because #yogaeverydamnday // 30 days of yoga

I did it.

I completed a 30-day yoga challenge.

I showed up on the mat (aka the yoga mat that I do not have) every day for 30 days. I documented it on Instagram because we all know I needed some sort of accountability. Thanks for the social peer pressure and encouragement Instagram friends.

Not to be too dramatic, but it was kind of life changing.

#yogaeverydamnday

My Why.

It was simple - I needed to practice gratitude.

I started doing yoga (inconsistently) in July. I got overly confident - I thought that yoga was too easy (idiot) - and started doing cardio. August 6th I almost passed out 3 times in the first 10 minutes of the cardio routine I was doing. I was lying on the floor so upset with myself, my body and my faulty autonomic nervous system. And I realized something. This was not healthy. (More about this in the blog post Life with a Chronic Illness: learning to exhale) It was the opposite of healthy. I quit cardio, which honestly was fantastic cause I hate cardio. I think it more hurt my pride to quit something because I had to. I started doing yoga again. Then life and a flare up got in the way and I was back to doing nothing. I restarted 30 Days of Yoga with Adriene on September 23rd with the sole intent to practice and cultivate gratitude for my health and my body's abilities. I wanted to move away from focusing on my health issues and the many things my body or autonomic nervous system did not allow me to do.

intention [in-ten-shuh n]
noun 
the act of determining mentally upon some action or result

Each day after showing up on the imaginary yoga mat, I would set an intention(s) for that specific day. Gratitude was always my first intention and sometimes my only intention. Trust me I did not love every day of yoga. However, it was life changing. Here are some intentions that really resonated with me over the past 30 days. 

Make space.
Find your breath.
Focus on balance.
Slow down to transform.
Patience with the process.
Stop waiting for the next move, enjoy right now.
Be present, grounded and focused.
Commit to my practice.
Find stillness, allow rest.
Keep a sense of wonder (no yoga robots).

I laugh now because I used to (wrongly) think that yoga was easy. It is not. This yoga challenge has strengthened me both physically and mentally. My health journey is just that - a journey. No more hard and fast goals or end points or deadlines that have to be met. I'm just going to inhale, exhale and stretch my way from intention to intention. I am so excited to continue on my health journey with an extra tool - yoga - and to carry these intentions with me on and off the mat.

I have to brag. Now I am able to do a headstand consistently. It's not mastered, it's not perfect but I can do it. Me with my dysfunctional autonomic system can do a headstand. Holla!!!

I'll leave you with my favorite intention - take good care. This means something different for everyone. For me it meant starting a Whole30 on day 24 for who knows how long. I committed to 15 days but I have an inkling it might go longer.

So yes, take good care friends.

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I'm taking a break through the end of the month to just enjoy my yoga practice on my own and process the changes that I've experienced. I will be starting up another 30 day yoga challenge on November 1st. You should probably consider joining me. Here the link for the orientation video for 30 days of Yoga Camp.