Blog Archives

Peace, balance and yoga: in real life.

4/30/2020

Hey everyone, it's Stacy and I'm thrilled to be writing this post. I appreciate the little pockets of "creative outlet" I can find in this whole new normal we're living in.

Let me share a little about myself so you can catch my perspective. I'm a wife, a mom of 3 kids, we have a bunch of little animals at our house (7 chicks, a dog, and a bunny! - and yes, you can come to our urban petting zoo when this is all over!)

We are one of the families impacted by the astounding lay-off statistics which happened to account for 95% of our family's income. We have 2 school aged children and are navigating distance learning for the long haul, our other child is in the medically vulnerable population, and we're just doing our best to live life and be happy and make this whole crazy thing work.

We're happy, worried, soaking in all the family time and utterly exhausted by the end of each day all at once.

On top of that, I'm also trying to make sure I am taking care of myself by doing things that fuel my soul and make my body happy - one of those being Bikram Yoga.

I am no expert... at, well, any of this. I am not a long-seasoned yogi. I am certainly no expert at managing a life and a household during a global pandemic. I mean, is anyone? But I do want to offer a couple ideas that have been extremely helpful in finding peace, balance, and time to practice yoga.

First, let’s chat about peace.

It almost seems like a taboo topic right now. Peace? In the middle of all this?? Isn’t that completely neglecting the reality of the world right now which feels pretty full of unrest? Are you actually being a toxic-positive person?? Yikes. No, definitely not. I don’t know about you - but I cannot just sit and soak in sadness and despair. It’s already here, I don’t have to do anything else to help it exist.

Don’t get me wrong, I could get completely caught up in the endless amount of news floating around, but my peace would suffer. Right now I must keep my peace for my own sake and also for my family’s sake, since we are cooped up together 24/7. So how do you do this when you’re busy and being pulled in a thousand directions from your kids, spouse, life, etc.

You decide.

You must decide you are deserving and worth it and peace is as essential as water and air to live and thrive and you must must must make it happen.

Finding peace looks different for every single one of us. It could mean dedicated quiet time, exercise, laughing, reading, napping, fresh air, praying, meditating, journaling, painting, creating, the list is endless. Whatever it looks like for you, do it. Do it as often as you can. I'd love to say I carve out pockets of peace every single day, but I don't... I wish!! But I do the majority of the time. And in my life, majority rules.

After peace, I try to create a little balance in our day.

Ah, the great "balancing act." I can’t possibly fit in everything I want and need to do every single day in our busy household, but I can find a sense of balance that makes me feel like I’ve got a (small) sense of control to what’s going on around here.

Even though we are not going out as much, I notice feeling just as busy (if not more) at home! Kid's school work, house projects, Zoom meetings, the endless amounts of cooking and cleaning, getting in some exercise, carving out time for yourself and/or your partner, and each kid, and walking the dog... did I mention cooking and cleaning yet? Don’t forget you need to rest! And and and… am I right? It’s a lot!

And it’s totally ok to feel like it is, because hey: IT IS. I mean, there have been multiple days where I had planned all the things, and then just sat around, re-dried the same load of laundry 3 times and ate snacks all day.

Well, I quickly learned that was not going to work for me, and just as quickly realized balance is possible. Thank goodness, too!

Here’s what works for me, and if you’re struggling to “fit it all in,” maybe this can help you feel less overwhelmed with it all:

1. Make a list of "non-negotiables"

These are things that are absolute musts for yourself and your family. Family dinner, time outside, breakfast together, quiet time… what are they in your life? This list doesn’t have to be long, but I encourage you to evaluate all the things you are busy doing, and pull out those key things that keep your household functioning and moving forward.

2. Set a schedule

Don’t you feel better when you know what is coming next? This schedule doesn’t have to be strict or even down to the minute, but more so a guideline to what and how you will move through your day. A rhythm. The rest, listen closely: IS OPTIONAL. I know… I know! Give yourself, your family, and your day the grace it needs and deserves to be fluid enough to feel good. It's called balance

3. Do yoga

Ahhhhh... yes, the yoga. My brain already feels a sense of calm coming over it just thinking about it. How do I fit this in? Like seriously, I can barely take a 10-minute shower without interruption let alone dedicate 90 whole minutes to myself, inside my house, with all these people and animals.

