I SHOULD PROBABLY TAKE IT
Hello there! I hope this week finds you floating down a river on a comfy tube and hanging out with the people that make you happy. I'm sipping Breakfast Tracks Tea this morning and thinking about how I might need to take my own advice once in a while. :)
In class this week, we have been talking about the idea of ease. What it means to find ease in your body, your practice, your day, your life. Things can still get tough or sticky or full-on awful but to me, finding ease is all about not making things harder than they need to be. Or simply accepting that there's an ebb and flow to what we feel, and thinking about how we can lean into that rather than struggle against it.
If you follow me on Instagram, then you may have seen me posting over the past few days about returning to my yoga practice in a way that feels good to me. As a yoga teacher, I always want to practice what I preach and somewhere along the way I put intense pressure on myself to have a daily practice. It had to be at least an hour. It had to be rigorous and I had to feel like I was getting stronger and more flexible. I think especially in a big body, I have historically felt extra pressure to prove my worth in this space.
Ummmmm....record scratch!
That's definitely not practicing what I preach, and if anything it was making me practice less. My classes are all about finding what feels good to you. Doing things in a way that allows freedom, space and longevity. By setting a pace that I ultimately couldn't keep up with, I took the joy out of a practice that I truly love and put standards on myself that I wouldn't hold anyone else to.
At the end of the day there is a rhythm to everything. Some days we feel energetic and driven and focused and some days we feel quiet and steady and solitary. And then there are the days where we feel the spectrum of feelings. All of these are beautiful and valid. And they deserve to be honoured. If we only recognize the days when we feel energetic and driven and our bodies feel good and strong, then we are denying or worse, feeling shameful about those other days.
So I'm slowing down and asking myself each day what I need and what might feel good. It's not always comfortable to be honest about what I need, but it has definitely brought with it a sense of ease that I've been looking for and talking about in my classes. There's no right way to do something. Your needs may change over time or depending on what's going on around you. It's all about what you need day to day, moment to moment and that's okay. It's actually pretty magical when you explore the idea of working in harmony with yourself and your body.
And in the spirit of finding ease in your body and life (and because I teased you with it last week!), I'm very excited to announce that I am launching a Patreon! Fat + Happy is a space where I will share the things that help me feel good in my life and body and I hope they will help you too. I'm learning alongside you and I can't wait to share what I discover!
As always, as you move through your week, remember to treat yourself and your body with love, respect and kindness.
Much love,
Helen xo
