Tag Archives: 21 day yoga challenge

do yoga outside – Sunset Yoga starts this Thursday!

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tree pose at C&O canal, WV while hiking with my sister Margaret & her husband, Dan

Tree pose at C&O Canal, WV while hiking with my sister Margaret & her husband, Dan on Easter Sunday

Welcome to Day 21 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge. Today is a recap of our April  Challenge with the suggestion that yoga and meditation are accessible at anytime, anywhere. I always like to put my favorite things together, such as taking an impromptu yoga pose while enjoying Nature. And that’s why I’m so thrilled to announce my new Sunset Yoga class that starts this Thursday, April 24th and goes until the end of October. If you live in the Washington, DC area, come and join me on Thursday nights at 7 pm at Potomac Overlook Regional Park. Get your yoga fix and Nature fix at the same time. Come and meet Olivia the dog on select dates.

Find out more about my classes and details about Sunset Yoga here.

Okay, now for our 21 Day Yoga Challenge recap. How did you do? Did you practice yoga and meditation most days? (Any day?) Don’t worry if you missed some of the challenge. The idea is to simply build healthy habits, one day at a time. If you meditated or practiced yoga one day more than what you normally would do, then you were successful. Let’s keep it going!

Here are the suggestions I offered during this challenge:

  1. Welcome Spring! Welcome New You!
  2. Today’s meditation: connecting with your power animal
  3. Good morning, Sunshine! muffins
  4. Short yoga sequences
  5. Tiny chia seeds pack big health punch
  6. gossip

  7. the go-to yoga pose for tranquility and renewal

  8. Joyous belly “I feel great” salad
  9. Yoga for back pain

  10. labyrinths: forward movement toward self-realization

  11. It’s not about you
  12. yoga posture for the throat: relief for colds, speaking your truth, excessive talking
  13. Yin yoga, part 1
  14. Yin yoga, part 2
  15. Salve for a bad day
  16. Yoga for healthy joints
  17. Soothing chime meditation
  18. Mango salsa, brighten your day
  19. The outside world is a reflection of your inside
  20. eyes open meditation: color
  21. do yoga outside

I wish you light and love!

Suzanne

eyes open meditation: color

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Happy Easter! Welcome to Day 20 of my 21 Day Yoga Challenge.

This past Friday I spent the afternoon plant shopping at nurseries with my sister Anne. This is hands-down one of my favorite things to do – and it is made many times more enjoyable in Anne’s company. She and I share the same of love of plants, organic fruits and vegetables, nature and animals. You should have seen us at the nurseries. For hours, we laughed with utter delight and looked with amazement at the colors and shapes of the plants. We saw stunning parrots, ponds full of fish and row after row of flowers, herbs and shrubs. And the colors! The colors of nature simply fill my heart.

The beginning of Spring is a wonderful time to reflect on the colors in nature. Spend some time today really focusing, really noticing and meditating on various colors in Nature. Ponder the beauty of a flower – not just for a few seconds – but for several minutes. Notice the color of the sky. Meditate on the brilliant design of an animal.

Namaste and love,

Suzanne

the outside world is a reflection of your inside

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tulipsWelcome to Day 19 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge.

In your reflection/meditation today, you might consider that everything that you experience in the outside world can be a reflection of what you are experiencing in your inside world – your attitudes, beliefs, thoughts and emotions.

Do you repeatedly see war, violence and anger in others? Then ask yourself, at what times I am at war with myself? How am I self-destructive? How can I release the anger that I’ve turned inward?

Do you find that people always take advantage of you? Have your repetitively been stolen from? Do you abhor people who are greedy? Then you might consider your own greed and whether your own desires lead you to cling. Consider how you can be more generous, perhaps first with yourself. 

See how this works?

This reflection also works to bring awareness to the qualities that serve us well. You may have a day where a certain positive message keeps showing up in your life. Let’s say that today your interactions with family, friends or strangers have been uplifting and loving. You might consider how you have manifested love in your own heart.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. It’s a great way to see our own patterns and choices.

I wish you light and love,

Namaste,

Suzanne

 

soothing chime meditation

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meditating

Welcome to Day 17 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge! I hope that you are making time in your schedule for at least 10 minutes of yoga and at least 10 minutes of meditation a day.

Here’s an audio meditation that I created using my chimes. There are no words – just the sound of the chimes. It’s so relaxing. If you enjoy this, please let me know by “liking” this post or sending me a comment.

I wish you peace, light and love.

