Listen to the – Dawn –
Posted: September 12, 2014 Filed under: Meditation, Yoga | Tags: anxiety, Autumn, blogging, Body Image, Buddha, Buddhism, Celiac Diease, compassion, exercise, fitness, freshly pressed, gluten free, happiness, health, karma, Karma yoga, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, motivation, musings, natural, running, Seva, sex, trail running, writing, yoga, Zen 22 CommentsThere is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up-
What is the secret formula that can provide us with a long and fulfilling life? Most of the nauseating advice we are bombarded with is formulated around living a “healthy lifestyle” (<- whatever this is), leading to assumptions that center primarily on the physical aspects of this thing called life.
“Eat your cauliflower!” “Drink your coconut water!” “Run, walk, cycle, sex, yoga and drink red wine!” Say the experts, and you wonder why our culture is brimming with anxiety! Gotta do this, and we gotta do that if we want to live a long prosperous life! Gotta browse LivingSocial for the best yoga deals, shop organic and eat gluten-free – even if we don’t have Celiac disease. Most of our effort is done with variable success and the predictable stress is eagerly awaiting us around each corner.
…
How can we feel better about ourselves, boost our confidence naturally and build true inner peace? :Generosity: The quality of being kind, practicing selflessness and understanding, the willingness to give to those in our lives “things” that have value. Generosity is a spiritual principle that provides us with the key to leading a happy and healthy life.
Generosity is a natural (organic – ha!) confidence builder. Generosity acts as a shield against self-hatred and anxiety. By focusing on what we are giving, rather than what we are receiving, we cultivate and nurture a more outward orientation toward the world, shifting the focus away from our physical selves, onto something deeper, something that has a far greater impact on our daily lives.
Daily Meditation:
Each beautiful morning life presents us with a handful of opportunities to be generous; through embracing generosity (not cauliflower, not coconut water, not even gluten-free bread), we can do ourselves and those around us a world of good.
I am deeply grateful to each of you reading today – Take care and be well.
Subir la Temperatura
Posted: September 24, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: Chamomile, cycling, exercise, family, FitBit, fitness, free range, Freinds, freshly pressed, gluten free, happiness, health, hipster, hope, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, nebraska, Omaha, passion, perspective, pilates, Poetry, relationships, running, sex, Stevia, Temptation, trail running, WOD, writing, writting, yoga 7 CommentsWhat the hell. The heart wants what the heart wants, right?-
The posts for the remainder of the year (for the most part) will be personal in nature, so please forgive the self-involvement in advance. I have worked extremely hard to omit painful personal stories from this blog-o-thing.
Every Fall, I like to engage in two very different sorts of bike rides (I’m into the cycling thing now although I do this with yoga almost every week during the year)—one with a group of good friends, and one alone, myself. These rides don’t have to be real long or strenuous, just long enough to get a clean break from the rigors of my day-to-day life. These moments of serenity each provide me with two very different experiences, and I intimately love both of them.
Although it’s the long free-flowing ride that I take by myself that gives me the time to reflect on where I am at (not lost in a cornfield …) and where I will be going.
This alone time affords me the luxury of taking as much time as I need to relax into a smooth rhythm, to delve deeper into the love that we are often too busy to enjoy and savor. Sleeping in late, enjoying a cup of chamomile tea – “A touch of soy milk and Stevia please.” Hanging out with no agenda, no races, no race prep, no FitBit trackers, no cell phones … Zero responsibilities, it’s as close to heaven as I can get in Nebraska.
We – You included – Have forgotten that there isn’t anything more important than taking time to restore our health, our spirit and mind(s). To reawaken and indulge our enjoyment of deep pleasure (re-read this post again later and preface it with the imagery of love, sex and passion … ), and to retreat into the sweet environment that supports the growth of our true selves.
When we stop being curious about who we really are and start thinking that we already “know” whatever, our intrinsic motivation to be curious, attentive, and engaged – weakens and slowly withers away into nothingness. Slaves to what is to be expected of us.
Notes:
What am I writing about this morning? Love, relationships, riding a bike, sex, yoga … Cool Fall evenings are tailored for our “delight“. Be well today and enjoy!
