Here it is! The time for transition. The new year is in full swing, Valentine’s Day is this month – but with cold, long nights and unpredictable… sometimes scary… weather shifts being very much a part of our lives. February is cold and dreary.
Keeping your motivation for healthy living, positive changes, and intentional movement can be challenging.
It all comes down to you. But in addition, it comes down to how you inspire others. In your actions, not simply your words, you can really make a difference in others’ lives through your examples of healthy habits within your life. Really! We see it every day at our humble hometown yoga studio.
There is an old adage in business: “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
This applies to our personal health goals as well.
Here is the simplest plan, but one of the most effective, to carry us through February and into warmer spring weather —
1. Drink water early
When you get up in the morning, drink 32 ounces of water before eating breakfast. This jumpstarts your metabolism, hydrates your entire body, stimulates internal organs, and supports new cellular growth. It’s about establishing a healthy habit!
2. Practice a brief yoga flow
Downward dog to upward dog, plank to chaturanga dandasana, mountain to forward fold, chair, standing/knees-bent spine twist, standing forward bend with namaskara.
3. Eat a gluten-free, high protein breakfast
Vegan sausage patties (or turkey), rice or nuts, peanut butter, gluten-free whole grain waffles. One cup of coffee. Water.
4. Drink water throughout the morning
Make your goal to drink a minimum of 32-50 ounces additional fresh water between breakfast & lunchtime. Then drink water with lemon or a small dash of lemonade or flavor for lunch. Low sugar!
5. Eat a higher protein, lower sugar lunch…
Lean turkey, chicken, organic beans and rice are great choices. These items are low carb-to-complex carbs for energy and muscle maintenance. Remember that adequate hydration and proper diet are absolutely amazing at making you feel better, stronger, lighter, and more focused. Real food! Try to limit or eliminate candy, cookies, muffins, white breads & biscuits, fatty add-ons (like icings, jellies, glazes, etc.). Cravings for sweet treats are easily satisfied with fresh organic fruit (bananas, oranges, apples, grapes) and nuts (cashews, peanuts, pecans, walnuts).
6. Water, water, water… and real fitness!
Emphasis once more upon the importance of hydration every day – throughout the day, real food (as unprocessed as possible), and a regimen of true fitness. This means an exercise plan that provides strength without pain and long recovery. Pain should not be a part of your fitness process. This doesn’t mean you won’t have sore muscles. If your muscles are sore and you’re aware of changes in your body, that can be a good thing. You should be able to practice your healthy exercise routine every day. That’s why we practice and recommend yoga. It reaches the whole body and mind, and is healing – not hurting.
7. Speak life! Encourage and inspire everyone around you…
At the end of the day, how many people have you encouraged with “courage?” Courage is the drive to persevere, not the absence of fear. When you see others following your positive lead, it will in turn inspire you to further heights of achievement. It becomes a beautiful circle of sharing. This is so evident in a great, high-energy yoga environment. Encouragement is the defining factor at this time of year for helping keep your resolution goals on task. Let’s keep your great start going strongly! Then enjoy a healthy supper and restful sleep every night. Rest is just as important as exercise for a full & happy life.
And now, here it is… your February, 2019 ‘Pause for a Pose’ – The Tibetan Table (or “reverse table”)
This pose is an intermediate move, which can be advanced to super strengthening. Begin in seated staff with legs out straight in front, feet about seven inches apart (ankle to ankle width), and the back straight up. Hands at your sides with palms flat on the floor and fingers spread widely pointing toward the feet. Your hands should be placed so that the straight arms are dividing the torso equally front & back. Inhale while lifting the chest & top of the head and lengthening the neck, then on the exhale press the hips upward to the sky, push power through the heels, bending the knees and locking the soles of the feet to the ground. Head floats gently back as the chest/torso and thighs now form a level plane like a lifted table top. Inhale again, then exhale and squeeze the abdominals inward and the gluteals upward. Flex every muscle group in the body and breathe through three to five breaths. Exhale and release body back to seated position between the hands. Emphasize breathing and abdominal flexion. Modification: From seated, simply push the hips off the floor slightly & bend and straighten the elbows repeatedly for a nice tricep dip. Keep the abs in. Advancement: Perform the table in a “flow” by inhaling up into the full pose and exhaling down to seated position & repeating five to 10 times. Breathe always! Enjoy this great posture all month, and we will see you tomorrow at Hot Yoga! God bless and namaste…
-by Tony Bishop, E-RYT
About the author: Tony Bishop, E-RYT/RYT/CYT,is director and chief instructor with Hot Yoga Bowling Green, Kentucky. He is certified and trained in a myriad of health and fitness disciplines including Hatha Yoga, Yoga Personal Training, Yoga Coaching, Yoga Teacher Training, Sil lum Kung Fu, Tai Chi exercise, Spinning/indoor cycling, PowerHouse Pilates instruction, core conditioning, self-defense programs and boot camp variations. He has more than 6,000 hours of yoga teaching experience, he is registered through Yoga Alliance and is an avid researcher and proponent of progressive yoga movement and development of more effective, deeper and meaningful training methodology. He is now owner & director with Revelation School of Yoga, RYS – an approved 200-Hour RYT training company. Contact: 730 Fairview Avenue, C-2, Bowling Green. 270-793-0011, email hotyogabg@yahoo.com, website www.hotyogabg.com.
