wishes or setting new goals with each new moon throughout the year. In many traditions the new moon marks a period of re-birth, increasing energy and growth. On the other hand the period of time between the full moon to the next new moon phase is recognized as a period of release, surrender, letting go and increased sensitivity and receptivity.

The added bonus of coordinating your New Year's resolutions, goals, intentions or wishes with the cycle of the moon is that you can use it throughout the year. Each new moon can act as a reminder of this years goals and intentions. You can also use it as a "pump" to keep the energy flowing to your intentions throughout the year. As the moon grows from new to full, you might work on the action oriented aspects of your new moon intentions. What can you actively do to promote positive changes for yourself? Let this two- week phase be a time of increasing action and energy. This is the planting, changing, growing, manifesting phase of the process of change. As the energy of the moon, wanes from full to new again, you might focus on surrendering a bit. Allowing life to lead the way in a sense. What can you let go of? Where can you surrender and soften to allow energy to flow. Make sure that you also focus on appreciating the small changes you have made. Make sure you take time to appreciate the positive changes you've made. True gratitude is one of the most empowering force in the universe.

The pulsation between action and surrender is essential for all growth! Everything in you, and everything in nature pulses with life. Our hearts beat with a steady rhythm of contraction and expansion which moves life energy through our bodies. Our days pulse between night and day and between winter and summer so that all things can sustain themselves through growth and with deep rest. We can only live by alternately breathing in and breathing out. When making life changes I think it's just as important to pulse between actively pursuing your goals and allowing yourself time to be more gentle with yourself and appreciate not only your progress but the way that life also has a way of helping you out when you really commit to change.

Here's to your new moon wishes. May this year be full of blessings, loving connections, and personal joy.

Getting Back on Track

When I started this blog at the start of the New Year, I mentioned that I felt that January 1 is a hard time to make drastic changes. I shared that I like to wait until the New Lunar Year which will happen this Thursday, February 3rd. So while you may be at a place where you are holding fast to your resolutions or have already fallen away from changes you had hoped to make, I encourage you today to take a moment to reflect on the things that you do each day that either increase or decrease your own vitality and feeling of satisfaction in life. You might find one or two things or habits in particular to focus on  either decreasing or increasing so that you may feel greater levels of harmony and fulfillment. Small changes are the best! Small changes are harder to make than everyone thinks but they add up exponentially. As your energy and mental clarity increases, it is usually natural to start making more and more changes that transform your attitude and your life in a graceful fashion.

For me, it's committing to keep making it back here on a regular schedule and doing more things just for fun. My dog's passing and then a project that ate up every moment of spare time I had for two weeks knocked me off course. There will always life events that have the potential to knock us off course. When that happens we have many choices:  we might just need to sit tight a bit, perhaps some redirection is called for or maybe you just pick yourself up and get going again. Sometimes being knocked off course points out that perhaps the goals you were chasing weren't really the right ones for you at this time. Taking time to get clear about what you really need and what you actually want is essential to living an empowered life. I think there is a lot of pressure in this country to "stick to your ideals." But, what about maturity? What about the fact that we are (hopefully) always learning and growing and that what we once thought was what was right for us might have changed. With increased self-awareness and sensitivity it's easier and more fun to maneuver the inevitable changes and challenges that life has to offer.

Keys to Health and Healing

If you want to experience the greatest potential for health and happiness, it is important to have a strategy. It is in the nature of the pulse of life to move through periods of health and occasional illness or injury. Most of the time our body naturally recovers. However, our body's natural ability to heal is often hindered or slowed due to effects of stress. Although short bouts of stress actually elevate our body's natural defenses, long-term stress wears us down.

Most of us think of stress as the result of interpersonal-connections or our mental response to life's circumstances. But much of the stress that decreases health is measurable physical stress on the body. On a daily basis, we are all exposed to countless chemical toxins in which our bodies work viligently to filter out. These chemicals come at us in the air, in our water, in our food, in our grooming and beauty products, in our cleaners, weed killers and more. Our bodies experiences stress from less than ideal diets, constricted breathing and dehydration. Decreased movement, poor alignment and repetitive use movements wear down our musculo-skeletal system. Lack of sleep, a disconnection from nature, lack of sun exposure, noise pollution, too much staring at tvs and computer screens, among many other habits all contribute to physical stress.

It's not my intention to cause more stress by pointing all of these challenging influences out but I do want to call attention to the importance of having a personal health and well-being strategy. What can you do to nourish and care for yourself, your family and your environment so that you may offset some of the daily stressors we all experience? These small habits and rituals or "keys"  that you incorporate into your lifestyle will support your body's natural tendency to thrive.

