Open Mat Journey- Found Help

Well, a little help at least..............
So I've finally found a video podcast on iTunes that is an hour long. I was so super excited. LOL The cast is by Dr.. Melissa West and so far it's pretty good. My only complaint is that she caters to the beginners, so there are no flow episodes yet. Everything is very deliberate, she holds the poses for quite a long time. Which if I am not mistaken is what Hatha Yoga is primarily? Then again it could be any of the dozens of other forms of yoga that I am not yet familiar with, so please don't look for answers here just yet LOL. Dr. West makes the podcast a bit more personal, to me at least, by not being afraid to laugh while she's filming. She laughs quite often which helps to relieve some of the tension that can build from trying to focus so hard on "succeeding" in a pose. So I've done two consecutive days of her podcast, but I'm really jonesing for a good class. I like getting dressed to leave the house and lay my mat down in a room dedicated to the activity I'm taking part in, and being surrounded by like minded people, oh and not being interrupted by my family. God knows I love them, but why is it so hard to get just an hour of peace a day without having to wake up at 5:00am? Oh well school will be back in session very soon, so I'll have to create a specialized schedule anyway. Now if only I can find a job that I will love taking part in and that will have good pay, benefits, and a decent schedule that will allow for ample mat time, life will be complete. LOL Off to hunt for the elusive job. Namaste 8o)

Open Mat Journey - Absence

Hey Ya'll,
I know I've been MIA for about a week.Over the weekend I was out of town for an international convention. And through this week I simply kept meaning to get on here but never seemed to make it. There have been a couple days where I missed moving through even a handful of poses, but for the most part I succeeded in moving and opening my mat. Even on Saturday while out of town I stretched and strengthened. I didn't have my mat with me, so I was exceptionally proud of myself. Plus pushing through a Down Dog was  the best thing I could have done at the time for my aching lower back. I'm still nursing this "skating injury" LOL My wrist/hand is nearly as tender has it had been previously,  but my lower back is still very much out of whack. Not as badly as it had been originally, but still rather continuously uncomfortable. I've started rising early again, and it's great, I'm able to open the mat before anyone is even thinking about setting foot on the floor from the bed. That's the way I like it. I'm able to focus and breath and move and remember what to do next. When everyone is awake and moving about I can't quiet my mind. But, I'm going to have to start training myself to wake up even earlier pretty soon because school starts in a few shorts weeks here and my child will be awake and moving at the 6:30 (which is the time I'm waking up right now) Goodness, that's going to be hard for me, I've always had a bit of a mental block in regards to being able to rise from the bed before the clock says 5:45am. I don't know what it is LOL......I'll have to start working on it Monday, which is when the little one will have to return to hitting the hay early and waking up early to prepare her body for school hours.

Oh yea........I'm supposed to be scheduling an interview with a company I've LOVED for years now!! I'm so excited, I hope I don't blow this. AND I truly pray that When I'm offered this job we can move and my husband will find a better job that suits his personality, or lifestyle, and our financial needs. Amen. Okay, I feel better know. I'm going to try and do better about making it here daily. Love You Guys (even though no one is here LOL)

Day 6 of the Open Mat Journey

Well, let's see, where to begin. Yesterday was an extremely emotionally draining day for me because of a number of very personal issues that arose. After hashing somethings out I was not up for much of anything, but had a practice to assist with late in the afternoon. Well I didn't get on my mat at home and in peace (because there wasn't really much of that going on around here anyway) But I did get in a few inversions and some meditation during an isolated segment at practice. It's strange sometimes I really do feel as though I must be invisible to people. I was able to get in full stretches and even a headstand and not a single person noticed. And it's not even as though I were off in a corner somewhere. Oh well, I'll just say they were all focused on doing what they were supposed to do "good job kids"! I didn't really do much else after that though, mostly because all I wanted to do was sleep.
I messed up my fast yesterday and had to start it officially today. It seems the guidelines I've given for myself are: no solid foods before 4:30 or after 9:30, no meats, no wheat, and no refined sugars. I'm not exactly sure why this is the fast I've created, to be honest I just pulled a bunch of thoughts out of the air that seemed to be fitting. I have a small addiction to wheat and sugar right now and I would like to break that, I have also notice that I eat way too much animal flesh these days. I feel as though I will be able to reconnect with my body and come back to appreciating food in a more positive and less desperate light. My goal is to make it through the month of July. But I am taking it one day at a time, if I can make it to Monday I will be proud of myself and feel quite accomplished.

