Man, this time change is killing me! Plus, I just started my Hello Morning challenge today as well. Not sure it was the wisest challenge to start when my kids' sleep is all crazy but I committed so I'm sticking it out. But, I made it through our crazy day, actually got a good amount of tasks accomplished, and I just finished Day 5!
Let me be honest. I did not want to do Day 5 tonight. I'm extra tired because I woke up at 6am (so my body felt like it was 5am) and my kids didn't really nap so I've been "on" since about 6:30 this morning and then they didn't go to sleep until 8pm, which is an hour LATER than the typically do . . . They cut an hour off of my "me" time. Yoga typically starts for me at 7pm, I get done by 7:30, shower, and I'm back downstairs for my "me" time by 8pm. But, it's already 8:30 here. So. Tonight I was trying to come up with an excuse in my head. There were plenty. But actually, what kept resonating more loudly than the rest was that I have been feeling GOOD! I feel really good about my body right now. I'm sore, which always takes me by surprise because I don't feel like I'm working hard during yoga. Maybe I'm just that weak . . . But I'm sore and my muscles are tighter and beyond that, I'm just feeling good because that's what yoga does for your body! And mind, actually.
So, I threw out my yoga mat, hit play, and thanked God when I saw that Day 5 was a whole 15 minutes long. There's really no excuse for a 15 minute practice.
Today's title was Day 5 - Feel Alive Flow and I really enjoyed this little flow. I mean, it definitely was short but I think we went through about three vinyasas along with Warrior II, Peaceful Warrior, and Triangle Pose. And we got back to boat ab poses at the end. It was enough to make me shake at times or just get to that point of my brain starting to ask "when are we going to that next pose?" so I thought it was nice.
Tomorrow is abs. There's a slight (okay, very large) chance that I'll be skipping tomorrow as I devote every possible minute of my evening to finding out who Chris chooses as his bride-to-be. Will it be Whitney or Becca?? It better be Whitney or I'm jumping through the tv. Seriously.
Okay, enough Bachelor talk. Until tomorrow (or probably Wednesday). :)
~Laura
Monday, March 9, 2015
30 Day Yoga Challenge - Day 4
I DID do my yoga challenge last night! I just decided it was finally time to watch a Downton episode rather than blog.
Day 4 - Yoga Has Your Back
I felt really nice and limber after Day 4, since it was all about the back (with some abs thrown in there). Because it was day four, Adriene had us on "all fours" for most of the routine. There were no standing poses in this practice.
It was a nice 20 minute practice where I left feeling like my back was healthier and I was ready to be more active.
Until next time,
~ Laura
Day 4 - Yoga Has Your Back
I felt really nice and limber after Day 4, since it was all about the back (with some abs thrown in there). Because it was day four, Adriene had us on "all fours" for most of the routine. There were no standing poses in this practice.
It was a nice 20 minute practice where I left feeling like my back was healthier and I was ready to be more active.
Until next time,
~ Laura
Saturday, March 7, 2015
30 Day Yoga Challenge - Day 3
I'm SO glad I'm writing this blog! It was the only thing that got me on my mat tonight. It's "daylight savings" day tomorrow which for any mom brings out an "ugh!". And of course, Spring is the lovely time when we jump forward an hour so as I'm writing this, it's almost 9pm! Yikes. I still need to shave my legs and prep for tomorrow morning in an attempt to finally make it to Mass with the kiddos for the first time since Ryan left. I mean, it is Lent . . . Sigh . . .
So, knowing I could possibly have a reader (it is possible) see that I again slacked, it was motivation enough to click play. Plus I knew it was only 23 minutes so I really had no excuse.
Okay, to the workout. Today was Day 3 - Forget What You Know.
I thought this was actually a fun one, though definitely less traditional yoga. The first 10 minutes or so were spent upright doing various balance challenges as well as stretches. These were not typical moves found in a yoga class but Adriene did an awesome job explaining what the stretch or ab work was for and helping to bring my attention to various parts of the body, if my mind was apt to wander. Though, today, my mind was nicely present.
The mat work ran through a couple vinyasas along with low lunge, warrior I and warrior II. I LOVE warrior II and could stay there all day. The video ended as the other two before with a few ab moves at the end.
I like how Adriene is building on each day as the challenge goes on, so that you can test your ability and push yourself each day.
