Take a walk. But not just any walk. Take an Intention Walk. Begin by standing with your feet solid on the ground about hip distance apart with your arms at your sides, shoulders and facial muscles relaxed. This is Mountain Pose or tadasana. Set an intention for your walk (this can also be carried into your day). An intention is always set in present tense as if it has already happened. When you repeat your intention to yourself with clarity and conviction, a sense of gratitude should arise. A feeling of being thankful that this has already come to pass.
With your intention set, begin to walk. Bring your attention to your breath. Notice the rhythm of the breath. Count how many steps for each inhale and for each exhale. Try to match them and lengthen each. Without losing focus on your breath, bring your attention to the bottoms of your feet. Notice everything there is to notice about what is going on with your feet: how the soles of your feet are connecting with the earth, if the toes are pointed outward or inward, heels first? how is each ankle working? Becoming aware of the tiniest details. Next we will work our way up through the entire leg, spending some time in the hip area. Do your hips swing side to side as you walk, or do you hold them tight? Now, exaggerate your hips swinging as you walk. Really let them swing. Feel how good it feels. Maybe a bit silly, but notice the smile on your lips. Now, relax back into your natural walk, possibly noticing that area a bit more open. Notice your arms and shoulders. Are your arms swinging? Are they relaxed? Don’t change anything, simply observe, all the while keep checking in with the breath. Continue to observe various parts of the body as you walk.
Once you have gone about half the distance you planned to walk, with partial focus remaining on the breath, shift your attention outward. Notice the people you pass, the plants and animals; notice colors, sounds, smells. Pay attention to details. Now notice what you are noticing. Allow any thoughts or judgments to flow in and out just like the tide.
Being aware of your body and your surroundings is an easy way to bring mindfulness into your everyday. If this is practiced on a regular basis, you may find yourself being mindful throughout the day as you brush your teeth, or wash the dishes. Learning the art of mindfulness is the first step in bringing true joy and peace into your life.
The Buddha was asked, “What do you and your disciples practice?” and he replied, “We sit, we walk and we eat.” The questioner continued, “But sir, everyone sits, walks and eats.” The Buddha told him, “When we sit, we know we are sitting. When we walk, we know we are walking. When we eat, we know we are eating.”
Now… go take a walk, and know you are walking.
January 4th, 2009
I would like to start a conversation about questions, comments, ah-ha’s and discoveries of cruisers in the area of health and wellness. Some topics open for discussion are:
exercise
nutrition
meditation
living green (healthy planet, healthy body)
yoga
inspirational books & movies
What else? What issues are there that we as a community need to address so we can live healthy laughter filled lives?
I look forward to hearing from you!
Peace, Love & Laughter!
Kim
January 4th, 2009
Ah… 2009 A year of hope, a year of change. The days prior to the first day of our calendar year had me feeling excited and eager for all that was to come. Part of the reason I am so excited is that I have been working on my INTENTION setting. The energy, the structure, the actions needed to fulfill and maintain any desire I choose. I have read a lot of books, meditated, prayed and most importantly put into action several ideas and goals that I have had. All with positive outcomes. Whether that means I achieved the exact outcome I desired, or was given the opportunity of clarity to see why I didn’t achieve that particular outcome. What I have discovered is that the key to setting intentions is believing first and taking action on that BELIEF. Living your life as if your desire has already come to pass. There are those that believe once they are able to see, and those that believes in order to see. I am one of the later.
New Years resolutions. How many times have we declared our resolutions (a firm decision to do or not to do something) only to abandon them within the first couple of weeks. They say that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. What I know is that intentions without action will not get results. So many times we read information about setting goals/intentions and think it is as easy as making daily affirmations and it will come to pass. That is only partly true. Affirmations are important to the extent that they convince the mind that something is truth. We are basically brainwashing ourselves for better. Just like we brainwash ourselves of negative. We are in essence changing our minds. The mind is a powerful tool that we have forgotten how to use.
In addition to affirmations or positive thinking or whatever you want to call it, ACTION is necessary. No one ever got rich or lost weight or (fill in the blank) by sitting around thinking about something. When a clear intention is set, believed and action steps are implemented, the rest can be let go. There is no struggle, no stress, no worry. Aligning ourselves with positive vibrations or thoughts and activities that make us feel good assure that our intentions will come true.
I have several intentions that I am looking forward to coming to pass in this upcoming year. I am excited because I am taking action that will see these intentions become reality.
CLEAR INTENTION + BELIEF + ACTION = DESIRED RESULTS
What is your intention(s) for this upcoming year?
What actions will be necessary for you to achieve this desire?
How does it feel knowing that you can have or be or do anything you truly desire? (This is a whole other topic… sometimes what we say we want isn’t really what we want, based on the results we are getting in our lives.)
See you in 2010! 2009 was a great year!
Peace, love & laughter
Kim
tropicyoga.com
January 4th, 2009