Before, I could go to the studio, I could shut off all the things, the hot room was a sweet and sweaty escape, I could "hide" away and just... do something for myself. Yoga looks pretty much the opposite of that right now in every way, except that it is still yoga - and it's for me - practiced by me - and the benefits are all mine.

Having to practice at home has uprooted all the "feel good" things I love about yoga and has forced me to a realization that yoga is so valuable to my life, even without all the frills of the studio environment.

Is my space hot? No. It's a little hot with chaos some days. Do I have a mirror? Also, no, not really. Does my toddler mimicking me count? Can I get it humid enough? Not nearly. But sometimes, I have a couple kids or a dog breathing right in front of my face and it feels a little humid... (kidding. not kidding.)

Do I get to focus and meditate completely? Ehh... not entirely. And by entirely, I mean not at all. Am I able to complete an entire 90 minutes, uninterrupted? Negative. I don't even always get a chance to complete 90 minutes at all.

I have learned that in order for me to have a successful home practice, I had to reconstruct what the word "successful" means.

I often practice in the middle of the living room floor, or when it's nice out, I throw a mat down outside. Always, I have a couple kids bopping in and out and lying down next to me, or on me, or trying to crawl through my legs, a dog rolling around on the floor thinking it's playtime, or kids taking their own sweet savasana on top of me while I'm in one too...

The commotion is endless.

But the yoga is timeless.

I've learned to let go of my idealistic perfect yoga experience, and realize that yoga IS the experience.

Some is better than none, and I've had to adjust my mindset from tolerating that, to celebrating that, and remarkably I can say that my body and mind are still reaping the benefits of a "not-so-perfect" yoga practice. My family and I are better for it, and I’m really glad I decided to just get over the fact that yoga is different now, and get to doing it for any amount of time, at any time of day.

The truth is, some of us haven't been in a good habit of practicing yoga since the stay-home orders have been in place. That's ok... kind of. If it's truly just not for you, not important to you, and yoga has not been a positive impact in your life, then sure, it's ok to not be practicing

But some of us need to check our yoga-egos (I know I did) at our own front door.

We need to realize that the benefits of practicing at home, an imperfect practice in a less-than-ideal environment, win out by far over the consequences of not practicing at all.

And here's the good news: it's a practice. This is quite possibly the only time we will be forced to practice peace, balance, and yoga in a world that looks like this, in a home space that exists like this, and in a mindset that feels like this.

I for one am optimistic for my future self - that I will have learned so much during this time in a way that I never would have before. I mean, can you even imagine how good my savasana will be when we get back into the hot room after all this practice with my kids jumping all over me? Ha!

So here's to you, and me, and all of us. Making an attempt for joy in our life, through the practice (and grace!) of peace, balance, and yoga.

See you at Home!

Always,
Stacy

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4 Reasons You Should Do Yoga When Social Distancing

4/20/2020

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Your exercise routine has most likely been turned on its head in the last few weeks. Gyms and yoga studios around the world have shut their doors indefinitely, and even many parks and trails are closed.

So, is it time to collapse on the couch with a bag of Cheesy Poofs and mope about not having an ab-roller?

Nah. It's time to do yoga.

Starting a yoga routine at this time will not only help you stay in shape-- it will also help you cope better with stress and keep your anxiety levels under control. The best part is, there's no equipment required for yoga! You can do it at home. All you need is a spine and your breath. (Some expert instruction is highly recommended though!)

In a recent American Psychiatric Association poll, 36% of Americans said the current pandemic has already had a serious impact on their mental health. The rate of coronavirus infection is still much lower than 36% of us, and we're taking that pretty seriously now. We need to take our mental health seriously, too. It is not going to get better on its own, and social distancing itself poses a threat to your mental health.

Look. Keeping your physical body healthy is important for sure. But taking care of your emotional stability and mental clarity is often put on the back burner during times of crisis-- which is actually when we need to keep our wits about us, the most!

