Around the holidays, many people gain 5-13 pounds. By January, the motivation to return to healthier choices is high. Use this momentum to hack your biorhythms with these suggestions.

​1. Eat satisfying foods to reduce cravings.
Some foods are more filling than others. You will notice that if you add protein and fiber to each meal, you will feel satiated and satisfied longer.  Protein turns on leptin, a hormone that makes you feel full. Plus, if you keep 4-6 hours between meals without snacking, your pancreas doesn't have to continuously make insulin, a hormone that helps store calories as fat. Ask me about my 30 Days to Healthy Living program.
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2. Build more muscle.
Lift enough weight with plenty of repetitions to begin feeling muscular fatigue. For men and women, that will turn on the hormone testosterone which builds muscle. Since muscles burn energy, more muscle means more weight loss. 2-3 sessions a week are best.

3. Always eat breakfast.
Bring your body out of its metabolic resting phase and jump start your metabolism with plant-based protein, healthy fats and a few veggies/fruit in the morning. If you are not hungry enough to eat,  make yourself a protein shake with vegan protein powder, veggies and low-glycemic fruit and drink your breakfast. Ask me for recipes. 

4. Get better zzz's
Levels of your weight loss hormone leptin (that makes you feel full) depend on 6-8 hours of sleep each night. If you don't get enough sleep, your leptin decreases and the next day your brain won't get the signal that you aren't really hungry.  With low leptin levels, we all want to overeat to get the energy that makes up for the lack of sleep. For many "busy" people this should be the number one thing they change. Make sleep your priority.

5. Breathe like a yogi
Yoga itself won't contribute to a calorie burn like running a race would, but it calms the parasympathetic nervous system. In a study, 27 cycles of single nostril breathing, repeated four times a day for a month, lead to resting metabolic oxygen consumption of up to 37%. Changing levels of stress-related, adrenal hormones through breathing techniques can significantly effect your weight loss. 

Most of all, practice self-care every day. Engage in an activity that lights your flame...a walk in the woods, painting, cooking, writing. It doesn't have to cost anything.

Whatever you do, enJOY doing it. Your attitude is what will make a difference. Smile for one minute uninterrupted and your brain will release  the feel-good hormone serotonin for you. 

​Feeling better already?

Inspired by www.powerofpositivity.com

January 1st. 
​Most people use an arbitrary date  as a “someday” when they’ll actually start pursuing their goals. But we all know the story: everyone starts out hot at the beginning of the year, gyms are crowded, salad bars empty and then by February 15th the dream is dead. Yep. Dead.
When people tell me this, I typically won’t say anything but just chuckle to myself because when someone says “next year” they just aren’t very serious about what they want. You probably have friends, too, that have the same  resolutions each year.
One of the things I’m grateful for this holiday season is having a proven tool for all my clients who are serious about changing their eating, building the best bodies of their life, nailing their food choices and as a result tapping into all the power and confidence that comes with it. They are becoming the best versions of themselves while others still wait for “someday”.
“Someday” isn’t on any calendar anywhere….
What sets our community apart? We’ve committed to our goals, we don’t make excuses, and when things get challenging we tackle the challenges to together. We don’t waste time on self-doubt, self-sabotage, or worry that we’re not enough or not capable. We don't shame or blame. We aim for progress, not perfection.
Because do you know what?
The X-factor in whether or not you’ll ultimately achieve your health goals has nothing to do with how physically talented you are or are not, it’s what you choose to believe is possible for yourself.
You set your own ceiling.
And be really careful when you do that.
I spoke with a man the other day who was probably 45 years old, but looked much older. Her was obese and joked about his "fat boy's heaven" food choices. He seriously said, “I live to eat, drink and listen to live music”.
Sad.
That’s just a limiting belief.
At the rate he is going, he is aiming straight for diabetes and all its associated health challenges. He already was out of breath just taking three steps up his front steps.
For every excuse you have for yourself, I can point out 5 people that shattered that very same obstacle that shut you down. The moral of the story: Stop making excuses for yourself and living in your perceived limitations. And actually go for what you want if you really want it. 
Do you want to he active, healthy, sexy, and free of pain?

