The storm before the calm

August 3, 2014 Tranquil Skies

~ excerpt from a journal written last month on a 4 day yoga retreat~

I am currently into day 4 of a 4 day yoga retreat. I am currently into 2 or so hours of a 4 hour requested silence.

It is morning, it is cold in the shade, so I sit in silence with the sun warming my skin.

All around me are tired little yogi’s reflecting, struggling to be quiet, loving the silence; I don’t know.

All I know is how I feel, and how I feel is emotional.

What I can’t figure out is why.

Being alone is nothing new, being silent and alone with my thoughts is a frequent and welcomed practice for me.

Yet being amongst 50 other people moving about not saying a word is definitely something new for me.

These past 4 days have pushed me mentally, physically and emotionally – I can’t even say why, but I can say that I feel we all need to step outside of our comfort zones several times in life, in order to feel more, be more and achieve more.

We NEED to experience some storms before the calm, the storms help us to appreciate the calm times in life.

We need to push the outer limits of our learnt and habitual behaviors.

As one of my teachers said (and is a favorite quote of mine) ‘if we keep doing what we have always done, we will keep getting what we have always got’.

I believe that nothing great was ever achieved by sitting comfortably, and not stepping outside your comfort zone.

After every storm the dust settles, the rain clears and new life is felt. You can literally feel it in the air, that change,that freshness, that vitality.

Could we perhaps not say the same of ourselves; we go through hardships, the dust clears, the metaphorical storm clouds disappear and we survive and feel re-born, re-awakened.

We emerge stronger, more resilient.

If we are constantly surrounded by chatter, can we ever find our own words?

If we are constantly filling the silences with noise, will the noise in our heads continue to grow?

If we don’t embrace the storms, will we ever be able to appreciate the calm?

**************************************************

As I said, this was written in my journal over a month ago now, and without really knowing why, I opened my retreat journal this afternoon, and as I read over my words I am amazing at the timing.

Last week was a bit intense and emotional for me, and it would appear I was not alone.

Sometimes we really do receive and read things at the exact time we are meant to, and even though these words came from me, they have helped me by re-reading them today, and my heartfelt wish for anyone reading this who is also in the midst of a storm is to trust that this will pass, the calmness will re-appear and know that you will emerge stronger than ever before.

Xxx

Who am I?

June 16, 2014 Tranquil Skies

Today; in between getting up at 5am teaching two morning fitness classes, doing remedial work with a lady at a nursing home, learning choreography, doing my invoices, meditating for 20 minutes and mentally preparing for the next two classes of the evening, I caught my reflection in my blender and wondered who the frick am I ?

I mean seriously, look at this blender filled with green goodness, when did I turn from the KFC eating high school punk to the exercising, spiritual, kale drinking smoothie I have become?

Who is this fit, flexible girl I see staring back at me from the pictures, this same girl who used to hate the gym who now teaches at them promoting fitness on a regular basis.

This small framed girl who is suddenly (without warning it feels ) is covered on muscles.

This girl who is still me, who is still the same but is also completely different.

This girl who just went to Perth with her girlfriends and ate her body weight in cheese, bread, chocolate, coffee and wine~
~ and would do that every weekend if she could 🙂

This girl who teaches yoga to people to relax, then blurts out words excitedly, quickly in an anything but relaxed manner.

This girl who teaches body balance, then trips over nothing on the way out of class.

This pilates trainer who has a strong core but can not do a handstand.

This girl who lives life with reckless abandon who craves adventure yet yearns for serenity.

This girl who feels so young at heart, yet knows she is growing older.

Who am I ?

A walking contradiction, or simply a girl wanting to experience everything, to be everything, to feel everything.

To be the best person I can be inside and out.

To be who I am without even really knowing who I am myself!
So my advice to you all, should you find yourself staring at your reflection through a green mush of kale, don’t question, don’t stress, don’t judge – just be!

What if……..

May 28, 2014 Tranquil Skies

How often have you had a terrible class, your mind is unfocused and cluttered, and everything you seem to try fails.

So often it is the thoughts we have before even stepping foot on our mat that have the greatest impact on how our class will play out.

Those thoughts of what if I am not good enough, fit enough, flexible enough.

What if everyone in the room is better than me….

Those negatives ‘what if’s’ will break you.

What if:

As you picked up your yoga mat you thought whatever happens in this next hour is ok;

What if :

As you rolled out your mat you thought, I am here, I am trying, I am exactly where I am meant to be in my practice and my life and I am perfectly happy with that;

What if:

At the end of the class whatever the outcome you felt proud of everything you just achieved, rather than berating yourself for the things you didn’t!

What if you turned yourself into a warrior and not a worrier.

Lift your heart to the sunshine & let your soul shine through

March 7, 2014 Tranquil Skies

Beauty is 10% looks, and 90% what’s happening on the inside.

How you feel on the inside will transfer to how you appear on the outside.

When you feel a little down, rather than focus on the negatives lift your heart to the sunshine, allow your thoughts to drift to all the good and beautiful things in your life.

Watch the transformation yourself, as your soul literally shines through, you radiate happiness from the inside out!

Beautiful yes?

The greatest triumphs come with patience and dedication

March 2, 2014 Tranquil Skies

This week I forced myself to slow down, to master the fine art of patience.