Here are a few suggestions:

• Decrease the amount of toxic chemicals that you are exposed to on a daily basis. There are great natural cleaning and grooming products out there that are healthier for you and our environment.
• Check your drinking water. I've been hearing about this element of health more and more lately. Recently I came across an article on the health and safety of the drinking water in our country. Although our City of Cincinnati was rated 16th in the healthiest drinking water out of 100 cities in the nation, there were still 7 chemicals that exceeded health guidelines and 16 pollutants found in the water. Changes we might make to consume healthier water might be to decrease our own use of chemicals, get a water purifier and demand healthier tap water. This link will take you to the study http://www.ewg.org/tap-water/home .
• Reduce the amount of processed and refined food that you consume. Increase your consumption of fresh, natural, organic and whole foods.
• Get daily exercise.
• Check up on your posture. An Anusara yoga class is a great place to learn more. You might also make an appointment with a well-informed personal trainer, yoga teacher or chiropractor.
• Get out in nature. The air is most pure amongst a grove of trees. Give your mind a rest from the drama of everyday life by visiting  a park. Our natural world is essential to our health and survival and also reminds of the great energy of life that we all share. 
• Put some stress relief strategies in place. A few ideas might be: breath exercises, daily exercise, hobbies, getting together with good friends, visualization, journaling or just anything that makes you feel good naturally.

On his holiday, I didn't feel like I should leave today's blog entry without mentioning Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. All of us can use his example as a source of inspiration. He knew in his heart that what he experienced in the world around him was not right. He cultivated courage, wisdom, passion and endurance to make changes with great skill. He aided the transformation of an entire nation of people and overcame fear, hate and resistance. If he had it in him to influence history, I believe we all have it in us to make simple changes that will create a better life for ourselves and our world.

Take care!

...And, Sometimes You Just Have to Get Through the Day

Sometimes you flourish and thrive and other days there's nothing to do but make it through. I’ve had a rough week this week. In my food post on Monday, I mentioned that my dog, Chloe, had not been eating. Her time with me on this planet, ended on Tuesday night. I loved her like a child and miss her immensely. I have to say the pain is stronger than I expected. In times like these one has to pose an important question, “am I going to slow down and honor the pain I’m feeling, or am I going to push through it?”

Sometimes there appears to be no choice. We know people are expecting things of us and we also place expectations on ourselves. It is true that we need to be challenged in order to grow but sometimes we just really need to give ourselves a break. I think our society today is definitely “a push through the pain” society. Just look at the pharmacy shelves and the commercials on television for all of the pain-killers, acid reducers, anti-depressants, and more. Don’t get me wrong, I understand there is a time and a place for medicine and I am grateful for all the physicians, surgeons and researchers out there who are working to improve our health and wellness. I just really think that if we all felt more comfortable with giving ourselves time to more fully heal when our hearts, our bodies, and sometimes even our egos are bruised, we’d all feel much better more often of the time. 
I am grateful for the practice of yoga, which has helped me to become more self-aware of how my behaviors and life circumstances are affecting me. In a yoga class you start to pay more attention to how the way you move and think affect the way you feel. As you increase your self-awareness, you start to see more clearly what little things you can do for yourself to ease your pain and encourage faster, fuller healing. Sometimes it means challenging yourself to do things you are a little uncomfortable with and other times it means retreating a bit and allowing yourself time, space and a healthy dose of TLC to help you recover more quickly and grow more fully because of the experience.
Thank you to everyone who sent little notes of recognition and comfort. It was very helpful and much appreciated!

FooD!

I don't really think I can have a health and wellness blog without talking about food! So I guess this is as good a time as any to start the conversation. Food is intensely on my mind for several reasons. 1 - I'm in the middle of a food-based "cleanse" where you simplify your diet to give your body systems a break and help you find greater balance. 2- The topic of food and dieting is all over the media because diet and exercise resolutions are so abound right now. 3- My sweet doggie is not eating! So here I am cutting back on food for myself and doing everything possible to get her to eat something. To keep the topic light in my heart, I joke that she has simply decided that life isn't worth living if she has to eat dog food. So "master" has become "servant" (although it's never really been like that) and I find myself making special meals for her that my husband and I hand feed her.  All this situations are shining a light on the preciousness of food.

Food is life. Food is medicine. Food fuels us and feeds us. Food can give us great pleasure. Food connects us in celebration and conversation. But, food can also do all the opposite things. In this time of reflection, you might ask yourself what small changes you might make to both enjoy your food more and get more out of it.