Two, there’s no perfect time to start working on your dream. It’s just like traveling, there’s no perfect time to go, just go. And it always works out. If you are in a rut or in pain and you want to get out of it,  don’t wait until “next year” or “someday”. Get started now.
Then by “next year”, you’ll be in a completely different place while everybody else is still making the same old excuses and reasons “why not” and why they can’t and why they love food.
I love food, too. The kind of food that's actually good for me!

If you’re ready to get a jumpstart on your transformation, schedule a call and speak with me directly. 

(Be sure to bring something to write with to the call, we’re going to map out a custom plan of action for you to ensure you hit your goals. A dream without a plan is a plan to fail.)
But before you apply, know this is NOT for everyone. In fact, it’s NOT for most people.
I am looking only for people who are:
1. Willing to be 100% coachable and 100% committed to a huge change now.
2. Willing & Ready to Invest in Yourself Now (We are the best, if you are a price shopper we are NOT for you, if you’re looking for cheap or free...youtube is waiting)
3. Must have a positive outlook on life, be a great person, and *most important* willing to make a change.
Cool?
If you fit those criteria, schedule a call and let’s get you on the fast track to a world you’ve never seen.

I just spent half my life raising kids. No paycheck, no recognition, no societal approval, no grades, no achievement awards, no company-paid vacations. If I were to reenter the workforce, my Master's degree in North American Studies wouldn't be worth much as I can barely remember my kids' birthday, never mind historically more significant dates.
My skills as writer and editor might still impress someone, but that person can probably hire a girl half my age for a fraction of my hourly wage. In broadcast news, I might have to start as an unpaid intern. And while I have been our household's CEO, juggling sport schedules, carpools and piano lessons while cooking dinner, walking the dog and mowing the lawn, none of these skills translate into the journalism career I dreamt of when I was still in college. Can anyone relate?
I do have a hobby that I turned into a part-time job: group fitness coaching. I now teach yoga full-time. But please don't ask how much I make. My husband reminds me every year during tax season that it is not a job but a hobby.
I guess he is right...if you love what you do, you never work a day in your life. And I love teaching yoga. I know that I can help people feel better. That is really my WHY. I feel better when they feel better. Is that selfish? 
Now if only I could have both, a longer reaching influence on my students' wellness and a secondary income stream independent of standing in front of a classroom or commuting to private clients' homes. What if I could make enough money that the burden to provide is lifted off my husband and we wouldn't have to worry about retirement or college tuition? What if I could have a job without time or space constraints?
Enter wellness coaching...the profession is not yet regulated. Anyone can call themselves wellness coach. That's why I aligned myself with a well-researched program that is based on whole foods and vegan supplements to fill nutritional gaps. Ten years ago, when I was diagnosed with gluten intolerance, I needed help learning how to eat to heal my digestive system. It was Arbonne's 30 Days to Healthy Living program that taught me about how to live the healthiest, best life and uplevel my nutritional choices.
My friend Kris Dobler has been trying to convince me to become a coach. It took her 5 years of persistence...and now I am so grateful because this  program is a gift to all of us. I can continue to provide wellness strategies, empower others to feel good and have an earning potential way beyond a traditional job. I am dreaming big, friends. 
Let me help you learn more about living healthy inside & out.

As a yogi, my favorite jewelry is a long, beaded necklace. The one I love most is made of sandalwood. Its warm, woody aroma grounds me. I have used it for many meditations and feel it has become a trusted friend. Some would never wear a mala as an adornment because it's traditionally considered a sacred tool. But I believe my mala doesn't mind that I carry it around my neck and not in a pouch.

Most malas contain 108 beads plus a guru bead and a tassel. I was always curious about that number 108. What seems random is actually an ancient, auspicious number. Check out these surprising finds:
 
In astrology, there are 12 houses and 9 planets. 12 times 9 equals 108.

They say, the diameter of the Sun is 108 times the diameter of the Earth. The distance from the Sun to the Earth is 108 times the diameter of the Sun. The average distance of the Moon from the Earth is 108 times the diameter of the Moon. But I think, some detail oriented astronomers might disagree. Anyway, it's a good approximate.

There are 54 letters in the Sanskrit alphabet. Each has masculine and feminine, Shiva and Shakti. 54 times 2 equals 108.

There are 108 major Upanishads, a collection of spiritual texts in India.

There are 108 Marma points, sacred areas on the body in Indian Ayurvedic massage.

There are 108 major meridians (energy lines) coming out from the heart center.
 
