Year to Best: Act #18 - Expanding My Mind

This is a touchy subject - people's beliefs.  I don't want to receive hate mail for posting this, as it's my blog about my personal journey.  I considered not posting at all, but I've reached a point where I simply want to be myself and express myself without being afraid of offending someone.  So, please, let me be me - no hate mail.

I've known for quite some time that I feel personally weakest at times in a couple of areas.  The fact was made concrete for me when I visited an intuitive healer and artist at an event two weeks ago, and she was immediately able to tune into me and tell me those two areas - creativity and spirituality.  How does one address these two areas of weakness?

Spirituality: I grew up in an area (geographically) of basically one belief and one belief only.  It's stunting, to say the least, to never be exposed to the rich belief systems that exist around the world; to be told there is only one correct way for every human to believe and live (which seems like garbage to me).  I was lucky enough to open up my brain in college to study belief systems in general.  What I found was that (A) most are far more similar than most people realize, and (B) I could admire and respect most all of them; they all involved good qualities, meaningful traditions, and wonderful people.  During my years since college, I have not been able to pinpoint a belief system that really resonates with me - and I looked into quite a few. What feels right to me is simple - nature, energy, and intention.  I think those three elements can create and manifest most anything.  I believe it's perfectly acceptable to gain insight and inspiration from belief systems and people across the globe; not to put oneself in a spiritual corner.  

Long story short, after a couple of events at The Inner Space (a local metaphysical shop and center for classes/learning), I am finding other people who feel as I do, and finding classes to explore these particular thoughts and ideas.  It's invigorating, to say the least.  I took an initial class, and it opened countless other doors that I want to walk through (mentally) - more to come!

Creativity: This is a tough one.  I've been told multiple times that I have a great deal of creative energy, but I simply never feel like it's true.  It's a source of frustration for me; I often feel like there's some sort of well of energy in me that I can't tap into, like it's behind a wall.  I felt creative as a child and teen - and even a young adult - what happened?  When did I switch it off?  I am still exploring it, but I did receive some advice on how to work toward unlocking those parts of me - this will be part of my journey of this year of wellness, too.

 

Year to Best: Act #17 - Conquer a Fear

By "conquer a fear", I don't mean something debilitating like a fear of failure or desertion.  I mean (don't laugh) - my fear of spin classes.

So, it's not really a FEAR, more like an extreme avoidance because my only memory of spin from college was terrible and painful and exhausting.

I've recently reached a bit of a plateau in some of my cardio classes, so I knew I needed to step it up.  Spin/cycle seemed an obvious choice, because they have classes every day and it's known to be a tough cardio workout.  I decided to suck it up and go for it.  My first class was pretty weak, but after about 20 minutes, the burning "we-hate-you" feelings in my legs subsided and I made it through the class OK.  After two more classes, I began feeling stronger and was able to push my resistance up to an intermediate level.  Sure, your rear may be a little sore after class, but the consistently elevated heart rate and calorie burn (for those looking to lose weight) are definitely worth it.  While it's not as entertaining as Zumba, it's a solid class added into my weekly rotation, and I'm glad I got over my mental block with it - it will add to my overall wellness.

 

Year to Best: Act #16 - Practice Gratitude

Because I tend to typically try to create results for myself in every realm of life, I sometimes forget to stop and be grateful.  For example, I work hard to stay healthy, so I feel like I'm controlling it.  That means I forget to be grateful that I am even ABLE to keep myself healthy.  I manage our household finances every day, so I forget to stop and be grateful that we have an income stream to begin with.

So lately, I've made an effort to practice gratitude, both within myself (during meditation or just in daily thoughts) and externally (letting people know I appreciate them in my life, etc.)

Gratitude is one area in which I have a long way to go - while I know I AM grateful for much in my life, I forget to think on it purposefully.  I am working on it! 