Namaste,

Suzanne

salve for a bad day

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lotus pose

Welcome to Day 15 of my 21 Day Yoga Challenge!

Having a tough day? Are you cranky, irritable or discontent? Here’s a quick way to shift your energy. Take a few moments to write down seven things that made you smile this week. You might consider listing small, anecdotal things as opposed to things that you may always be grateful for (family, friends, pets). That keeps it fresh and helps you look for more small wonders in your life.

Here’s my top 7 list:

  1. Driving in my neighborhood, I drove past a group of young children selling lemonade for 25 cents a glass. As I passed them, a young girl called out to me: “Buy one, get one free!” (priceless)
  2. Watching my magnificent pink Magnolia tree bloom.
  3. Hiking with my dog in the warmest, sweetest Spring weather.
  4. Unpacking all my warm-weather clothes. Storing all my Winter clothes.
  5. Running into my best pal, Karen, while walking on the bike path. Having an impromptu girlfriend get-together.
  6. While teaching a semi-private yoga class, I asked my students if they’d like me to do the “cat-walk-up-the back” massage on them and having them respond with utter glee.
  7. Guilty pleasure: Watching an old ’80s movie that I adore. (Masquerade)

Share one or more of your Top 7 List. I’d love to learn what made you smile.

Namaste,

Suzanne

yin yoga, part 2

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Welcome to Day 14 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge.

Today’s video offers three yin yoga poses. This is part 2. Each pose is meant to be held for several minutes – one to three minutes for newer yogis or five or more minutes for advanced yogis.

Enjoy your life!

Suzanne

it’s not about you

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my beloved Magnolia tree

my beloved pink Magnolia tree

Day 12 of 21 Day Yoga Challenge. Sometimes it’s good to take a step back and acknowledge that most of our problems are so minor, first-world problems really. For instance, today I put myself in a fool mood because it was my third day of having a cold. I was irritated that I was spending my “day-off” doing all the things that I didn’t get done when I was sick. That, of course, made every task seem much more onerous than it really was. I saw a friend when I was out walking my dog and then I finally got my head back on straight. The act of vocalizing my frustrations and then listening to how minor they are helped me back on the path of gratitude.

Cooking does that for me too. I love to cook. To me, it’s a moving meditation that eases me away from all my “should-dos” and “should-have-dones”. I get to appreciate the abundance of food that I am preparing and enjoy the creative process.

But what happens when someone hurts us? A few days ago I was walking my dog along a busy street, smiling to myself and enjoying the day. As a car passed by, a man I don’t know leaned out the window and yelled at me: “Bitch!”.

It would be easy to take on someone’s fury and ask “why me?”. It’s hard to give it over – to truly allow the stranger to have his own experience without being affected by it. But that is what I did.

In today’s reflection you might consider whether you are more affected when the person is a stranger or someone that you are entangled with? Do you feel a need to understand or intellectualize someone’s strong emotions? Do you often feel responsible for the feelings of others? Do others’ outbursts unsettle you? When? Can you let go of trying to control what others think of you? Can you be dispassionately aware of when someone’s reaction is about you and when it isn’t? (Hint: Most of the time, it’s not about you.)

Enjoy the flowers. Enjoy your life.

Namaste,

Suzanne

 

labyrinths: forward movement toward self-realization

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finger labyrinth2Welcome to Day 10 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge! I hope you are making time each day for 10 minutes of yoga and 10 minutes of meditation. It’s okay if you have missed some days, but do make an effort to be good to yourself by building your own yoga practice.

Today we will reflect on the symbol of labyrinths. Labyrinths are not to be confused with mazes. Mazes require mental acuity to figure out. The design of labyrinths is straight-forward and easy to navigate. The way in is the way out.

Most labyrinths are circular, symbolizing wholeness. It is a journey in the center – a journey into ourselves – and then a return to our connection with nature, our community and those with which we share our lives.

Labyrinths ask us to slow down and be in the present. Each step is a step of awareness. Being on the path of a labyrinth demonstrates forward movement toward self-realization.

Labyrinths can be architectural structures, can be drawn in the sand or built with rocks or sticks. The photo above is of the finger labyrinth that my sister Margaret gave me years ago. I place it on the wall for reflection and then sometimes take it down to trace for my meditation.

Suggestion for today’s practice:

Try a walking meditation today. Find an open space to walk. Silence your cell phone and put away the music. See how slow you can walk. Walk with attention, noticing what the feet feel like touching the earth. Open your awareness to all surrounding sounds. Notice your breath. Notice where you are in the body, mind and spirit. Notice what’s agreeable as well as what’s disagreeable.

