Melissa’s Rap: Being sick is never fun. It can be very draining and exercise is usually the last thing on your mind. But, yoga can be very beneficial when you aren’t feeling well. It can help get the energy flowing, jumpstart your lymph system and strengthen your immune system, which will help your body fight.
Melissa’s Rap: Sometimes life throws us curveballs. Sometimes it feels like those curveballs are coming at us 90mph, one after the other and we can’t seem to stop them. We all cope with these curveballs differently. You may lock yourself in your bedroom with a bottle of wine and a pint of Ben and Jerry’s. Someone else may binge watch eight shows on Netflix and refuse to answer any messages. Another person might pick up a bat and take those curveballs on to the best of their ability. Me? I go one of two ways: anxious manic doer or utterly useless sloth. Either I go into action and basically stop sleeping, or I become completely useless and choose something similar to option A or B above. Neither of which is really healthy or effective.
As I’ve gotten older, though, I have learned something. I have to do the work to tackle those curveballs and that means different things depending on the situation. But one thing is for sure… I have to implement some key coping methods to get me through it. Continue reading
Melissa’s Rap: Pranayama, control of the breath, is the basic foundation of any yoga practice. Sometimes it is your yoga. It is that important and that impactful of a practice. Focusing on your breath alone is so powerful, it can have profound effects on one’s health, both mentally and physically. Continue reading
Melissa’s Rap: Last week, we reviewed some great yoga-centered steps to reducing stress and the effects of it on the body. One of those steps was chanting, part of a practice that is often referred to as sound therapy. Continue reading
Melissa’s Rap: The topic of Yoga for Stress Relief may seem a bit redundant, since yoga is known for reducing stress more than anything else. Perhaps it is, but as a yoga instructor and a woman who has dealt with chronic anxiety for much of my life, I do feel that some poses and practices are more effective than others in reducing stress in one’s life.
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Melissa’s Rap: A few months ago, we went on a Healthy Habits adventure, learning exactly what steps to take to create healthy, long-lasting habits. Now that you have had a few months to practice, how has the journey been? Have you found the process of creating and maintaining these new habits easy or challenging? What habits did you create that you are still doing now? If you have lapsed on some, how long were you able to stick with it? What do you feel your barriers to success have been? It is important to analyze what worked and what didn’t, so you can learn and grow from the process and gradually get better and better at the process of creating new habits. Today, let’s talk about some yoga (yes, yoga!) concepts that can help you with your healthy habit mission. Continue reading
Sarah’s Rap: As I decide what positive habits I’d like to foster in the New Year, one thing I really want to focus on is self-care and ensuring that I make it a priority in my life. This is very important to my healing, sanity and happiness at home and work. Although the habits we each want to cultivate differ based on who we are as individuals and what our needs are, I believe that everyone needs to make time for self-care to be healthy. Self-care, as the name implies, is “care provided for you, by you. It’s about identifying your own needs and taking steps to meet them. It is taking the time to do some of the activities that nurture you. Self-care is about taking proper care of yourself and treating yourself as kindly as you treat others.” *
Does this sound like a foreign concept or an impossible task? As a working mom, I totally understand that setting aside time for relaxation, fun, exercise, meditation, massage or whatever activity one considers as downtime can be impossible to fit in. Well read-on, my friends, and learn more about why self-care is so important and how we can use habits to incorporate more self-care into our day. Continue reading
The Sister Rap 