Now, if I can just figure out what I really want to be "when I grow up" and find a dedicated center of control for losing this weight I'll be on happy lady. Hmm...........

Day 4 and 5 of the Open Mat Journey

Yesterday (day 4) I was super duper late on opening my mat, I did two video podcasts one geared toward helping cyclists recharge (mostly because my legs were tight from the treadmill) then a moon flow. Because I got to my mat so late I decided today that I would simply leave my mat open in a space on the floor that was out of the way and provided enough space for me to more around. That worked out really well for me, I stepped on the mat and moved twice today for at least 20 minutes each time. And I've decided to begin my fast in the morning to aide me in my open mat journey. I haven't solidified a length of time for this cleanse simply because I want to take it one day at a time and live in each moment. Let's see how this goes....

Day 3 of the Open Mat Journey

Technically I didn't really open my mat yesterday. But I did do quite a bit of moving on the floor, standing up, and in my chair. I had to focus my breathing a few times and clear my mind as if I were on my mat. So in my head I may as well have opened my mat. I think yesterday was just a really long day since we were all so from Saturday night. Go figure, and I didn't even drink, guess I'm just not used to being up and out so late. I think I'll for go the treadmill today, my legs are really tight, and spend an hour on my mat. That means 3 podcasts for me, let's see if my family will allow to have that time to myself in one continuous moment. Sounds like a challenge within a challenge to me Haha Be back later to let you know how that goes.

Day 2 of the Open Mat Journey

Yesterday I was motivated enough to hit the treadmill for 45 minutes. I even opened my mat for a solid 15 minutes after dinner. YAY ME!! I used my  iPod this time to help keep me focused. It's this video podcast called YogAmazing, I'm not 100% sure how I feel about it just yet. The guy's teaching style is different from what I'm used to, but he's still kind  of inviting. We'll see how this goes. But I opened my mat for little longer AND That was while everyone was up moving around the place and asking "Why are you doing  yoga?" and "Mommy can I do it too?" My responses, "Because my body needs this right now, my back hurts and Yes honey just stay on your side" in that order Ha Ha. Then we went out for like the first time in a million years, and even though the scene was not what we anticipated I still had fun people watching and playing Uno and Pool with my husband. I'm easy to please :-).But I was up too late last night and woke up too early this morning LOL I had a baby shower to help with and now that's all done I'm exhausted. Ugh, I'm going to have to hunt down a sequence of poses that are good for digestion because I've had too much cake LOL Let's see what I can find in that realm. Oh yea and I think I've found a cleanse that will work for now, especially now, I definitely need it LOL

Day one of the Open Mat Journey

So yesterday was not the greatest of days on many levels. Unpleasant attitudes, 100 degree weather, 90% humidity, too much food in one sitting, and not getting to my mat until 10:00 at night. Did  I mention that I am not in the least bit a night owl, UGH....Oh well, at least I opened my mat like I said I would, right? I was completely at a loss for what to really do. This is why I prefer to do yoga in the morning while everyone is still asleep and I can focus. I have yet to train myself to tune the world out if people are up and moving around in the house. And right now my current living arrangements do not allow for a quiet room to be dedicated to me. So I was basically on my mat for about 5 minutes, maybe 10, it was enough to relax me to that I could go to sleep without complete agitation. It also stopped my from saying FML as I made a pallet to fall asleep on. Exhale.............Well I'm off to hit the treadmill for an hour, hopefully that will allow me to start this day in a much calmer manner. Because right now I'm not exactly at peace....maybe I'll take my mat with me too. Let's see how Day 2 goes.