Here are 4 major reasons you need yoga now more than ever:

CLICK HERE FOR ONLINE YOGA CLASSES

When you practice yoga, you:

Alleviate anxiety. Studies have shown that practicing yoga can reduce anxiety and lower your levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Check out this blog post for the story of one student who has stopped taking anxiety meds since starting her yoga practice!
Decrease depression. There is a large body of research finding yoga to be an effective intervention for the treatment of depression. Bikram Yoga specifically has been found beneficial in improving depression and several other mental health symptoms.
Sleep better. Studies have found practices like yoga and meditation have positive effects on melatonin and helps alleviate common causes of sleep problems like stress and anxiety. This is super relevant right now because many of us need better Zs! According to a PiplSay poll, 31% of Americans say they’re sleeping less due to coronavirus-related anxiety. And you know it's hard to be your best self when you're tired.
Reduce inflammation. You've probably heard a lot about the popular physical benefits of yoga: flexibility, strength and balance. Of course, there are other activities you can do to keep your muscles strong, your joints healthy, and even be able to stand on one foot. Hatha yoga (practice of physical yoga postures) is unique in that it improves the function of every single system of your body, from the bones to the skin. One of the main ways hatha yoga helps all your organs function better is by helping to reduce inflammation, which researchers are finding more and more to be the root of all kinds of trouble. Know what increases inflammation? Chronic stress and anxiety. Lack of sleep and lack of movement. Poor nutrition.

There is no time like today to start creating benefits like these for your mind and body. And thanks to technology, accessing yoga instruction from the comfort of your home is easy. There are many options out there, many levels and many styles.

Home Hot Yoga's online classes are open to everyone, no experience necessary. Heat is not even necessary (though it helps!)

Are you ready to start a yoga practice? Join any of our online classes here.

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VIDEO: Beginners tutorial for Bikram yoga practice at (your) home

4/10/2020

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No level of experience, strength or flexibility are required to safely attempt a Bikram yoga class! However, online classes are a bit of a tricky way to start, especially if you are a visual learner, mostly because it's difficult to see the other students.

Our friends at Wellness Hot Yoga made this video to help new yogis have a better understanding of the postures, so you can feel better during and after your class! Thanks, WHY!!

We hope this tutorial was helpful for you.

For more tutorials about specific poses, search the blog post archives for the name of the pose and click! Here are a few we especially recommend for beginners:

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Why you need a routine, and how to get one -- Guest post by Lael Petersen

4/6/2020

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This coronavirus epidemic has destroyed our sense of normalcy. It’s turned our worlds upside down, leaving us feeling scattered and out of sorts. Everything that was familiar and routine is gone.

We’re finding ourselves having to make adjustments to our lives, to make room for this new (hopefully temporary, but real) normal. It can sound counterintuitive, but developing a daily routine can help us to feel a sense of control and help us to make room for our more-important-than-ever self-care.

Routines create predictability and reduce our stress level.

But what if reclaiming your previous self-care routine isn’t possible given these new circumstances?

Or what if you never had much of a daily rhythm before, but feel desperate for the stability of one now?

Where do you start?

You start small. That’s where.

Use the behavior change strategy of Kaizen or 1% improvement over time.

“Kaizen” is a Japanese term that refers to small, continuous improvement.

It’s about making 1% improvements every day.

So, let’s say you’re someone who staying up past midnight every night lately. You want to go to bed earlier so you have energy for the next day. Instead of forcing yourself to go to bed at 10pm tonight, you go to bed five minutes earlier. Five minutes is your 1%. If you go to bed five minutes earlier everyday, it will take you at least 24 days to be in bed by 10pm. This is kaizen.

At first, it feels like there is no improvement. (You might think: 11:55pm is barely earlier than midnight! I’m desperate for some change now!) It takes some time for each day of 1% change to accumulate. Once these small improvements do build up though, you’ll begin to see and feel the effects of your gradual shift.

With gradual change and continuous improvements, our nervous systems slowly adjust to our new ways of being - allowing our new habits to stick.

Which is really what we need. Better habits now to reduce our stress and better habits that last beyond this crisis, so we remain healthy in body and mind.

Cate Stillman writes this in her book Body Thrive: “The problem with kaizen, for most of us, is that it seems too easy. When you get inspired to change or upgrade a habit, you want big returns. You bite off more than you can chew, which guarantees you’ll fail. The kaizen approach makes the bite small enough that you hardly notice as it nudges you in the direction you want to go.”

This is what I teach in the Vibrant Life Program.

A daily self-care routine that brings balance to the body and mind, that promotes vitality and longevity - so you can cope better right now and stay healthy in the future.

And we do it one step at a time. 1% at a time. For lasting change that doesn’t add more stress to the nervous system. Because that’s the last thing we need right now.

Won’t you join us? Learn 10 essential habits to thrive. Starting April 20.