She did mention abs a lot in this one and I was hoping to feel more of a burn. I know there's an "ab" day coming up soon so I'm really looking forward to that. I did find that I was left wanting more. I think 23 minutes is pretty short for a yoga video, especially when a good amount was more gentle stretching. I'll give it a few more days but I'm kinda craving a sweaty, 30+ minute flow right about now. I'm getting excited about practicing again and want to move quickly. I know Adriene is up for that challenge but I'm not sure if it's coming in this series, or at least not yet. Only time will tell. I'll let you know if I break down and seek out some power yoga.
Thanks for the accountability. Until tomorrow!
~Laura
So, knowing I could possibly have a reader (it is possible) see that I again slacked, it was motivation enough to click play. Plus I knew it was only 23 minutes so I really had no excuse.
Okay, to the workout. Today was Day 3 - Forget What You Know.
I thought this was actually a fun one, though definitely less traditional yoga. The first 10 minutes or so were spent upright doing various balance challenges as well as stretches. These were not typical moves found in a yoga class but Adriene did an awesome job explaining what the stretch or ab work was for and helping to bring my attention to various parts of the body, if my mind was apt to wander. Though, today, my mind was nicely present.
The mat work ran through a couple vinyasas along with low lunge, warrior I and warrior II. I LOVE warrior II and could stay there all day. The video ended as the other two before with a few ab moves at the end.
I like how Adriene is building on each day as the challenge goes on, so that you can test your ability and push yourself each day.
She did mention abs a lot in this one and I was hoping to feel more of a burn. I know there's an "ab" day coming up soon so I'm really looking forward to that. I did find that I was left wanting more. I think 23 minutes is pretty short for a yoga video, especially when a good amount was more gentle stretching. I'll give it a few more days but I'm kinda craving a sweaty, 30+ minute flow right about now. I'm getting excited about practicing again and want to move quickly. I know Adriene is up for that challenge but I'm not sure if it's coming in this series, or at least not yet. Only time will tell. I'll let you know if I break down and seek out some power yoga.
Thanks for the accountability. Until tomorrow!
~Laura
Friday, March 6, 2015
30 Day Yoga Challenge - Day 2
Okay, so, of course the minute I start a yoga challenge my cold comes back with vengeance. Yesterday I could barely function let alone do yoga so I had to take the day off. Thankfully, today I felt well enough to go on a Spring shopping spree at Target so I got back to the challenge.
Day 2 - Stretch and Soothe
This was a nice practice. Again, approximately 34 minutes long. The first half was some nice stretching including the hands and feet. The second half was more active. I'm noticing my self-talk is terrible right now. The minute I start to burn or shake I immediately go to "I don't like this" or "I want this to be over." I try to breathe more when I start to hear those negative phrases but I do love that yoga gives me the space to hear and confront those negative thoughts. I'm sure they come up in other places of my life beyond the mat.
I left the mat feeling stretched and energized. I can tell Adriene is going to kick this challenge into gear fairly quickly but I'm excited for the test. I need something to get my health back in focus and this is going to do just that. This and freezing temperatures leaving so I can get back outside.
One of my favorite things about is that I naturally choose healthier foods when I practice. Yoga helps me honor my body as a vessel for my soul and in doing so I simple pick less-processed, fresh foods to nourish it.
Tomorrow's yoga practice is titled "Forget What You Know" so that should be an interesting 23 minutes. Looking forward to it!
~Laura
Day 2 - Stretch and Soothe
This was a nice practice. Again, approximately 34 minutes long. The first half was some nice stretching including the hands and feet. The second half was more active. I'm noticing my self-talk is terrible right now. The minute I start to burn or shake I immediately go to "I don't like this" or "I want this to be over." I try to breathe more when I start to hear those negative phrases but I do love that yoga gives me the space to hear and confront those negative thoughts. I'm sure they come up in other places of my life beyond the mat.
I left the mat feeling stretched and energized. I can tell Adriene is going to kick this challenge into gear fairly quickly but I'm excited for the test. I need something to get my health back in focus and this is going to do just that. This and freezing temperatures leaving so I can get back outside.
One of my favorite things about is that I naturally choose healthier foods when I practice. Yoga helps me honor my body as a vessel for my soul and in doing so I simple pick less-processed, fresh foods to nourish it.
Tomorrow's yoga practice is titled "Forget What You Know" so that should be an interesting 23 minutes. Looking forward to it!
~Laura
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
30 Day Yoga Challenge - Day 1
Hi there,
I know I haven't written in forever! A bunch of things have changed. We welcomed a son over a year ago, experienced the NICU first-hand, lived through sleepless nights and giving up dairy, and now are working through a deployment. Plus, I just started my own business as an independent consultant for Perfectly Posh!