Afterwards, reflect on your experience.

Namaste,

Suzanne

 

 

yoga for back pain

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Welcome! Here’s a video designed for those who suffer from back pain. When it comes to back pain, I recommend doing fewer poses and holding the poses for two to five minutes. Less is more. Even if you just choose one pose out of this sequence, but practice every day, you’ll feel relief.

Don’t let the simplicity of the poses fool you. There are a lot of yoga videos for back pain out there. Many of them incorporate complex poses and poses with deep back bends. I’ve designed this video more for releasing tight muscles than for strengthening the body and the back.

If you don’t have back pain, you can still enjoy this video and use it as a short practice.

Namaste,

Suzanne

joyous belly “I feel great” salad

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joyous belly saladEat something yummy today. It’s Day 8 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge. Try this recipe. It’s one of my favorites.

Here’s a great light and super healthy salad that your belly will love. This is a belly-balancing, palate cleansing, super-yummy, 4-star easy, Ayurvedic Suzanne original.

Ingredients

  • 1 large cucumber – cut in half length wise, then slice super thin
  • 1 small to medium fennel bulb, sliced super thin
  • 1/2 to 1 tsp salt
  • 1/8 cup finely chopped cilantro (or less)
  • 1/8 – 1/4 cup finely chopped mint
  • 1/8 cup of good quality olive oil
  • juice of 2 juicy lemons

Let sit for a least 1/2 hour before serving. It’s great the next day too.

As always with cooking, taste as you go. Be prudent to begin. Start with the juice of 1 lemon, 1/8+ cup of olive oil, 1/2 tsp. salt. Taste, then add more of each as needed. You can always add more, but you can’t take ingredients out.

 Tip: I use Meyer Lemons when in season

Tip: I can’t stress this enough: be sure to slice the fennel super-thin

Namaste,

Suzanne

 

the go-to yoga pose for tranquility and renewal

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Note: I first posted this video on January 5th. I’m releasing the video again today due to requests and also because most of us desperately need to relax and restore our bodies, minds and spirits. By the way, I LOVE your requests. Keep them coming. Because of your requests, I will be presenting two new videos in the next week – one on healing back pain and the other on yoga for healthy joints. Peace.

 

Dear Yoga Friends,

Making time to renew your energy is essential to a balanced, happy life. Most of us do way too much, myself included. Viparita karani, legs up the wall pose, is a great restorative yoga pose that calms the mind and renews the body.

Therapeutic benefits include:

  • reduces anxiety and mild depression
  • eases headaches/migraines
  • reduces insomnia
  • reduces digestive issues
  • reduces menstrual cramps and is soothing for menopausal issues
  • relieves tired legs/feet
  • gently stretches the backs of the legs

Plus this is my go-to pose for relieving jet lag. I’ve flown from the U.S. to Asia and back many times and have had virtually no jet lag. I simply do legs up the wall as soon as I can once I’ve gotten off the plane – and each morning for 5-15 minutes.

You can hold this pose as long as you’d like. Five to fifteen minutes is a good length of time, but you’ll know when you need more or when you’ve had enough. If the backs of your legs are tight, walk your sit bones further away from the wall. If you have more flexibility, your tailbone can touch the wall.

Enjoy this healing pose.

Namaste,

Suzanne

gossip

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xinalani 083Welcome to Day 6 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge. I officially declare today as a day free from gossip. Let’s all band together and commit to not engaging in gossip for the next 48 hours. Are you with me?

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, gossip is defined as:

: information about the behavior and personal lives of other people

: information about the lives of famous people

: a person who often talks about the private details of other people’s lives

As with most things in life, it’s important to look closely, honestly at our intentions. To me, gossip isn’t just discussing someone else’s business. It’s with the intent to make ourselves feel better by comparing our situation to someone else’s. Or it is to share secret information, making ourselves feel better by “owning” someone else’s private business.

I used to be a gossip and have come a long way in my “recovery”. I think most of my friends consider me to be trustworthy and kind now. But every once in a while, I fall back in the hole. I did this week. And it just feels bad. It’s that sick little feeling in the pit of the stomach when you know you’ve done wrong. And that’s the thing about gossip…you can’t really take the words back.

In your meditation practice today, reflect on what drives your urge to gossip and then set an intention to stop.

Thoughts?

