Holidaze Series- Self Study- New Year

I'm not usually a resolutions person-
too much pressure and everyone else is doing it.
Not my thing.

This year is different.
This year I began to continue to teach.
This year I began to continue to
take great care of myself.
This year I began to continue to
realize all that I can be.
Seeing this=
I want to grow.

So here's my chance, all week I've been thinking.
I read great articles on Dreamboarding,
(I have plans to make my own on Wednesday)
detoxing, health and more.
I read my favorite yoga books again.
I wrote out all the things I want to do.
Why not?!
I surprised myself with what I wrote :o)

What does this New Year hold for you?

Experts say it takes 17 days of action to create a new habit.
Seems the 21 day challenges are everywhere right now.

What do you want this New Year to hold for you?
I want to continue to grow.
I want to continue doing something for my health.
I want to continue to live My Yoga Practice.
So I will.

What do you want this New Year to hold for Your Yoga Practice?
I want to practice more arm strengthening postures.
I want to continue sequencing flowingly.
I want to add 5 more minutes to my daily meditations.
I want to continue learning.
So I will.

What do you want this New Year to hold for you?

Be proactive.
Do Something.

Write it down. Find out.
Learn about yourself.
You may be surprised.

As with any practice-
Make No Judgment.
Work you intentions (goals, dreams)
into Your Yoga Practice.
Take the now, things you want to bring more of into your life
and add these to Your Practice.
Yes.
Asana, Pranayama,
Meditation, Self Study, Ritual-
Same Game.

Different Moment.

After the Holidaze, take some time before the year turns

to ask yourself what you want.
Allow yourself as long as you need to answer,
no phones, beeps, distractions,
make the time.
Ask for it if you need help finding the time.

Give yourself a refreshing gift.
A check in.
A hey-how's-things-goin?
Often times I find I'm butting my head
against a wall in one area, only to find
by moving farther to one side or another,
making adjustments,
loving the changes
as subtly or harshly as they come,
things tend to smooth and even
(just like my breath in asana)
and I end up fitting
right where I need
to be the
Best Version
of me.

Rock Your Practice this New Year!

^o^

Thank you so much for supporting this project.
Stay tuned for cool new additions and more
to come in 2010.
Thank you for diggin it!
Be Yourself.
Yoga Empowered.
^o^
Suz

Holidaze Series- Add Yoga to Your Day- Mudras

I love practicing mudras.

In a nutshell-
mudras are symbolic hand gestures
used to direct energy in
a yoga posture or meditation.
Many religions, martial arts, dancers
& traditions favor mudras as well.

Practicing mudras tends to shift energy.
For example- if you want to
improve concentration-
holding the Gyan mudra for 15 minutes can help.
Even holding the mudra for a few minutes helps
but the longer the better.

Some practice mudras for healing
(Great article with more specifics here).

Mudras can be practiced in your pocket,
under a table or out in public.
Using both hands to practice the mudra
is more potent than one alone but
they can be practiced either way.

A simple yet powerful way to
add yoga to your day and
an awesome way to add it to your Holiday
to bring peace and added resolve.

Here's my favs.


Anjali Mudra-
Hands at Heart, Prayer, Namaskara or Namaste.

I love the symbolism of this mudra.
A coming together, a greeting, a gesture of respect, etc.
I love that the fingers of each hand symbolize
the elements (fire, water, earth, air, ether)
by bringing the hands together
you are uniting your being, your practice,
your spirit, body, mind...

By reaching your arms out the the sides
and overhead as you inhale then
bringing your hands to your heart
as you exhale
(in asana or meditation)
it symbolizes a reaching out and
gathering of energies
to bring them to center.

This is my favorite mudra that I practice
many times a day.
Before my asana & meditation practices-
I begin with this 3X to come into
my practice and end it the same way.
Even in the bathroom to refocus myself-
3 breaths using this technique
is a Holiday life saver.



Pran or Prana Mudra-
To practice this mudra gently press
the ring & pinky finger pads into the
thumb pad with the index and middle fingers
extended and apart.

Sitting with this mudra brings a
clear clean energy to your system
by energizing & activating every cell in the body.
It also improves immune function.

It's said this mudra is especially helpful for
patients with cancer or thyroid issues.



Gyan Mudra-
Om Mudra
This mudra is practiced by
placing the index finger pad gently
against the thumb pad while extending
the middle, ring & pinky fingers.

Practicing Gyan mudra emphasizes
grounding, calm and improves concentration.
Practicing this mudra while lying in bed
(or I found out last night lying on the couch!)
induces a soothing sleep.
Many practice this while saying Om
(Aum- mentally or aloud) to
bring more meaning to their practice.

This one is also known in healing
circles as a yogic tranquilizer.
It's said to help with the brain related problems
as it smoothly increases blood supply &
circulation in the brain to help energize neurons.



Dhyana Mudra-
Meditation mudra.
This mudra may be made with one or both hands.
Use left hand with palm up in the lap or
place both hands at the navel area,
right hand placed above left,
palms up, fingers extended.
Thumb pads gently touching.

Practice this mudra for relaxation,
compassion, peace & spiritual attainment.
Practicing this mudra also calms the nervous system
creating a feeling of enthusiastic relaxation.
I love that enthusiastic relaxation...



Finally-
Apan or Apana Mudra
Okay this one just Rocks!
Although very similar to the gestures we make
at Rock Shows
this is also a mudra used in yoga! :o)

Bring the middle and ring finger pads
to the thumb pad and extend
the index and pinky fingers.