If you are interested in paring down your diet, here are a few links that might have some good info. I am doing an Ayurveda Balancing Program in which I'm eating lots of kitchari + veggies. The food is actually very tasty but no doubt it will be new to a lot of you. I'm including a website with an article about it and another with recipes. Whole Living Magazine also puts out a great New Year's/New You edition each January. Much of the info is on their website. Check the links below and Eat Well!


http://www.wholeliving.com/photogallery/4-week-makeover
http://www.yogajournal.com/lifestyle/888
http://www.ayurveda.com/online_resource/kitchari_recipe.htm

Sunday, Jan 9th > Workshop > Use Yoga to Improve Winter Health

BRING BALANCE BACK INTO YOUR LIFE… 
YOGA AND AYURVEDA FOR THE WINTER SEASON

JOIN US FOR A WORKSHOP THIS SUNDAY (JANUARY 9TH) 

FROM 1:30 TO 3:30 P.M. at Shine Yoga in Hyde Park

Is winter already dragging you down? Do you feel susceptible to digestive issues and disruptive imbalances like the flu, anxiety and insomnia?  Why does this “funk” seem unavoidable?

From an Ayurvedic perspective, the accumulation of Vata energy is causing depletion in the body. From a Western perspective, the accumulation of holiday stress is keeping you from your “regular” routine. Both hold true when it comes to your health. 

Yoga and Ayurveda for the Season is a workshop dedicated to bringing Yoga and Ayurveda together in action.

This two-hour workshop is designed to help you safeguard your wellbeing throughout this winter season. It combines a simple, Vata-reducing yoga practice with guidance on Ayurvedic diet and lifestyle choices. Attendees will depart with a Managing Vata tip sheet and a short home-practice for “grounding yourself” over the upcoming winter weeks.

Join Kate and Liz at Shine Yoga Center www.shineyoga.com this Sunday. Use your class pass, or pay at the door. The workshop cost is $15.00.

About Kate Noble and Yoga: The inspiration for Kate’s teaching style is rooted in the celebration of everyday living. She brings a wealth of information and passion from a broad background to help each student connect to their inner wisdom and cultivate greater personal harmony.

About Liz Stites and Ayurveda: Liz’s strong interest in individual wellbeing led her from business to the practice of Ayurveda. She is a Certified Practitioner from the Kripalu School of Ayurveda and studied under some of the world’s leading Ayurvedic teachers. She incorporates techniques that have been accepted for thousands of years in the East—with a practical approach for today’s Western living. 

Please visit my other blog for today's post.... www.kateeo.blogspot.com which is dedicated to more personal inspirations stories, notes, quotes and photos. I'll try to meet you back here Monday:-)

CARVE some time for yourself

"You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection." – Buddha

Please note that the strong proactive word of “carve” is an intentional replacement of the word take in the all too familiar phrase of “take time for yourself.” I don’t know about you, but that phrase always make me cringe a bit. (Although you will continue to find me using it throughout the course of this blog.) But here is what goes through my head when I read or hear the phrase, “Like I don’t have enough to do already without adding one more thing. I can hardly keep up with all that I’ve created in my life already.” Anyway… if you aren’t taking time to care of yourself — body, mind. heart and soul — chances are you are actually losing time, health, and energy.

Finding time that you didn’t have before to take better care of yourself can be difficult but it is important for so many reasons. I’m sure you can think of a few yourself! Let’s come back to that idea of "carving." Imagine a fine Renaissance sculpture… think Michaelangelo’s David perhaps. Now consider the skill, and planning, and time that must have gone into this sculpture. To carve you have to take away from one thing to create something new and potentially more beautiful or satisfying. There’s no going back either. You can’t just glue on what you took off. (Here you might think of the Venus di Milo — sans arms.) So, feel free to create time for yourself a small bit at a time. The breathing exercise from yesterday is a fantastic start.

I mentioned in the beginning of this blog that I am not encouraging New Year’s resolutions. I am however encouraging a time of reflection. Perhaps you can think of one or more unhealthy habits or experiences that are using up your time without giving you anything meaningful in return. Take time to observe. What energizes you? What drains you? What can you release so that you will have time to do something more meaningful or beneficial for yourself or others?

By the way… me?... I’m a “piddler.” I take forever to decide what I’ll do next and what order I should do it in. Then I second guess it all. I’m working on being more spontaneous and efficient in my decision-making and not worrying “too” much about each and every detail. Right now I'm resisting the urge to re-read this more than twice. So for all you detail oriented people please forgive the typos and grammar errors;-) Sometimes you just gotta’ flow. Or so I suspect?????

Carve time today…  peel away one little thing that drains you to make space for something that makes you feel alive and HAPPY. If you aren’t ready for the carving yet… plan it.

B – R – E – A – T – H – E !

As I’ve begun to more thoroughly organize all the health and well-being wisdom, I’ve collected over the years. I think one of the most helpful thing one can do for themselves (and for each other) is to breathe well. Sounds simple enough, right? But, I bet if you could see yourself breathing throughout the day, you’d be amazed at how often you hold your breath or at what a low percentage of your available oxygen consumption you actually use. Breath is the stuff of life! It powers our cells, it clears our minds, it calms our nervous system and it is a bridge between spirit and matter.