Namaste,

Suzanne

tiny chia seeds pack big health punch

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chia seeds

Welcome to Day 5 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge. Looking to improve your health? Chia seeds to the rescue. These seeds are super-heroes in the health food world. Despite their tiny size, chia seeds pack a big health punch. Consider these benefits of a one-ounce serving:

  • packed with omega-3 fatty acids – nearly 5 grams (better than flax seed)
  • delivers high fiber – one serving delivers about 1/3 of the recommended daily intake
  • packed with protein – nearly 10 percent of what you need a day
  • stabilizes blood sugar and fights insulin resistance
  • helps you maintain healthy bones and teeth with its rich source of phosphorus and calcium – 27 percent and 18 percent of recommended daily intake respectively
  • great for diabetes as it slows down digestion and prevents blood sugar spikes
  • increases healthy cholesterol and decreases total, LDL and triglyceride cholesterol
  • and they are cute (okay, I added that benefit to the official list to see if you are paying attention)

Chia seeds have a very mild nutty flavor. My favorite ways to incorporate chia seeds to my health regime are to add them to healthy muffins or to mix in yogurt.

Chia seeds come from a desert plant that is grown in Mexico. A fun fact is that the seeds are the same ones that are used to grow “Chia Pets“. Remember those? Or am I just old?

Get some today.

Namaste,

Suzanne

 

 

 

 

 

today’s meditation: connecting with your power animal

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large butterflyWelcome to Day 2 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge. Today’s meditation is on selecting and connecting with a power animal. You’ll be guided to discover your power animal. As you reflect on the characteristics of your animal, you may gain insights on your own well-being. Your power animal will be with you for the next 20 days to guide you.

Connect with your power animal by listening to today’s audio meditation:

Namaste,

Suzanne

 

Welcome Spring! Welcome New You!

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olivia and suzanne at beachWelcome yoga friends to Day 1 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge and Happy Spring! This free challenge delivers 21 days of my yoga videos, audio meditations, reflections, healthy recipes and tips for healthy living.

By joining me, you make a commitment to practice at least 10 minutes of yoga and 10 minutes of meditation per day. You practice on your own at a time that’s convenient for you. I offer guidance and suggestions. You can think of me as your super-friendly accountability partner.

What happens if you miss a day, a week or 20 days? You forgive yourself, are gentle, let go of the past and start anew. No judgment. No worries. But do make time for yourself. Try to set aside a specific time during the day for your practice. Just get on the mat, even if you don’t feel like it. You’ll be happy that you did.

Here are a few of my past videos that you can start with and an audio meditation. Use these just today, more often or just do your own thing. Tomorrow I’ll have a special friend that will guide you through the challenge. Thursday, I’ll send you a new recipe that will have your belly jumping for joy.

Yoga Flow Warm-up Sequence

Short Yoga Flow for Hips

Breath as a Colored Light Meditation

I wish you an abundance of peace, light and love.

Namaste,

Suzanne

P.S. Invite your friends to join the FREE 21 Day Yoga Challenge. Ask them to join my blog, here: https://suzannemorganyoga.com/join-our-mailing-list/

FREE 21 Day Yoga Challenge Starts Tuesday, April 1st!

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xinalani 121Hello, yoga friends!

Welcome to Spring. It’s the perfect time to create some great healthy habits. Let me be your guide for inspiration. My new FREE 21 Day Yoga Challenge starts Tuesday, April 1 and I’ve got some wonderful things lined up.

If you are signed up for my blog, then you are signed up to get the challenge. You’ll get free yoga videos, audio meditations, recipes and tips for healthy living. As always, it’s all new material. Each day I’ll give you something new to inspire your practice.

What is a 21 Day Yoga Challenge? It’s a bunch of us like-minded souls committing to practicing at least 10 minutes of yoga and 10 minutes of meditation a day. (Don’t worry if you miss days – the goal is simply to expand our practice.) It’s easy. It’s fun. You’ll love it!

Share the love! If you are enjoying what I have to share, please tell your friends about my yoga video blog. They can sign up here: https://suzannemorganyoga.com/join-our-mailing-list/

Love & light,

Suzanne

creating an authentic yoga and meditation practice

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hands with roseCongratulations! It’s Day 21 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge. I hope you’ve enjoyed my gift of yoga videos, meditations and recipes. Our next 21 Day Yoga Challenge starts April 1 (no kidding!).

So how did you do with the challenge? Were you able to practice yoga and meditation more than what you normally would? I hope so. The 21 Day Yoga Challenge asks that you set aside at least 10 minutes a day for yoga and 10 minutes a day for meditation. However, be happy if you just got a few more days of practice in than your normally would. It’s not about perfection – all or nothing.

