Recognising that sometimes we need some down time and that is actually good for us. So enjoy this time for what it is, an annual time to reflect and to notice. To notice that when our bodies naturally slow in the darker evenings that this is fine. That we can enjoy gentler physical exercise or a change of activity rather than pushing onward with the same routine. Also recognise that just as a rest day is important in any training regime, so is relaxation time in general. Savasana, the relaxation at the end of a yoga class, is often considered the most important part. The time when your body accepts and acknowledges the benefits of the physical practice. This is an important lesson too about the seasons, maybe the winter is our natural savasana. The time when bodies need to relax a little, get more rest and recuperation ready for the longer warmer days ahead.
Tag: mindfulness
which yoga class or practice should I choose?
I’m continually having to remind myself there is a life outside yoga, that the present is as important as the future, & that moving outside my comfort zone is often what I need to do even if it may not be what I want to do! Without change how are we to discover new paths or find more doors to open. If we continue to follow our initial tendencies, be it for a yoga practice we think we prefer, a food choice or how we spend our evenings, how can we expect to grow, to nurture our soul with variety & expand our mind with new experiences.
all work & no play
For me, I am trying to schedule in more time to just potter. Days where I have no schedule apart from to enjoy my practice, wander down the river with my dog and notice. I think that is the important lesson for me..to remember to notice! To allow my senses to become more sensitized to smells, to touch, to sound or just to being open to the world I move through every day. During meditation I often feel that the birds start to sing or the breeze to touch me. Whereas it’s more likely that without thoughts and actions constantly intruding on my senses, they are more able to open to the experience of the world around me. Noticing the birdsong or the smell of grass on the breeze that day-to-day life forgets. Try to, just for a week, allow your self a few minutes every day to just sit and notice the world around you. To relax your control on your senses and experience and opening, a letting go of the self control. A sense of just being in the moment with what ever arises.