And my favorite:
"There are 108 beads in a Catholic rosary. And there are 108 stitches in a baseball. When I learned that, I gave Jesus a chance." From the movie, Bull Durham (1988). 

The fifth of the eight limbs of yoga, Pratyahara, is often overlooked, yet it might well be the most pertinent to mastering yoga. Typically, Pratyahara is translated as "sense withdrawal." But it could also be interpreted as drawing the senses inward or withdrawing from distractions and stories to more clearly understand  aspects of our true nature. Sometimes, in order to see, we have to stop looking outside of us, stop remembering, stop hoping to see.
While the eight limbs are not to be understood or practiced chronologically, Pratyahara is positioned between the outer dimension and the inner dimension. The yamas and niyamas teach about the art of right living, asana about taking care of the body, pranayama about the enhancement of vital life energy. Now Pratyahara begins to draw the attention inward and becomes an integral part of the next three limbs: focus, meditation and bliss.
Most of us suffer from sensory overload, we are constantly bombarded by television, radio, computers, newspapers, magazines, books—you name it. Advertisements stimulate interest by entertaining our senses with bright colors, loud noises and dramatic sensations. 
Let your yoga practice be a quiet retreat from the crazy world outside, a place where you can be you, where you look inside, beneath the skin, knowing that you are always enough. 

Let Go of Something (Danna Faulds)
Let go of something, somewhere. 
Use yoga to become aware, 
to touch what lies beneath 
the surface of the skin.
Is there tension longing
for release; a knot of
fear so deep and familiar
that you believe it's
part of who you are?
Ease into dark corners,
locked rooms, unexplored
hallways. Gain entry
not by force or will
but only by softness.
Enter on the wings of
breath, and turn the
key of self-acceptance
to let go of something,
somewhere.

You know you are in India when you see cows on the beach. These blissfully calm, gentle creatures are revered in Hindu culture as sacred. To me, they are the symbol of the last three limbs of Pantanjali's path toward bliss. Wherever they are, they seem to practice dharana - focused attention - so much, that they seem to be meditating, dhyana. And most of the time, cows in India seem to live in a state of bliss, samadhi.

If I spend even just 10 minutes in the morning to meditate before heading out to teach, I feel more connected, centered, and content. In order to meditate, you don't have to deny worldly pleasures and live in a remote mountain cave. Just like these cows, just sit down, gaze softly on something beautiful (a candle, a statue, a picture, a crystal) or close your eyes. Suddenly, you'll notice how your mind is charging ahead afraid to be harnessed. You can simply count your inhale and your exhale, to give your mind an anchor.

I like to begin with some breathing exercises (pranayama). The easiest is the Dirga Breath (three-pointed breath). Take one hand on your chest, the other on your belly. On the inhale feel the filling of your torso from the belly to the rib cage, to the clavicles. On the exhale, feel the emptying from the clavicles, to the ribs, to the belly. Repeat.

Set a timer for 5 or 10 minutes. Soon, you will want to do it longer. If you need help, download the free app Mindspace. It's awesome.

Shtira Sukam Asanam 2.46
When the body and the mind are steady without strain and at ease without being dull, we find a comfortable seat.

While the sage Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras makes reference to yoga as a pose, asana literally translated means "seat" and he didn't give any detailed instructions on how to exercise the body into different shapes. In fact, what we know today as yoga in the West is only a very small part of an ancient philosophy that includes exercise mainly as a form of preparing the body to sit longer in meditation to gain control over the ever busy monkey mind, to link up to the higher power some call God, Allah or the Universal Life Force.

Patanjali continues, that any given pose is composed of our attention to tension, relaxation and the infinite. The asanas we practice in Vinyasa Yoga today are designed to increase strength and flexibility, steadiness and ease, for both, the body and the mind. Through our practice on the mat, we stimulate all physiological systems, including the circulatory, muscular, immune and digestive system. And we also develop mindfulness and focus needed for not only meditation but also a happy life.

All movement can be a place for meditation. A pose may change, the world may change, but grace and ease are always available.

You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about your despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting --
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

(Mary Oliver)

tasmin sati svasa prasvasyorgati vicchedah pranayamah 2.49
Upon finding a pose we accomplish it by slowing and softening the unregulated breath through the inhalation and exhalation. This is called pranayamah, or the regulation of prana, our energetic connection between breath and consciousness.