It might be nice to take today to reflect upon your practice. Perhaps reflecting on the following questions will provide you with some insight:

  • What is the best time of day for you to practice yoga? What is the best time for you to practice meditation?
  • What are some things that kept you from practicing? What could you do in the future to make your practice more consistent?
  • Do you enjoy your home practice? What can you do to better enjoy your practice?
  • Are you stuck in someone else’s idea of what your practice should look like?
  • How can you bring more authenticity to your practice? How can you bring more authenticity to your life?
  • What do you want your practice to look like in 2014? How do you want to feel?

It’s my great honor to be your guide. Thanks for viewing my yoga video blog. I am sending you the biggest wishes for love, peace and joy.

Namaste,

Suzanne

chop once – make 2 meals: veggie pizza and veggie frittata

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veggie pizza veggie frittataWe’re coming to the end of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge and I realized that I hadn’t yet included any yummy recipes into the challenge. So here you go!

Here are two recipes inspired by my “always-try-to-be-efficient” line of thinking. I basically looked in my refrigerator to see what I had and whipped these up. I made the pizza Friday night and the frittata on Sunday morning. As you’ll see, the recipes incorporate some of the same ingredients, hence the chop once/make 2 theme. The trick to cooking is to know what foods go well together. For instance, broccoli and cheddar cheese are fast friends. Olives and eggs don’t really like each other.

Veggie Pizza

This yummy pizza doesn’t have a tomato sauce. Actually, it doesn’t have any sauce, so it doesn’t get soppy like some pizzas do. When using a bunch of ingredients, particularly if they are raw veggies, it’s important to slice your veggies very thinly so that it cooks completely. Think “thin” and “small pieces”.

Ingredients:

  • your favorite pizza dough
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (save a Tablespoon for your frittata)
  • I tablespoon of olive oil
  • 2 cups of chopped broccoli (1 1/4 cup for pizza, save 3/4 cup for frittata)
  • 1 thinly sliced, then chopped red bell pepper (two-thirds for pizza, save one third for frittata)
  • 1 small red onion, thinly sliced, then chopped (two-thirds for pizza, save one third for frittata)
  • 4 oz. of thinly sliced mushrooms (2 oz. for pizza, save 2 oz. for frittata)
  • 1/4 cup of chopped Kalamata olives
  • 1/3 cup of chopped fresh basil
  • 3 oz. of goat cheese
  • 1/2 – 3/4 cup of grated mozzarella cheese

Bring your pizza dough to room temperature. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Bring your chopped broccoli to boil in a saucepan with some water. Cook until al dente – not too hard, not mushy. Drain well and blot with a towel to absorb excess water.

Spread pizza dough on cookie sheet or pizza pan. (Do I need to say that you need to grease pan with a touch of canola oil/olive oil first?) Use your fingertips to spread a little bit of olive oil on top, not so much that it makes it soppy. (We have a theme here folks.) Sprinkle with half of your Parmesan cheese. Set your kitchen timer and bake the dough for about 5-8 minutes.

Once your crust has cooked gently, remove from oven and add your toppings: broccoli, red pepper, olives, mushrooms, red onion, and basil. Dot bits of goat cheese on pizza and finish with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.

Bake for about 8-10 minutes, until crust is crunchy, cheese is melted and veggies are cooked.

Veggie Frittata

Congratulations! You’ve already done half the work when you made your pizza.

Ingredients:

  • 6 farm-fresh eggs
  • salt & pepper
  • 1 tsp olive oil.
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • left-over ingredients from pizza prep (see quantities above)
    • sliced mushrooms
    • red onion
    • red pepper
    • broccoli
  • 1/4-1/2 cup of grated cheddar cheese
  • 1 tablespoon of Parmesan cheese

Use a 10-inch non-stick, oven-friendly skillet. Pre-heat broiler to low broil setting.

Beat eggs. Add salt & pepper to taste. Set aside.

On stove-top, heat pan. Add olive oil & butter. Saute onion, pepper, and mushrooms. Add chopped broccoli. Once veggies are softened and broccoli is heated, add eggs. Stir gently. Cook a bit. Add cheeses and stir very gently.

The key to cooking eggs is to let your eggs cook gently on medium-low heat. Once eggs start to puff and the bottom browns ever so slightly, place the skillet in oven under broiler to finish cooking the eggs and to brown the top.

Please set timer for just a few minutes so that you don’t overcook!

Enjoy!