Desire(s)
Posted: August 30, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, compassion, desire, family, fitness, freshly pressed, friends, happiness, health, hope, Intimate relationship, kindness, life, love, lululemon, lust, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, paleo, passion, perspective, running, Self-Help, sex, Sexuality, simplicity, sun, Suprises, trail running, walking, whole foods, writing, yoga 10 CommentsFighting for peace is like screwing for virginity-
*Sunglasses, hard hats and earmuffs and required today … We are going to discuss sex and well-being – Yeah*
Too often in relationships, sex, running, yoga, cycling, whatever. We go with the flow of sailing a steady and predictable course. We believe “things” are going well, great even as long as there are no rough waters ahead: Injuries, setbacks and unnamed surprises … We think everything in between the sheets and life must be fine. We’re safe, comfortable, maybe we even think at times that safe and comfortable add up to happiness? Sadly, this is not the case.
Then one day and maybe this day is this morning, someone asks us what you really want out of life, what you really desire? Do you desire to punish your body only to leave your loved ones, wanting?
Embracing vulnerability, I am going to share a list, a list of what I desire – feel free to add to this list in the comments below or share them with a loved one later, either way, only you know what you really want.
A day of not being in pain of some sort or another …
A hand on my lower back and knee that magically heals me …
A gentle hug(s) that last forever …
A smile that makes me smile …
A hand that reaches across to mine during a drive, to take mine …
Notes:
“What the hell is the point of this post before a long holiday weekend, seriously?”
Creating space for yourself to identify what you want, in “whatever” … yourself, your running program, your relationship(s)? Is pretty cool! Gently move closer to a place that feels right, that nourishes your body and spirit rather than depleting it.
Be well this weekend and please take care.
Volando Alto
Posted: July 17, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: blogging, desire, freshly pressed, happiness, health, hipster, kindness, life, lululemon, lust, marathon, nature, paleo, passion, running, sex, whole foods, WOD, yoga 2 CommentsLicense my roving hands, and let them go
Before, behind, between, above, below-
I love everything about seduction. Seduction (to me) is about squeezing every ounce of pleasure, out of every experience we come across and embrace – Fully. Life has taught us what happens when we rush “things“, we can miss the best parts of life … The true essence of seduction – is savoring the moments before …
I find it interesting that we often associate seduction with sex, when in fact, true – passionate seduction is the polar opposite of sex. Sex is when our desire(s) are met. Seduction is not about the culmination or gratification of our desire(s), seduction is the thrill that arises in the pursuit of desire itself.
I may have learned something about seduction while wandering my path recently. That the deep truth to seduction, we so often overlook? Is to slow down, savoring the moment unfolding in front of you. Often at times I think that “things” are not moving fast enough in my life, meandering along to their own whimsical beat. In the past. I wanted things now, before they even happened. Today, I adjust my thoughts to how I can seduce myself with the idea, the possibility – That everything in this beautiful world changes shape and form – Slowly.
Notes:
Savor everything you are about to enjoy today, embrace seduction as a path to pleasure.
Light Rides
Posted: June 25, 2013 Filed under: Random Workout | Tags: Authenticity, blogging, exercise, freshly pressed, happiness, health, hipster, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, mind, Mindfulness, musings, natural, paleo, passion, pilates, relationships, running, sex, spirit, trail running, whole foods, WOD, yoga 6 CommentsTruth is not something outside to be discovered, it is something inside to be realized-
Can we all agree that some of the posts here are rather cheeky at times, silly, wasted, pointless? Who wants to talk about authenticity, forgiveness, spirituality, mindfulness?
The best gift you can ever give those you love, and those who care deeply about you, is a healthy “you“. Sounds cheesy, right? Seriously, I thought having a chiseled body doing yoga and performing 1000+ crunches a day was well enough, but a healthy “you“?
Consider for one fleeting moment this morning what I am suggesting. If you are as healthy as you can be, in both mind and spirit, you will be the best possible version of yourself. Less time talking about failed run times, painful yoga sessions and more energy devoted to exploring the world with others.
We could talk about knowing our personal limit(s), making the best use of our time and energy while maintaining a healthy relationship with our body … But this topic is dull and painfully tedious?!?
Quite possibly the greatest gift you can ever offer yourself is not running a marathon or becoming a yoga teacher. Accepting yourself, right now, with no make up, pink bunny slippers and all, is so very powerful … Maybe not as powerful as doing 103 sun salutations in a row, but close enough?!?
Notes:
When you offer your true, whole self to whatever(*), in both mind and spirit? … Boring stuff right?
* (I figuratively and literally mean whatever: relationships, sex, fixing a flat tire, running … whatever.)
CultFit 