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Groundhog Day Review: 8/8/08

The changes we undertake must be such that they make us feel more alive. We have to find more pleasure in changing than in not changing. -David Servan-Schrieber

 

This Groundhog Day Review of my Year of Living Delightfully, is being brought to you on a very auspicious day, 08-08-08. It's the opening of the Olympic Games in Beijing, thousands have chosen this day to get married and babies born today with additional 8's to their vital statistics (time of birth, weight, home addresses, etc.) are making the news.

My activities are much more pedestrian. I was talking to a friend a few days ago about the importance of right speech, words that segue to elevated emotional states rather than sink us into depths of doubt and fear. As soon as I say I have to, I feel my heels digging deep, leaving a furrowed line that underscores my rebellious response. I've learned that sentences beginning with I want are magical incantations that infuse power and possibility.

David Servan-Schrieber is a psychiatry professor and author of Healing without Freud or Prozac. In the March issue of Ode Magazine he wrote about a 50 year old lawyer named Martin, who despite having two  coronary bypass procedures, could not bring himself to stop smoking, change his diet or start exercising regularly.

Martin was divorced, rarely saw his children and had buried himself in his work. It's easy to see that he derived pleasure out of the habits that were transporting him to yet a third bypass operation, or worse. Martin needed stronger WANTS in his life. As my yoga teacher Jehangir Palkhivala once advised, "If you have a weakness, use it. Say, 'Let me find pleasure in a new pattern', rather than trying to eliminate the pleasure."

Martin discovered a health support group, reconnected with his children and changed the focus of his law practice by becoming a mediator. He took charge of his body because he now wanted to be healthy. Notice how your choices undergo a mood altering change when you say "I want to..." and when you say "I have to...". I find that my resistance lessens and my heels come off the ground whenever I want.

In earlier reviews, I berated myself for not reaching par, failing to meet the demands of my quest. But along the way, I learned to truly appreciate my starting point. There was nothing wrong, I simply wanted more.

Photo:chekabuje

Groundhog Day Review: 6/6/08

Today being June 6 (6/6) it's time for another Groundhog Day Resolutions review and I'm happy to report that I think I'm getting close to the treasure. I set out to focus on just two things: (1) the daily practice of a prescribed yoga sequence and (2) eating mainly raw fruits and vegetables during the day. The first half of the year, I discovered that the challenges I faced were due to long established and adhered to habits. If I want fresh fruits and veggies available at all times, I better plan my meals and make more frequent shopping trips. Otherwise, my choices are thinner than an onion peel.

Brain experts caution that practice does not make perfect. By learning to do something well at the start, it prevents us from developing erroneous or coping habits and therefore perfect practice makes perfect. The Mother Sequence has been the perfect practice for me but it's been a challenge just to show up. I have learned to give my practice priority status and as a result, we have an additional weekly yoga class and I have also gained an appreciation for the busy life and tools that I created, pre-yoga.

What has happened in the last thirty days is the realization that all of the tugging and grasping that went on in the first few months of this year was vital to fitting into my intended self. I threw a vision of what I wanted out into the future and then found that I had to grow and adjust myself to fit the picture. When I began my Year of Living Delightfully, I had a strong notion that the two things I had decided to focus upon, would make broad stroke changes. I set off on what I thought would be a noble, long trek and I have ended up in an entirely new state of being.  The funny thing is, I had to give up the idea of completing my noble, long trek before I could recognize how far I have come.

Funny thing.

Photo: The Private Islands Blog

Groundhog Day Resolutions Check-in, 4/4

  It's time for a Groundhog Day Resolutions check-in and the shadow says, "Peace!" On March 3, I thought that the coming month would be all about order and organization. Well, not so. My compromised lungs were the order of the day.

I allowed some virus to move in and had a hacking cough for a couple of weeks which pulled my yoga mat out from under me! I managed to teach all of my classes because I didn't actually feel sick (accept for the day I broke down and drank some narcotic-laced-cough-syrup), I just hacked.

Just as I'm recovering from bronchitis, the air quality takes a dive from the volcanic ash and fumes. The good news is, I'm determined to make my once weakest organ into my strong suit so I've been focusing on the practice of pranayama, in and out of class. Lately, I've been breathing much deeper and slower, particularly while doing the Sun Salutes. Moving in and out of the poses slowly, I'm building more strength, power and focus.

That said, I'm not going to make any predictions for the next month of practice. It will be, what it will be: peace.

Photo: SkeletonPie

"Cooking" for Me, Myself and I

When I am organized and have a refrigerator stocked with local fruits and veggies (70% of the time and getting better), this is how I assemble my breakfast/lunch. I take some local, organic lettuce greens, 2 oranges, 2 frozen bananas and a quarter-sized piece of ginger. I add some acai concentrate, Hawaiian Spirulina and Agave syrup or local honey.