Year to Best: Act #15 - Ace a Class

Now that I'm committed to making this year an A+ experience, I need to keep making A+'s in my MBA courses.  While I love certain aspects of my job (my office family and environment are fantastic, love my benefits, etc.), I know I won't be doing this forever, and I need to keep growing to better my career.  I started (slowly) my MBA in Human Resource Management last year and just aced a Marketing Management course.  In fact, due to my work experience, the school allowed my to do a Challenge Examination - 100 questions to pass the whole course.  Made an A on that, thus an A in the course. Sweet.

On to Human Relations class...and one day, a much bigger salary!  :)



Year to Best: Act #14 - Invisalign Fun

To further my wellness this year, I knew I needed to bite the (financial) bullet and spring for new braces/Invisalign.  I had them when I was a pre-teen or teen, but my teeth have shifted slightly over the years.  I now understand the full value of retainers.  Sheesh.

While braces do not come cheap, I can't help feeling they're worth it.  A comfortable, confident smile can make all the difference on the outside, because it's connected to how you feel on the inside.  Besides that, uneven teeth/bite can affect you in many ways over the years, and I'd like to have it all straight, lovely and comfortable by the time I'm turning 30.

So, I went today for my "work-up", which included lots of x-rays, photos with my lips pulled back in unnatural positions, and gross goopy impressions (4 of them). It wasn't bad, and I'm glad to be making headway.

Clinical plan will be next - then beginning of the trays. Fun times!



Year to Best: Act #13 - Hot, Hot Yoga

I enjoy yoga.  I enjoy yoga MOST at a real yoga studio (i.e. not LA Fitness or another health club), as the classes tend to be much more effective and authentic in a regular studio.  I began hearing about hot yoga and its many health benefits, so although it sounded horrible, I decided to give it a whirl.

Hot yoga is basically yoga in a room heated to around 104 degrees.  It's HOT.  It's sweaty.  You have to go hydrated, but without a full stomach (the heat might make you want to hurl).  Most people are wearing very skimpy clothes...because...well, it's hot.  I don't blame them and wore tiny clothes as well.  

The yoga class was 90 minutes, with about 20 minutes warm-up, 20 minutes standing/balance poses, 20 minutes sitting/stretching poses, and the other half hour restorative, strength, breathing, meditation, etc.  It was mega sweaty.  I was dripping sweat, and I am not a very sweaty person.  I was completely soaked...clothes, hair, everything.  It was hard to hold some poses because my skin was so slippery, and I had to use my towel a lot.  Next time, I am skipping the small face towel and taking a beach towel.  It's good to put it on the mat to catch drips and keep you from slipping.

I left the class feeling pretty loose and calm.  As far as the health benefits...

Hot Yoga claims...

1. THE CLAIM: "Increase Vitality: If you want to gain more spring in your step and recover the “vim and vigor” of youth, the Bikram series practiced in a heated room is a great form of yoga. It has the potential to reverse the elements of aging, giving you the ability to take much deeper breaths to navigate your way through a hectic modern world or simply run up a flight of stairs! Keep up with a consistent practice and you’re guaranteed to look and feel younger."  
MY EXPERIENCE: not sure yet - I've only gone once.  I didn't notice truly deeper breathing, but I breathe pretty deeply during yoga most of the time.

2. THE CLAIM: "Weight Loss: Practicing Bikram in a heated room creates a much safer approach to your yoga practice as it allows you to stretch quicker and deeper. This is turn leads to stronger flexibility in the muscles which burns fat. As every fitness trainer knows, building muscle burns fat — doing the Bikram sequence in a hot room jump-starts this process. Additionally, one of the overall effects of Bikram yoga is a general improvement in diet as the body craves healthier food. As the practice itself sharpens our perception of the mind-body connection, so does our overall awareness of what the body needs, reinvigorating the body’s natural processes to long for healthier food."

MY EXPERIENCE:  I was able to stretch deeper and longer since my muscles were so heated.  And they do focus on being strong and stable, but isn't that the case with most yoga?

3. THE CLAIM: "Detoxification: The massive elimination of toxins from the body occurs during hot yoga, primarily thru sweat. It’s possible to drop up to 10 pounds of sweat (which includes oil, salts and water) during a class. As water rushes out during the course of a 90 minute class, this creates immense benefits such as super clean skin and the detoxification of pores in the body’s largest organ — the skin."

