Day 5

The weather made getting to a yoga class pretty difficult. Thankfully, my car was able to maneuver its way to CPY South Loop right in time for a deliciously warm vinyasa.

I was led through a wonderful flow, with a reminder to look for the positive even in the most difficult situations.

I struggled with balance in Eka Pada Utkatasana but I was there, getting stronger and more fierce with every breath. My Eka Pada Galavasana wasn’t so hot on the left, but was pretty impressive on the right.

Bottom line is, there are days I feel like a rock star, and there are days I feel like a rock. I planted a seed and continue to water it, trusting that one day I will blossom. Right now, I am enjoying the journey.

In love and light,
नमस्ते

Day five: feeling grounded

It’s day five and I can already feel the effects of the yoga. Can you?

Less stress, better sleep, more energy.

Thank you all for keeping me inspired!

-M

The power of once a day. Drip by drip.

Once a day is easier said than done of course. There are over 360 days and more than 200 working days a year. No matter how you slice it, it’s a lot and it’s way more than the 21 days they say it take to create a habit. Basically in our 100 days of yoga, we’re creating a habit 5 times over.

I think about some of my other attempts to do things that may not have gone so well. The failed attempt to floss every day. Check Facebook less. Or call friends more often. The reason they don’t work is that I didn’t change habits.

But committing to doing things up front does wonders. I recently did my first 100 days of yoga at the end of 2013.  Within a week of starting, I knew I wouldn’t be giving it up anytime soon and committed to it. The first 75 days were really hard. I scrambled to the studio most days, barely made it into class and still forgot my towel half the time. But by day 76 everything was exactly the opposite. It was a lot harder to not go to class. To miss how good I felt. To mess up my routine. And after taking just a single day off, I went 50 more days in a row leading up to this challenge. All because I committed up front.

In the end, I learned that you don’t all of a sudden get new habits, you build them. One day at a time. One asana at a time. One drip of sweat at a time.

The yoga isn’t the hard part (especially for the amazing Yogi’s participating here), it’s the commitment. Making time. Going once a day.

Drip, drip, drip.

Developing your home practice

The weather kept me home this evening, but my first home practice of our 100 days was amazing! 

I absolutely love practicing with people, to build community, feel a sense of oneness with others, and benefit from adjustments and the guidance of a teacher. I often forget how peaceful my practice can get when I’m surrounded by myself and the energy and air around me. I light incense and play music, dim the lights and meditate before hand. While all this can happen in the studio, having the space in which you are practicing entirely to yourself can mold and frame your practice in a way that is entirely unique (and if you’re like me, you’re cat too.. she seems to enjoy yoga as well). 

While a big part of our challenge is building community, both through this group of 100 dayers, and with our fellow yogis in the studio, I encourage you to build your home practice throughout these 100 days as well. Let your practice develop both communally and in an intimate, personal way, in and out of the studio.

Beyond having a space for yoga when the studio is either closed or 12 blocks away in stormy weather, I’ve personally found that having a home space makes my apartment feel even more like home. And of course, having an area strictly dedicated to my practice encourages me to come to my mat daily, regardless of weather, a busy schedule, or feeling crappy and/or exhausted — I think to myself, “it’s only 5 feet away, a bit of vinyasa and an inversion or two definitely won’t hurt…”

 

Day 4

I led a beginners class this morning. One of the participants told me before we started that she doesn’t like yoga because it’s boring.

She is so wrong and so right! Yoga poses stripped of any meaning are just that – poses. To fall in love with yoga means to understand the healing and emotional qualities of practice. The way we breathe, balance, feel and flow brings meaning to asanas; it gives them the fire that burns within.

So I talked; about pranayama, tapas, flow and freedom. Asanas became a pen that wrote a story. In case you wonder, the skeptical student is coming back next week.

In love and light,
नमस्ते

Day 3

Handstand can be very emotional; students experience wide array of feelings ranging from fear and anxiety to excitement and exhilaration. The pose requires complete trust in oneself and the ability to let go of the fear of unknown.

So I decided to go upside down today. Not just “asana” speaking. The goal for day 3 of yoga challenge was to go outside of my comfort zone and be a rebel. I like schedules, checkboxes and lists; today was a box without borders kind of day. I literally allowed myself to let go, and it felt amazing.

I encourage you to start the day upside down and see where it takes you.

In love and light
नमस्ते

Yoga Is…

  Yesterday I began my 100 days of Yoga journey. The best place for me to begin a journey of such magnitude was to start at the beginning. So I decided that opposed to beginning with asanas (physical practice) I would focus on a different limb from the eight limbed path, Niyamas. Under the Niyamas there is a branch by the name of svadhyaya, which means self – study.

I decided to watch a video on Netflix, Yoga Is. The video was very enlightening. It was a documentary of a woman who went on a yogic journey to India and the many lessons she learned. There were various teachers who spoke on a variety of subjects, but all encompassing the question, what is yoga?

Yoga is the unification of mind, body, and spirit. When this connection has been severed or lost, we then lose ourselves. Yoga aids to bring each piece back together and restore that unification. The most profound line in the entire video was: You can’t do yoga, because ultimately you are it.

And with that, I begin…

“All that I am is the result of what I have thought.”

Meeting Miracles

Since I barely met the registration deadline for this journey (I joined yesterday) I figured since I’m up around 6:30 am for my bladders daily meeting, I might as well create one of my choosing. You know, start this journey off right by watching the sun wake this side of the earth. As I’m standing, sleepy but present, there I begin to realize that I’m witnessing a miracle. I’ve been witnessing the miracle of life everyday for 28 years but only now am I valuing it. Yes, I am very grateful to be alive and living, but the fact that this billion ton ball of matter orbiting in an expansive realm such as space manages to turn just right each day without me having to do anything but open my eyes to see it – It’s a beautiful thing. And this led me to think of other beautiful things; Humans. How our inner workings are so intricately precise that we can manipulate hundreds of nerve endings and muscles, activate synapses and formulate sentences to describe the miracle of a sunrise without hesitation. The creation of body, mind, and spirit coming together to create a force that we are individually. All the while guiding us to take part of a journey that will make us even grander. I stood in awe twice today. Once for my second meeting with the miracle of the sun, and for the third one with the miracle of me. I hope you guys do the same. Namaste.

Day 2

It is so liberating to allow yourself to step on your mat, and to journey into a special place EVERY day.
For the 30 minutes, 1 hour, no matter, you find peace and freedom within yourself. To look forward to a new day, a new practice, and a new challenge is such an incredible gift.

In love and light
नमस्ते

Day 1

I woke up excited to pile through the snow to my 1st of 100 classes. It is really a thousandth + class but I feel I am starting fresh. I looked at the twists and inversions through the eyes of the novice and loved every moment of it. How was yours 1/100?

In love and light
नमस्ते

..And so it begins

Quick check, making sure that I am submitting these posts correctly