Practicing this mudra brings
confidence of self and energy.
If you're feeling flighty or out of focus
this is a great one to use!
It cleanses & purifies the body and
provides relief for urinary issues and facilitates
the discharge of waste material from the body.

This was a challenge in that there is
so much information about mudras.
If you're interested in learning more
I'd highly recommend doing an internet
search as I was amazed at
how many mudras there are,
how many meanings they have but
mostly how well they work.

Have a wonderful Holiday!

Sit with Dhyana mudra in your next meditation
and invite the joy of the Season
into your heart.
Feeling extra Holiday stress?
Rather than getting frustrated or impatient
pick a mudra and practice it all week.

Take care of Yourselves
and Rock Your Practice!
^o^
Suz

Some Sweet Chronic Illness Resources

The internet has opened up so many opportunities
for connecting and learning.
Here are a few of my favorite resources
that I've come across so far.

I'll continue to add to the list yet
won't republish this post each time so
be sure to check in on occasion for new resources.
I'd love to hear your favs and
encourage you to share them
in the comments section below.
(Do know I have to approve them first
so no ads, spam or porn people :o)


Chronic Babe
is a site I found and quickly fell in love with.
Here you can find articles, resources and more
for living with chronic illness.
I love the attitude of the site- no why mes-
just Babeness!
Recently a forum was added and it's a
great place to find support, make connections
and to learn more about your challenges
whatever they may be
from those living with them as well.


Cancer-
Yoga Bear
is something everyone should know about.
I'm so glad it's there
and I refer students to it often.

Crazy Sexy Life
just blew me outta the water!
I love all the resources here from
cancer to diet
this site is worth an afternoon
and I highly recommend it.
Even without cancer & living with
a chronic illness this site has tons to offer.


Arthritis-
Awesome yoga movement in Canada!
If anyone knows of anything like this in
the States - give a shout!
I'd love to support!
http://www.powerofmovement.ca/


Center for Mindfulness at UMass
I've been studying Jon Kabat-Zinn's
mindfulness - ness for years.
I highly encourage you to take a look,
see what courses are available in your area.
There are trainings (classes) all over
the world- this site is a good place to start.
I'm super excited to be taking an
8 week course in March 2010!
If classes aren't within your means-
He's the author of Where ever You Go,
There You Are- start there even-
with the book or on CD.
He's authored many titles- choose the one
that most resonates with you.


National Center for Complementary
and Alternative Medicine.
This site features lots of research and information
regarding many illnesses.
I've found it really hard to find trustworthy
alternative medicine research and
was so glad to finally find this site.


Quit Smoking
with Become An Ex. org
This site helps educate & support those who
want to, need to, are thinking about or
are going to quit smoking.
A former smoker myself-
My advice is to just keep quitting!
After about 3 years I finally did!


Here's an Open Letter to those not living with
Chronic Illness.
When I first read this I cried with relief as
it made me more able be understanding of others
as they don't live in my skin
and it also allowed me
to express myself a bit better.
Though I never sent it out- it was enough
for me to read and be able to express more openly to
friends, family & even students some
limitations I have.


Become active at
Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease
This site has tons of articles and resources
for many things.
If your big on advocacy or curious about
what that means for you-
check it out!


I could add stuff for days and this list will continue
to grow in time.
Knowledge Empowers.
It's right at your fingertips...
^o^
Suz

How Yoga Can Help those Living with* Chronic Illness

*those living with Chronic Illness, diagnosed or not,
caregivers, friends, loved ones, children, plants & the dog all live with.

By sitting down at the mat-
you are reaffirming, re-patterning and
resetting your conditioned beliefs
about yourself
(habits, lifestyle, etc.)
by doing something different.

Rather than reaching for a bottle of Maker's Mark-
sit down at your mat & practice.
Rather than reaching for the pizza delivery guy's number-
sit down to meditate & practice.
Rather than going outside for this one cigarette-
roll out your mat & do 3 postures.
Yoga is something else to do.

Rather than stare at a wall thinking
of all the terrible things that could happen to you-
roll out your mat and physically
work out those things, using breath awareness,
in effect purifying the mind so
you can once again make the decision
to make choices
you want to make.

Physically alone.
Practicing asana (postures)
that's right for your body
will
increase circulation, reduce stress,
improve flexibility, clear the mind,
create energy, release tension,
improve strength, build strength,
reduce pain and fatigue,
improve mental focus and clarity,
build core (belly & low back)
strength and stability
as well as
improve sleep and
breath capacity
& breath function...

Practicing asana
(with breath awareness in particular)
teaches us a sense of body awareness.
Not many of us were born with a chronic illness.
We got used to bodies without our illness.

I find in most All Levels classes I teach-
I need to bring the student from the outside world
inward
to focus on their breath.

Someone living with a chronic illness
is well aware of their body.
Sometimes the body is screaming, sometimes
it lets me know whats up whether I like it or not
soooo...
the challenge here becomes
refocusing the awareness to the breath
which
with practice
brings body awareness, acceptance,
empowerment and
a natural ability to listen
(and hearing whether you like it or not)
to your body
to give yourself what you need.
Relaxation. Energy.
Calm. Balance.
Clarity.
Joy.

You don't need to practice X amount.
Try being more aware of when you can practice.
Try doing it then.
Try doing something different.

By sitting down at the mat-
you are reaffirming, re-patterning and
resetting your conditioned beliefs
about yourself
(habits, lifestyle, etc.)
by doing something different.

Rock Your Practice!
^o^

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