Lael Peterson is a life coach and Certified Yoga Health Coach with over 20 years experience helping people thrive. She specializes in teaching people the habits and mindset they need to accomplish their goals. Her own life experiences with anxiety, addiction, and cancer combined with her professional expertise make her coaching relatable, practical and powerful. Lael is a member at Home Hot Yoga and believes that a regular hatha yoga practice is an essential component in a vibrant life! The Vibrant Life Program is a mini (coed) version of her popular 6 month program for women, Vibrant Body + Wise Mind.

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VIDEO: Big hot news from Home!

4/1/2020

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Our new identity...

What with all that has been going on, Orlo and I have had some extra time to think these past couple weeks. We've been reflecting on our business and where it's going next.

It comes down to this:

We always try to be the trailblazers. And the more we think about this whole "hot yoga" racket -- honestly? We actually think it's kind of a fad.

The reality is, everyone else is doing hot yoga now, almost like it's tried and true. But that's just not how we roll.

We DO really like things that are hot, though.

Bikram Yoga? Well, it's hot. So that's good. But otherwise, it's just way too intense for a lot of people to stomach. And we're a bit tired of all the stretching and sweating and looking in the mirror and what have you.

Watch this video for the whole scoop:

So there you have it.

Because of the global pandemic, we were going to have to up our cleaning game anyway upon re-opening... so we figured we'd make the most of it and just turn the whole place into a kitchen!

Hot Yogurt is:

great for your digestion (tons of probiotics!)
creamy and delicious (in a sour-milk sort of way)
easily re-heated on your stovetop (or a cozy armpit)
organic-- we think?

We know this change may come as a shock to some of you, and we thank you for your loyalty and understanding. No need to cancel your membership, as we will be crediting your March dues toward a full month's supply of Hot Yogurt!!

Please feel free to email us with any questions, once you've had some time to digest the news.

Scroll down for the REALLY BIG announcement...

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APRIL FOOLS!!!!

1 Comment

Peace, balance and yoga: in real life.

We're happy, worried, soaking in all the family time and utterly exhausted by the end of each day all at once.

First, let’s chat about peace.

You decide.

After peace, I try to create a little balance in our day.

1. Make a list of "non-negotiables"

2. Set a schedule

3. Do yoga

I have learned that in order for me to have a successful home practice, I had to reconstruct what the word "successful" means.

But some of us need to check our yoga-egos (I know I did) at our own front door.

4 Reasons You Should Do Yoga When Social Distancing

Nah. It's time to do yoga.

Here are 4 major reasons you need yoga now more than ever:

CLICK HERE FOR ONLINE YOGA CLASSES

When you practice yoga, you:

Are you ready to start a yoga practice? Join any of our online classes here.

VIDEO: Beginners tutorial for Bikram yoga practice at (your) home

Why you need a routine, and how to get one -- Guest post by Lael Petersen

Routines create predictability and reduce our stress level.

“Kaizen” is a Japanese term that refers to small, continuous improvement.

This is what I teach in the Vibrant Life Program.

VIDEO: Big hot news from Home!

Our new identity...

Watch this video for the whole scoop:

Scroll down for the REALLY BIG announcement...

APRIL FOOLS!!!!

Author

Archives

Categories

Peace, balance and yoga: in real life.

We're happy, worried, soaking in all the family time and utterly exhausted by the end of each day all at once.

First, let’s chat about peace.

You decide.

After peace, I try to create a little balance in our day. ​

1. Make a list of "non-negotiables"

2. Set a schedule

3. Do yoga

I have learned that in order for me to have a successful home practice, I had to reconstruct what the word "successful" means.

But some of us need to check our yoga-egos (I know I did) at our own front door.

4 Reasons You Should Do Yoga When Social Distancing

Nah. It's time to do yoga.

Here are 4 major reasons you need yoga now more than ever:

CLICK HERE FOR ONLINE YOGA CLASSES

When you practice yoga, you:

Are you ready to start a yoga practice? Join any of our online classes here.

VIDEO: Beginners tutorial for Bikram yoga practice at (your) home

Why you need a routine, and how to get one -- Guest post by Lael Petersen

Routines create predictability and reduce our stress level.

“Kaizen” is a Japanese term that refers to small, continuous improvement.

This is what I teach in the Vibrant Life Program.

VIDEO: Big *hot* news from Home!

Our new identity...

Watch this video for the whole scoop:

Scroll down for the REALLY BIG announcement...

APRIL FOOLS!!!!

Author

Archives

Categories

After peace, I try to create a little balance in our day.

VIDEO: Big hot news from Home!