 

I turn my Vita-Mix to the "variable" speed and slowly increase it to high and within less than a minute, I've taken the colorful blend to a single shade of "furple".

  You won't taste the lettuce or spirulina because of the sweetness of the fruits. This whole concoction sustains me through the day, it varies slightly with the fruits that I'm given or find at the local supermarket.  All of the fiber and goodness remains in the smoothie. It's no wonder that I'm in love with my Vita-Mix, a blender with 4 wheel drive!

Groundhog Day Resolutions Check-in, 3/3/08

It takes less time to do things right than to explain why you did it wrong.
-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

This is the third of March, 3/3, so it is my first Groundhog Day Resolutions check- in. I gave myself a challenge on Groundhog Day (2/2) to practice a defined sequence of yoga postures and to eat fresh fruits and vegetables during the day. Every day.

This is what I've learned so far:

1. Planning and shopping for raw foods can be a challenge in itself.
2. A set practice has enormous benefits and I now want a specific time for it.

I found out very quickly that a constant and consistent source of raw fruits and vegetables requires a constant and consistent shopping plan. I have an oasis to rely on, just steps away from home, and my own Vita-Mix blender allows me to consume a bag full of fresh fruits and veggies in one flick of a finger (not counting the time spent washing and cutting). In less than ten minutes I can make a quart of my own smoothie and consume a whole romaine lettuce, 2 bananas, a whole papaya, 2 oranges, a slice of ginger, a cup of frozen blueberries, some flaxseed oil, the kitchen sink, and then some. My next step is to learn more about nutrient-dense foods and add them to my menu.

My dinners haven't changed much from what I mentioned in my Eat Local Challenge list, and I still eat whatever appeals to me when I have dinner out. I'm not on a diet, I'm not a vegetarian, vegan or raw foodie. I'm just a woman who does yoga and tries to eat in a manner that makes her happy. I eat well (by my own standards) 75-80% of the time; no absolute restrictions, no guilt. I remind myself everyday to take it easy and keep it delightful.

My yoga practice has been going well and I'm grateful for, and have relied upon, the abridged version of the Mother Sequence. Many people around the world, with a variety of ailments, have seen relief just by doing the sequence and eating,as I try to, for 21 days. So my thoughts are, "Why not do it all the time, or at least for a large percentage of the time?" I've also decided that as much as possible, I don't want to say "no" to the entire sequence, nor to the time I wish to spend with certain people in my life. That is why I'm now going to get up earlier and practice in the hours when no one would ask me to join them to have fun (5am). Tuesdays are an exception, I meet with a group of happy people at 7am to practice the Mother Sequence!

I started off just wanting a regular yoga sequence and to eat better, but I can already see that March is going to be all about order and organization. In yoga, it's not the final pose that makes a difference in your body or life, but the work and awareness it takes to get you there. We don't make roundtrip travel plans just so that we can come home. It's the time and space within the trip that we anticipate and desire. I want to be happy and healthy in 2008 and all the side trips I have to make to get there, are welcome layovers.

It's not too late to pick your own health goals for this year. Choose one or two of your own and keep it simple and make it fun.

More on the subject:

4 Simple Steps to Start the Exercise Habit

Motivate Yourself the Jerry Seinfeld Way

Picture: Mystical Quill

Simon Cowell has been usurped.

My Grumpy Girl has been very happy and congenial as of late and I think the Mother Sequence is the reason. The Dog Whisperer, Cesar Milan, has a consistent, universal prescription: exercise, discipline and love. That's been our M.O.for the last two weeks and I have been calm and assertive as we head for the yoga mat. My inner critic  (Grumpy Girl) has been diffused and sated and there's no one to give me guff.

Enter, one Simon Cowell. I've caught a few of the American Idol try-outs because I love to watch (and listen to) people with great voices. I think it's completely amazing that we all have the same anatomical structures with which to sing and yet the sounds emitted vary from scintillating to caterwauling. Simon's got a good ear but his comments are often piercing enough to deflate any ego. I, however, cannot associate anything mean or aggressive with anyone possessing an accent like his. It's just too proper and civilized.

So now, after I sing along to my current, favorite song, I picture Simon with his thumbs down saying, "Bah-bara, that was ab-so-loot-lee dread-fuhl!" I chuckle and say, "Really, Simon? Why thank you!" No one can bring me down like the Grumpy Girl...but she's been exercised, disciplined and loved. She thinks I sound mah-va-lous!

