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I want to tell you about my struggle to stay with my improved wellness habits.
This is what happened.
I notice Lois. I am at a yoga class. It is her birthday. Classmates gather around to sing happy birthday as she holds a handstand.
Lois is 75 years young.
A week later I practice alongside Lois. When we try frog pose, I look over at her. She holds her feet off the ground for a few seconds and then falls out of the pose. She quietly tries again. She tries again.
I began to think about what it means to fall out. To fall out--of a pose, a practice, an intention, a commitment--in all areas of my life.
I realize that when I do a yoga pose I'm practicing how I can choose to live.
I know that I have a choice about my attitudes and responses. I want to approach a pose and life's experiences by giving it my all with a soft, consistent determination.
I believe I need to be fully present and alive in the moment to practice this.
By learning to be present and to participate in a way that is both steady and comfortable means I free myself from any thought or sensation that brings about self-judgment.
While I am practicing a pose, I let go of thoughts such as “I can’t do this posture” or “everyone is so much more flexible than I am” or “I will never be strong enough to do that” because these thoughts are disruptive and make it difficult to be present and focused.
Instead of self-criticizing when I fall out in a pose or skip a run or choose a not-so-healthy food, I notice my judgment and how it affects me. Then I let it go. I simply notice and let it go!
I try again with an intention of giving 100%. And then I accept how 100% looks in that moment.
When I fall out (not if), I try again.
Just like a young child learning to walk. She falls. She doesn't say, “I can't do this. I'm no good at walking. This isn't worth it.” She doesn't give up. She tries again. When she falls, she gets back up again.