Suzanne

I like things a little messy

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sunday morning yoga practice

Sunday Morning Yoga Practice: dog + yoga mat = happiness

Day 19 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge. I like things a little messy. I’m neat and organized around the house and yoga studio. I like things in their place and a home that’s reasonably clean. I don’t care for things too buttoned up though. Take for instance the yoga flow video I’m going to release later today. It’s a little messy. My hair is kinda freaky and in the way. My top makes me look pregnant. (I’m way too old for that.) And the video cuts off my head in a couple of places.

It’s not that I didn’t notice those things during production. It’s that I made a decision to go with it and let my spirit and intention carry the message. Yoga magazines and videos provide us with constant access to perfect yoga bodies and perfect poses. Frankly, I just don’t compare. What’s more important to me is having a clear intention, sharing my passion and inspiring others.

One of these days I’m going to get better at video production. In the meantime, I try to do a good job and be happy in my imperfection.

Today I wish for you happy imperfection.

Namaste,

Suzanne

yoga for balance

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Welcome to Day 17 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge! Here’s one of the first videos I shot last year. This 10 minute video helps with balance and concentration.

Let me know how your practice is going. I learn so much from connecting with you and get great ideas on how to help others by listening to your feedback. Our goal is simply to add consistency to our practice. Each day we practice being more mindful, staying in the present moment and having great compassion and love for ourselves. That’s what a little bit of yoga and meditation can do for you.

I wish you peace, joy and love!

Namaste,

Suzanne

just say you’re sorry

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peaceDay 15 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge

A few days ago I was walking my Whippet Olivia near my home outside of Washington, DC. There’s a long bike path popular with bikers, runners and folks walking their dogs. At a few short stretches of the path, I often let Olivia go off leash being careful that she is safe and that she isn’t in the way of any bikers. That day we came upon a woman running, who looked horrified at seeing Olivia off leash and running up to her. The woman pinned herself against a fence, turning her whole body away as Olivia tried to smell her. Olivia is a super-sweet dog, but can be prone to EGD (excessive greeting disorder).

I promptly ran after Olivia, put her on leash and apologized at least three times. I also said “I can see that you are afraid of dogs.” To which she replied that she had been bitten badly by a dog in the past. I said I was sorry again and you could see the relief and gratitude flood over her. We both left unburdened by the situation.

A few years ago, I probably wouldn’t have acted in the same way. Of course I would have immediately put Olivia on leash, but I probably would have done so grudgingly and would have remained ensconced in my belief that my dog would never hurt her and can’t she see that?

This act of saying I’m sorry seems like such a minor and major thing at the same time. It’s just a few simple words, but those words can seem like giving over something precious – our ego and belief that we are right. Yet saying I’m sorry doesn’t mean that you share the same beliefs as others – or even that you are wrong, it means that you can have compassion for someone else’s point of view and acknowledge their discomfort or pain.

I had to practice saying I’m sorry and now it comes easily, without much thought. As I’ve practiced saying I’m sorry with the small things in life, it’s made it much easier to say it to those who I’m entangled with – the important people in my life.

Suggested practice:

In your meditation today, you might like to direct compassion and loving-kindness to someone who you have difficulty with. You can use the words:

  • May ____________ (person’s name) be happy.
  • May ____________ be healthy.
  • May ______________ be peaceful.
  • May ______________ be loved.

musings on the benefits and challenges of aging

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reverse twistDay 14 of our 21 Day Yoga Challenge

Yesterday I taught two yoga classes for middle school and high school students as a substitute for a yoga teacher friend who was sick. As I usually teach adults, I am musing about the differences in watching students practice yoga at different ages and the benefits and challenges in the body in general.

One would think that teenagers and young adults have a natural advantage compared to those of us who are older. This isn’t necessary so. Here are some of my observations:

  • In general, younger students have more flexibility in their bodies. However, flexibility can be overrated in practicing yoga. Lack of flexibility can be the body’s way of protecting itself from injury.
  • Flexibility needs to be tempered with strength and control. I’ve noticed that older students have better balance, better spacial body awareness and the ability to manage the mind and body with greater ease.
  • The challenge that we face as we age has to do with the build up of tensions and emotions that get locked up in our bodies. The more negative experiences we have in life as we age, the more it can get locked deep in the body. However, practicing yoga and meditation helps unwind all the past traumas and day-to-day tensions that we experience.

Suggested contemplation:

You might like to spend some time in reflection/meditation today on your own benefits and challenges of aging.

Namaste,

Suzanne