The following excerpt is how I begin most of my yoga classes. It takes just a few minutes to more fully find your center where you are more integrated and harmonious. If you are so inclined, give it a whirl. If you are an “over-achiever” maybe try it out a few times a day and enjoy the bliss. 

“Just take a nice slow deep inhale and a full complete exhale. Take a moment to adjust your body so that you are relaxed in your hips and you can allow your spine to lengthen up. You might gently close your eyelids to encourage a few moments of relaxation. For the next few minutes just bring your awareness to your breath. You don’t have to breathe any certain way and please don’t judge your breath. You might notice if your breath is shallow or long. You might also notice subtle differences between your inhalation and exhalation but nothing should be judged as right or wrong. You are just increasing your self awareness without any criticism or judgment.”

Usually just taking a few moments to pay attention to your breath will help your breath become more regulated which means a clearer, more peaceful and more vibrant state of being your you.

Enjoy. 

Alive to Thrive

Thanks to everyone who posted positive feedback. I am so incredibly appreciative of your support! So today's blog post title is "Alive to Thrive." I had actually hoped to use this as the blog title but that name was already taken. So I decided "Alive to Thrive" would be the name of my "program." Flourish is the name of my personal training, yoga and oh so much more business. So Flourish and Thrive will have to do.

So why "alive to thrive?" This past year a dear friend suggested I read the book "The Power of Full Engagement." It was one of those life changing reads. In the book the authors suggest you write out your own personal mission statement. You know one of those exercises where you ask yourself, "when I look back on my life, how do I want to have lived?" and other such things. Basically the exercise is that you write the line, "My purpose for living is...." I can never really come up with one clear answer - well maybe? There are too many purposes! Or, maybe I don't really know if what I do on a daily basis really counts as a purpose. Recently though it's becoming clear that my purpose for living isn't totally clear and that is just fine. I fill in the line with, "My purpose for living today is to enjoy my life as much as possible and try to find a way to make a positive impact on the world around me." So basically I am alive to thrive. It's an empowering thought. Even though I am in a big state of transition and I still don't really know what I'm "going to do when I grow up" I am at least living purposely for myself and others. I think the exercise is an amazing way to develop self-appreciation and to focus your energy. During this season of reflection you might want to give it a try?

Here's how you can take it a step further... fill in the blanks....
My purpose for living (today) is.....
The best way I can do this today is....
The best way I can do this in the future is....

You are unique for a reason! Let your light shine... flourish and thrive.
Peace, Kate

Welcome to Flourish and Thrive

OK, so first I have to say I’m a little intimidated by what I’m about to begin. I wanted a way to offer inspiration, motivation and information to help myself, my friends and members of my community stay on track with better personal health care habits. As a yoga and fitness teacher by trade, one of my guiding work principles is that when we care for ourselves we have more energy to enjoy our own lives and we have more to offer others.

Still, there’s a big part of me that wonders if anyone really wants to hear this stuff. But, every week in my yoga classes I remind people that they are special… that if they feel called to do something, they should. I really believe that each of us has many gifts to share with each other and that it takes courage to offer them. For some reason my appreciation for life has flourished into a desire to live the healthiest, happiest life possible. I really enjoy studying about life and about our bodies. I also enjoy coming up with strategies to help people thrive in life.

I hope to offer small tidbits that will inspire you to connect or reconnect with your innate wisdom. By increasing self-awareness you’ll know just what you need to do to flourish and thrive. 

So here is step one.... take time to reflect.

I know many people out there are working on New Year's resolutions or maybe working on already "failing" on their New Year's resolutions. I would like to offer another alternative... take time to reflect. Take time for yourself! Just let yourself be as you are right now and know that maybe you really are perfect for this moment. Sure, there are a million ways each of us can do better. That's the exciting part about life. We as human's have the potential to change. But, if we are always focused on how we want to be different, we can never really enjoy who and where we are. 

Placed close to the middle of winter, the solar New Year is not really the ideal time to make progressive changes. Look around you and you'll know what you are supposed to be doing. Like all of nature around you this is the time for you to slow down a bit. To draw energy back in to yourself, to remember what brings you joy and energy. The lunar New Year falls a little later, usually in February. Although February still feels pretty wintery here in the midwest it is a little closer to spring. There is more light and more energy available to make positive progressive change at the this time of year. So, I use the solar New Year as a time to turn inward, to reflect, to rest and to restore my motivation and drive. I begin to think about what changes I'd like to make and then I give myself the few weeks between the Solar and Lunar New Year to come up with a plan to make the changes I hope to see in my life. This year's Lunar New Year falls on February 3rd. Whether you are working on small or big hopes, dreams and goals or are perfectly content with how you are right now, I wish you all the best for 2011.