Patience with my practice, patience with achieving my business goals, and patience with people in my life.

I taught crows pose in class, and I watched the ones who leapt into it, their impatience literally throwing them off balance and they were unable to master the pose.

I watched the ones who listened who tried the pose in gradual stages, who kept trying until they got it right, it was an amazing thing to watch.

The greatest triumphs always come from practice, patience, dedication and a belief in ones self!

The emotional side of exercise

February 7, 2014 Tranquil Skies

It has been an oddly emotional week, for myself and others around me. I have had a few people cry in my classes and this of course has made me think more deeply about my life, and my classes.

Emotions are a funny thing, they can be pushed to the background for so long, before all of a sudden they explode when you least expect it.

Exercise releases endorphins we all know about this, it makes sense then that emotions can be released as well.

While you may feel more comfortable crying during relaxation or a hip opening yoga sequence than pumping weights or running on the treadmill, don’t be surprised if halfway mid squat you suddenly feel overcome with emotion.

Here is where all the guys are puffing their chests out saying whatever lady, well guys it happens to you too, I know this, I have seen it.

While you may disguise (or bury) it better than the ladies, it does happen to you as well 🙂

Think about it, when you are exercising, you are away from your life so to speak; no wife, husband, children, work, deadlines, chores before you – just you and your chosen exercise.

Your mind is now focussed, your breathing has most likely changed, without these other external factors what are you left with?

Your thoughts!

Your emotions!

Now for my yoga, pilates, body balance people; relaxation is confrontational, being left quietly alone with yourself and a potential racing mind can be daunting, so I am here to tell you that it is ok to feel whatever it is you are feeling.

It is ok to let some tears flow silently down your cheeks, and if you end up a blubbering puffy face mess then that is ok as well.

We tend to hold a lot of emotion in our hips, so if you are in the midst of a deep hip opening sequence then it is quite natural to start to feel an emotional release during this.

How you feel is how you feel, so recognise this, accept this and embrace it.

Release what needs to be released and I am confident you will feel a million times better for allowing yourself to do this.

Let’s twist again

January 23, 2014 Tranquil Skies

Twisting poses not only help you to develop flexibility in the spine, they can increase circulation to your body and help to cleanse the internal organs.

In order to get more out of your twist, it is all about the breath!

Next time you are in a yoga twist, try taking a deep breath in, as you do this lengthen your spine as though you are lifting up through the crown of the head as though someone has a rope attached to it and is gently pulling you up.

As you exhale slowly start to twist, feel that opening through your chest.

Find your limit – how far you think you can twist, then gently try again, breathing in and as you breathe out start to twist a little bit further.

Twists are not meant to be forced, however you will surprise yourself at just how much further you can twist when you really connect with your breath.

Give yourself a gift this month and try meditation

December 2, 2013 Tranquil Skies

I hate to admit it but I used to be one of “those” people who left the class before meditation.

I left as my brain went into immediate meltdown mode the minute that word was uttered.

My fatigued body was pleading with me to take those 5-10 minutes to relax, my brain was yelling at it to shut up.

Meditation; who has the time for that? I could be doing cardio, or something useful at home!

The naive old me thought meditation was some hippy chanting thing.

I remember the first yoga class I did, where the instructor told me to clear my mind of everything –
Everything my brain shrieked, is she nuts?

My brain was a jumbled mess, is everyone clearing their minds except for me? What is wrong with me? Why can’t I clear my mind?

Fast forward to what feels like a million years later to the girl who types this and teaches meditation and relaxation at the end of a workout, to the girl who feels so sad when people leave before the end, the people who will miss out on everything I missed out on for so many years.

Meditation for many can be a confrontational process, being still with your own thoughts can be daunting.

I am mindful not to ask people to clear their minds of everything, rather I invite people just to lie calmly and relax, to breath deeply and calmly, to focus on something that makes them happy, and to give themselves permission to do just that.

Our society is racing, each year goes faster than the last.

Stopping, relaxing, meditating in which ever form you wish to do it, is one of the most important gifts you can give yourself.

If you are unsure where to start; start by identifying what makes you happy, then close your eyes for a moment and draw upon that image, emotion or event.

Take 5 minutes on your journey to or from work to close your eyes, listen to music or just listen to the sound of your breath.

Sit in a park, the beach a place that resonates with you, and just be content in the moment.

There is no right or wrong, find what works for you and then indulge in it every chance you get.

Five minutes a day and before long you will notice and feel the benefits.

In this busy month of December give yourself the best gift of all.

The benefits of child’s pose

November 27, 2013 Tranquil Skies

The benefits of child’s pose:

Releases tension in the back, shoulders and chest.

Recommended if you have dizziness or fatigue.

Helps alleviate stress and anxiety.

Flexes the body’s internal organs and keeps them supple.

It lengthens and stretches the spine.

Relieves neck and lower back pain when performed with the head and torso supported.

It gently stretches the hips, thighs and ankles.

Normalizes circulation throughout the body.

It stretches muscles, tendons and ligaments in the knee.

Calms the mind and body.

Encourages strong and steady breathing.

Tranquil Skies

Yoga & Pilates classes, events & retreats

Tag Archives: Yoga