Photo of Simon Cowell: The Sydney Morning Herald

Yoga for Happiness

Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude.
-Denis Waitley

Happiness was the subject of my Saturday yoga class. While we Americans have the right to pursue it, happiness is not mandatory in the land of the free (unless you were in class on Saturday). Most folks find it easy to conjure up visions and memories of the people, things or activities that make them happy only when they are physically comfortable. We might even shy away from certain activities because we think we'll be uncomfortable and thus, unhappy.

Yoga is a perfect illustration. The true genius of the Mother Sequence of yoga poses that I'm practicing, is it's emotional focus: joy and happiness upon inhaling, peace and calm while exhaling. When I was first learning the sequence, I was too concerned about the order of the postures and whether I was to inhale or exhale with a certain movement. Breathe in joy? When do I breathe in? I was focused on getting it right, rather than just getting it. I'm sure the instructions warned me, I just didn't hear it.

The more I practiced, I began to get it right, and then I got it: joy on the inhalation, peace on the exhalation. I began to see the possibilities in life off my yoga mat as well. In traffic, in pain, in the dark hours of the night...one complete breath can bring me a balance of happiness and calm. I am certain that it will soon (with practice) become my default setting, a reflex emotion.

Don't think I'm at the top of my game though, there are some powerful variations to the Mother Sequence that I still want to learn and the process will start all over. The next time however, I intend to remain happy even when my body might be out of balance in a new pose and my nerves are struggling to decipher and carry the messages to and from my brain. Whatever I'm doing, I want my cells to interpret joy and learning, much like a child does; and not fear and doubt, like someone resigned to the process of aging.

Fake It Till You Make It: "Acting Chirpy Makes You Happy, Researchers Say"

Don't like "chirpy"?: 21 Ways of Becoming Happier

There's more: Practicing Gratitude Can Increase Happiness by 25%

Photo: Janoid

Green Flash Coffee

  Nearly a week into my Year of Living Delightfully, I'm finding it easy to fit the Mother Sequence into my day (I'm usually dressed for the occasion- all day) but eating raw has been challenging.  If I want a variety of fresh fruits and veggies available for me, I have to go grocery shopping more than just once a week OR come up with a better plan. There are days though, when I leave the studio after teaching a yoga class or giving a couple of massages that the thought of walking into a cold supermarket sends chills up and down my entire vertebral column.

But there's an oasis between the studio and home for me and it's called Green Flash Coffee. They make the best real fruit smoothies! Located in front of the Sea Village Condos on the makai side of Alii Drive, they offer a variety of coffees and teas, panini sandwiches, and ice cream as well as the smoothies. My favorite is the Green Flash Smoothie with spinach, fruits and some protein powder! It's just what I need to hold me over until I can get up enough motivation to go grocery shopping.

This is supposed to all be fun and delightful, right? So I searched through my memory cards and remembered a time when drawing up weekly menus, shopping and cooking (believe it or not) were fun for me. I owned a couple of cookbooks by Pierre Franey and just about every meal I made was great! Leftovers even found there way into my son's pre-school lunch box. He detested peanut butter and jelly sandwiches but loved rigatoni with shrimp cooked in a fresh tomato/basil sauce, sprinkled with feta cheese and capers!

Those were my pre-yoga days, before cholesterol was "invented" so there was a lot of meat, and butter, and eggs, etc., and it was good. My taste buds have now matured, along with the rest of my body, so I am in search of a new cuisine and a 2008 Pierre Franey model. In the meantime, I'll often be found at 75-6000 Alii Drive, picking up my smoothie brunch at Green Flash Coffee.

Groundhog Day

It's Groundhog Day and Phil says six more weeks of winter! Even those of us in Hawaii could feel that coming. Our mountains are snow capped and it's cold even at sea level, where I live.

Despite that, telling me that winter will be around for another six weeks is as meaningful as saying that it's "20 below" where you live. "60 above" is cold to me so we're talking thermal undies and hula skirts here.

The significance of Groundhog Day for me this year, is that it's the start of my 2008 - The Year of Living Delightfully. Inspired by David Seah, to whom Groundhog Day serves as "a reminder to maintain a flexible, magical perspective on life", today is the first day of my wild expectations for the year. I plan to maintain a daily practice of the Mother Sequence of yoga postures and keep to a basically raw-until-dinner eating plan.

While it may not be as romantic as say A Year in Provence, as experienced by author, Peter Mayle, I'm excited about it as though I were embarking on a long trip to a distant, unfamiliar land. It's time for me to allow yoga to be light and entertaining as well as profound and fathomless.

This afternoon, when I got to the end of the sequence my only wish was that every practice session would be as stimulating and fresh as the day before. I want a new experience and another step to be waiting for me, everyday.

Follow along or join me at: 2008 - The Year of Living Delightfully

Photo: National Geographic