MY EXPERIENCE: I was definitely sweating, and if that was cleaning my body out, good for me!

4. THE CLAIM: "Increased Mental Clarity:  As the body is cleansed, the mind is sharpened. Regular Bikram practice leads to  improved mental clarity, clearing out the “fuzz in brain” caused by the modern world’s list of negative stimuli — traffic, stress, bad food, pollution, etc. In addition, poses with significant time spent in forward bends sends blood rushing to the head, which is a fantastic way to “clear out the mental cobwebs.”

MY EXPERIENCE: Need to practice more to really know, but most yoga helps with mental clarity, I think.

5. THE CLAIM: "Reduced Stress: Perhaps one of the most significant Bikram yoga benefits is the increased connectivity with the body, gained from regular practice. The intense focus in the sequence causes the chatter of the mind to decrease, leaving one less mentally preoccupied, both in and out of the class. Also, with consistent practice, the muscle memory of taking deeper breaths carries over into daily life, automatically providing instant relief to the temporary stressors that plague our modern world."

MY EXPERIENCE: Need to practice more to know, but this is about the same as #4, for me.  Mental clarity helps with less stress.  Also, regular yoga helps with this.

Overall, I'd say my hot yoga experience was intriguing, but I am just not sure how much more beneficial it is than regular yoga.  Sure, it's a bit like taking care of a sauna session and yoga in one, so if you're in it for being efficient, that makes sense.  I am going to give it a few more tries, but I'm still up in the air on how this might contribute to my wellness overall.

 

Year to Best: Act #12 - Girl Time

My husband is excellent to spend time with.  However, sometimes women just need to get together with other women.  To talk about stuff.  Women stuff.  That could mean anything from serious health issues to TomKat's divorce.

So, I made sure to give myself some lady time last week over a nice dinner, and it was 100% worth the drive and valet parking (which sometimes annoy me, proof that I'm getting old!).  I was also able to spend a day with my youngest sister having brunch, shopping, and cooking...and having a gal pal over to eat with us, too.

Girl time = good for you.

Year to Best: Act #11 - Eyeballs

In my year-long quest to be the healthiest I've ever been, I decided it was time for an eye exam.  The doctor says it had been 4 years since my last exam, I am fairly certain it was 2, but who's counting?  I really need to keep better track of these things!  I have been very lucky with my eyes, they've always been healthy and I have great eyesight.  I have a TINY (and I do mean tiny) prescription for night driving, movies, other things that involve darkness so I can see clearer/crisper images. However, I never wore my glasses.  Not being used to them, the rims are in my field of vision and give me a headache, so they basically went into a drawer.

Of course, that's not very healthy, and could cause additional strain on my eyes, so I used my solid vision benefits to get an exam and order another pair of glasses, ones with no bottom rim and a tiny upper rim, which will hopefully mean less headaches.  

So, here's to healthy eyes, and hoping my new glasses are a bit more helpful...

Year to Best: Act #10 - Sandpapering my Face

Since Spa Nordstrom screwed up my original appointment for a massage/exfoliation, they comped my services and I was able to get a facial with my gift card.  I am very lucky to not have any real skin issues.  I have some small sun spots from past sun damage, and the spa director recommended microdermabrasion for helping with those.  I went for it. 

It's admittedly uncomfortable...like someone is taking a small wand with sandpaper on the end and scrubbing your face with it.  Since it makes the skin a bit raw, it feels like being sunburned.  That went on for about 20 minutes, then she applied a cleansing scrub and a cold milky mask to soothe and replenish the skin.  I learned that while the process removes the top layer of skin (especially the dead stuff) and helps to unclog pores, it also stimulates the skin to produce more collagen.  The benefits aren't immediate, so I am waiting to see if I see skin improvement.

After the process, I felt sunburned for several hours.  The next morning, my face felt normal, but I have a few dry spots on my face where she concentrated the wand.  I have to stay out of the sun for a few days, moisturize a lot, and not wear makeup if I can help it.

So, results TBD...but I was glad to go for something new and unusual that may be good for me.