By taking control over our breath, we can self-regulate our heart rate, our blood pressure and our digestive system. The breath is the access point to our parasympethetic nervous system. We instinctively know that because we automatically sigh to let off pressure or yawn to get more oxygen when we are tired. By simply exhaling longer than inhaling or creating an "HA" sound we calm the vagus nerve, our rest and digest nerve.

One of my teachers once said, yoga is not about how deep we can get into the pose, but how calm our mind is when we are  in it. The breath is like a litmus test for our inner calm. It is always with us and can be used to soothe the waves of anxiety or anger. When you notice through self-observation that your emotions are trying to hijack you, take a time out and breathe. Extend your exhale a little longer than the inhale and notice how that takes off emotional edges.

Here is a 5-minute sequence I started classes with this week. It's the same sequence I use to calm my mind before meditating.

Dirga - three-pointed breath - sit tall with one hand on the clavicles, the other on the belly. Observe your inhale filling clavicle, ribs, belly. The exhale empties belly, ribs, clavicles.

Nadi Shodana  - single-nostril breath - sit tall fold the right hand's peace fingers into your palm or place onto third eye. Close right nostril with thumb. Inhale left. Switch: Open right nostril and close left with ring finger. Exhale right. Inhale right. At top switch. Exhale left. That's one round. I complete at least 5 rounds. Pause and observe your regular breath.

Kapalabhati - skull-shining breath - sit tall, hand on lap. Big inhale into your belly. Exhale rapidly, vigorously pulling the belly button to the spine. let the inhale come by itself. I do three rounds of 30. Pause and observe your regular breath. (Avoid this pranayama if you have high blood pressure or recent abdominal surgery.)

Ujjayi - victorious breath - feels like you are fogging a mirror or the sound an ocean wave would make. The "HA" sound at the back of the throat is very calming to the parasympathetic nervous system. Once familiar with the feeling of constriction around the glutis, you may seal your lips and try to recreate the breath with mouth closed. Pretty soon, you'll feel it in both directions - on the inhale and on the exhale.

Breathe. Let go.
And remind yourself that this very moment is the only one you have for sure.
(Oprah)

Saucha-santosha-tapas-svadhyaya-ishvara pranidhana-niyamah 2.32
The code of inner practice for the yogi is cleanliness, contentment, self-discipline, self-study and reflection and pure surrender to your creative source.

Yoga is the martial art of the mind and the strongest opponent you'll ever face is your ego. I read that somewhere and surely, it's true. With the niyamas, Patanjali's second limb of the eight-folded path of yoga, the sage offers us guidelines to gracefully navigate everyday interactions.

Saucha - purity, cleanliness - refers to various purifying yogic practices such as using a neti pot to rinse sinuses, scraping the tongue to clean the mouth, dry brushing to stimulate cell renewal and flow of lymph. It also includes uncluttering our home, the space around our mat and ultimately, our mind.

Santosha - contentment - is not to be confused with complacency. We can practice contentment by honoring in gratitude what we have. It anchors us in a quiet place without the stress of striving to achieve something...including a particular pose. Instead, let the pose (or life) come to you. After my hip surgery, I made peace with possibly never squatting again. I continued my regular modified practice in contentment of what showed up on the mat. One day, I found myself dropping into a squat. There it was. I had not even pushed for it.

Tapas - self-discipline - is the to be seen in balance with contentment. Tapas describe the effort it takes to get something done and it has to be considered in balance with Santosha. In a differentpart of the Sutras, Patanjali says "Effort without strain, ease without dullness." If we can live life there, it should be a pretty smooth ride.

Svadhyaya - self-study - through self-observation we create a space from where we can decide how to create, instead of living in a reactive state. In fact, creating and reacting use the same letters. You choose the order in which you put them by recognizing your natural tendencies through observation.

Ishvara Pranidhana - surrender to the universal life force - no matter how we name the energy that's bigger than us, if we recognize it we can use it. Instead of trying to push the river, we can surrender to its currents. Surrender to what is, let go of what was, ad have faith in what will be. Surrender is to give oneself up to the original cause of one's being. What is that if it's not to share the Love and the Joy that we are embodying?!

Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change things I can,
and the wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time,
enjoying one moment at a time,
accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
taking this world as it is - not as I would have it - 
trusting that all will turn out alright,
I surrender.
(Reinhold Niebuhr)

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