"The moment you say affirmations, you are stepping out of the victim role. You are no longer helpless. You are acknowledging your own power." - Louise Hay
Although I have not read Rhonda Byrne's The Secret, I am a fan of affirmations. Psychologically, they serve as a way to really "take life by the horns." Whether or not continued and relentless repetitions of a specific affirmation will bring "success" or "change," I don't know. But I do feel that positive thought is a very powerful tool. I just discovered this cool website:
http://www.daily-affirmations.com/
The tag-line for the website is "An affirmation a day helps keep the negativity away." Clever and cute, huh? Some of the affirmations will prove more helpful than others, but the website can always serve as an interesting source of positive thought.
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Okay, so aside from reading affirmations today, I was able to run 4.8 miles with Emma and her friend Donna. We decided to change up our routine and run in a park, instead of on our standard trail. For whatever reason, simply changing the route and surroundings was quite challenging! Perhaps the body gets comfortable and accustomed to a specific regime? Anyway, the new sensory impact was huge.
I think changing up the routine is a great way to keep exercise (and cooking, relationships, work, etc. etc.) fresh and interesting. Which brings me to my next point...
Change Up Your Yoga Routine!
It is SO easy to let your yoga routine become "comfortable" and "easy." You see this trend often in yoga studios: some new yogi comes in and attaches themselves to a specific style/teacher/class. Before long, that style/teacher/class becomes "too easy" for the yogi and they simply stop attending class! Or, perhaps, they start practicing somewhere else...a much better scenario in my opinion!
Either way, it's such a shame that a yoga experience can begin and end with simply Power Yoga, Iyengar, Ashtanga, Bikram, heated, non-heated, or any other "trend" that people buy into. The beauty of yoga is that it can be all these things at once. There's no need to experience only one facet of yoga...in fact, I think your practice can become most powerful when it's completely diverse. And you'll never get bored!
I did a Bikram-inspired class yesterday and - boy - was I sore! It was incredible how my body reacted to the class...I hadn't done this type of class in a very long time. It was physically and mentally very challenging. But I benefited SO much more from this experience than if I had simply done another Stress-Relief yoga video or 20-minute cardio yoga. The act of simply changing it up made all the difference in the world!
If you are feeling bored in your practice, or perhaps just uninterested, try something different. It can still be challenging, fun, and just as legitimate as your current practice. Seriously! Just try.
While I'm on the verge of becoming a tad preachy, I'll switch gears once again and offer up some....
Cocoa Brownies
This brownie recipe comes from Terry Walters' Clean Start cookbook. I like that, although they do contain sugar, every source of sweetness is completely natural.
- 1/2 cup natural applesauce
- 8 pitted dates
- 1 ripe banana
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup spelt flour (or flour of your choice)
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch salt
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly spray an 8x8 baking dish with nonstick spray. Combine the applesauce, dates, banana, maple syrup, and vanilla in the bowl of a food processor. Puree until dates are finely chopped and ingredients are combined (if the dates are slightly hard, the processor might shake, so hold it down!).
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the liquid ingredients from the food processor and gently combine until mixed. Pour the mixture into the baking dish and bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the brownies cool in the pan before cutting and eating them. makes 16 brownies
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Last but CERTAINLY not least, I have created a website to display my freelance yoga work around Bloomington and post my teaching schedule. It is:
http://www.justinzyoga.weebly.com/
Please check it out (and check back for updates and expansion soon!)
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