While all of these things are exciting on some level, they also all add stress to my life and for the past six weeks or so I've found it hard to maintain any sort of physical activity. The fact that it's been below freezing most days hasn't helped. I found Yoga with Adriene's 30 Day Yoga Challenge on YouTube and it seemed like such a great way to get back into fitness. I always love yoga and I've done Adriene's practices before. Adriene challenges me with her nontraditional approach to yoga. She's very knowledgable and fit but she incorporates movement that honestly makes me uncomfortable. My initial reaction is to want to just hold a pose. Still. It's yoga. It's not swaying. But, with that in mind, I thought it might be good to get uncomfortable. So, here we go!
Today was Day 1 - Ease Into It.
When I started the video and saw that it was 35 minutes, I seriously almost turned it off. It was 8pm. I had just finished cleaning the kitchen from dinner (and the entire day really), both kids were in bed, I knew I had to still shower and get ready for our early Thursday schedule and 35 minutes just seemed too long. But, I really wanted to start (and complete) this challenge so I just said "F it" and plopped down on my beloved purple yoga mat.
The workout itself was very basic. Lots of slow stretching, a little runners pose and could turn into lunge, a couple vinyasas at the end but one thing from the video really stood out to me and made me appreciate it: Adriene told me to notice if I got bored. She said to acknowledge my desire to move on from the pose but then to come back to my breath. Multiple times throughout she challenged me to not be a yoga challenge "robot" but to honor my body, get in tune with it, and to take the time for me. It's very easy for me to get bored while "just sitting and breathing" but her reminders helped me to get past that uncomfortableness because that's exactly the place in my life that needs to change: I need to be able to slow down and just sit and focus on me. Not my kids. Not my husband. Not whatever thing I could be doing for my business at that moment. But those 35 minutes were just for me and once I allowed that, it all felt SO GOOD!
So, Day 1 is done. It's now 9:20pm. I'm off to take that shower, get the diaper bag packed up with food for the morning, and then off to read some more Anna Karenina. That book never ends but I honestly loving every minute of it so I don't mind.
Until tomorrow!
~Laura
I know I haven't written in forever! A bunch of things have changed. We welcomed a son over a year ago, experienced the NICU first-hand, lived through sleepless nights and giving up dairy, and now are working through a deployment. Plus, I just started my own business as an independent consultant for Perfectly Posh!
While all of these things are exciting on some level, they also all add stress to my life and for the past six weeks or so I've found it hard to maintain any sort of physical activity. The fact that it's been below freezing most days hasn't helped. I found Yoga with Adriene's 30 Day Yoga Challenge on YouTube and it seemed like such a great way to get back into fitness. I always love yoga and I've done Adriene's practices before. Adriene challenges me with her nontraditional approach to yoga. She's very knowledgable and fit but she incorporates movement that honestly makes me uncomfortable. My initial reaction is to want to just hold a pose. Still. It's yoga. It's not swaying. But, with that in mind, I thought it might be good to get uncomfortable. So, here we go!
Today was Day 1 - Ease Into It.
When I started the video and saw that it was 35 minutes, I seriously almost turned it off. It was 8pm. I had just finished cleaning the kitchen from dinner (and the entire day really), both kids were in bed, I knew I had to still shower and get ready for our early Thursday schedule and 35 minutes just seemed too long. But, I really wanted to start (and complete) this challenge so I just said "F it" and plopped down on my beloved purple yoga mat.
The workout itself was very basic. Lots of slow stretching, a little runners pose and could turn into lunge, a couple vinyasas at the end but one thing from the video really stood out to me and made me appreciate it: Adriene told me to notice if I got bored. She said to acknowledge my desire to move on from the pose but then to come back to my breath. Multiple times throughout she challenged me to not be a yoga challenge "robot" but to honor my body, get in tune with it, and to take the time for me. It's very easy for me to get bored while "just sitting and breathing" but her reminders helped me to get past that uncomfortableness because that's exactly the place in my life that needs to change: I need to be able to slow down and just sit and focus on me. Not my kids. Not my husband. Not whatever thing I could be doing for my business at that moment. But those 35 minutes were just for me and once I allowed that, it all felt SO GOOD!
So, Day 1 is done. It's now 9:20pm. I'm off to take that shower, get the diaper bag packed up with food for the morning, and then off to read some more Anna Karenina. That book never ends but I honestly loving every minute of it so I don't mind.
Until tomorrow!
~Laura
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