Category: Yoga

Be Mindful

by happycatie, posted in Happy, Life, Yoga

Be MindfulIt’s been a week since I kicked off the Mindful 21 challenge and I’m honored by the response. Today’s theme is Be Mindful. Today I am reflecting on how each day has made me look at situations differently, more consciously, and I’ve often shifted my mindset.

7 days of being more aware of how my actions, thoughts, feelings not only affect me, but affect the people around me was huge for me. Starting my day early with 5 minutes of meditation to let that days’ intention set in really set the tone for what came next. I found myself feeling calmer, more grounded, at peace with myself and able to reflect on the intention when something troubling came up. It’s a wonderful habit to get into and this challenge has set the path.

Conscious living doesn’t mean we need to meditate for hours  or escape to Costa Rica to live on a commune, it just means actively engaging in our actions.

The next 7 days of the Mindful 21 challenge will ask you to continue with your 5 minutes of meditation and incorporate 1 meatless meal into your day. Why you ask? Adding more fruits, veggies, beans, legumes, nuts, seeds, plants not only has an almost immediate affect on your energy levels and health, but you’re actively helping the environment. By incorporating more whole foods, and cutting out the processed food-like substance, you’re feeding your body fuel to allow it to flourish!

What the heck do I eat then!?!?

Don’t worry, this is not as challenging as you may think! For the next 7 days, I’ll provide recipes, tips to make sure you’re getting enough fiber, fat soluble vitamins, live enzymes and of course protein. My girlfriend Sarah (who’s been a Vegan for 3+ years!) will provide a ton of guidance as well. Follow her and I on Instagram for daily tips, recipes and facts.

Here are a few recipes & tips to get you thinking plants!

5 lunch ideas
Meatless Meal Prep
Hippie Bowls
Chick Pea Curry
Wheat Soba Stirfry
Stir-Fry Sauces
Pizza

Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet

Sit for 5 minutes today and contemplate where you could make some changes in your diet to live more consciously. The food we eat is either contributing to our health or taking away from it.

 

Happy Mindful Living!

 

Be Happy

by happycatie, posted in Happy, Life, Yoga

Happy

I wouldn’t categorize myself as a hippie, so find it amusing when friends tell me I’m granola, that I should go eat some chia hemp seed smoothies and do some down dog. While that actually sounds like a pretty decent plan, I do reflect on what led them to make these comments. I’ve come up with one major distinctive trait:

I am Happy.

What a notion! That being happy could alter the way someone looks at you, treats you, how they interact with you, how they label or judge you. In a world surrounded by negativity, sometimes being happy and positive makes you the odd man out.

I’ve learned that happiness can not be given to you by others, it can’t be bought, and it shouldn’t be easily altered by others reactions. It should be constant within you, even when faced with adversity. You make your own happy.

Finding my happy has been one of the most important things I didn’t know I was chasing. And I’ve been happy, deep down to my toes, for quite some time.  How did I achieve this? I started to listen to my truth in a way that isn’t profound or earth shattering or even worthy of an epiphany. I started choosing what makes me happy and avoiding that which didn’t.

Yes. It was that easy for me.

Now, by easy I don’t mean it was an overnight breakthrough and I surely don’t mean I don’t have bad or stressful days. I have been working on my happy in small ways, for years, practicing my craft, so to speak. It takes experience, time, trial and error to figure these things out.  It’s by being mindful of that which makes you happy to know to do more of it.

A few examples…
Practicing Yoga.
Quitting smoking and replacing it with running.
Choosing to let go of people who were unhealthy for me.
Becoming an advocate for my own health by cutting out most meat.
Moving to Colorado.
Starting nutritional school.
Saying no to invites because they may not be right, I may not want to do it, or it may be overbooking my time.

Again, not earth shattering examples, but some were extremely hard to achieve. Your happy should be your number one priority, so once you realize that pursuing more of what makes you happy and letting go of things that don’t, it should be a choice you make daily.

So, for Day 6 of the Mindful 21 sit quietly for day 5 and let happy wash over you. Think about those things that make you happy, the people you feel happy around, the activities and hobbies you feel joy when pursuing. And start doing them more.

Happy Day!

Be Light

by happycatie, posted in Happy, Yoga

 

Lighten

It’s Day 5 of the Mindful 21 challenge and I’ve been so happy with the amazing people who have joined. Today’s theme: Be Light. This really resonates with me during this time, as I feel I’ve never been surrounded by so many people who lift me up, allow my light to shine. And it’s taken time and practice to know when I need to let go of that which weighs me down.

Today, think about that which lifts you, lightens your load and allows you to shine brightly. Could you shed some unwanted, unproductive baggage? Do you have things in your life that are cluttering your path to new?

This can be metaphoric clutter or actual clutter. Look around your home or office. Do you have space that is clear, clean, inviting? Do you have a place in your home you feel creative, energetic, alive? Could you lighten these spaces, removing unnecessary distractions or paper to make room for creation. I try to clean my desk, lighten it so to speak, once a week at least. If the space is cluttered, how can my mind focus on a single task!? I notice that when there are things scattered about, I feel scattered.

Go through your closets, cupboards, files and clean out what you do not need, have not worn or used in the past year. Donate it to Goodwill and allow light to enter your space.

Sit in a quiet space, that is clean and inviting, and think about how you can lighten your mental load. What are you holding onto that doesn’t serve you anymore? Negative thoughts, unnecessary anxiety, people who leave you feeling drained – these are things you can do without, so lighten your load.

Happy Light!