Yoga Ritual with Adriene

This previous week I had the joy of going through a yoga program in Yoga with Adriene's member website.  The experience is a great one and I am planning on returning to it often.

It is a 7 day program called Yoga Ritual, a morning practice that starts with 15 minutes of movement and a 5 minute meditation.  During each of these she has a focus, here are the themes as well as the centering thought that I had with each practice.

     ◈ Day 1: Ground - My intention for the 7 days was to be patient with my thoughts, body and journey.  I can't expect all my goals to be met "now".  They joy is in the journey.
     ◈ Day 2: Stretch - I find that I am stretched too thin, always pushing to get the next thing done. A broken mind or body can't perform well. I need to take the time to rest both to be at my best.
     ◈ Day 3: Core - Our lives take a lot of strength, taking the time to build a strong core makes each aspect a little easier. A strong centered mind, body & soul brings about a strong journey.
     ◈ Day 4: Oxygen - This is one of the best days!!  Oh, to breathe is to be alive.
     ◈ Day 5: Detox - I like to think of detoxing as rinsing.  We can rinse the body of tension, rinse the mind of negative thoughts and rinse the soul of unhappiness.
     ◈ Day 6: Power - Powerful practices are some of my favorites, they leave me feeling like I truly can do anything.  Anything is possible.
     ◈ Day 7: Ease - I began today feeling very sore and tired.  This was a lovely reminder to be gentle with my mind, body and soul.

Along with the program she encourages you to have your own ritual, her suggestion is starting the morning off with a glass of lemon water and a walk each day, any length.  Here is a calendar that she provided to be able to keep track of the journey through the ritual.

For my ritual, I did an extra meditation and journaling each morning.  Each evening I did some movement to improve my strength or endurance.

At the end of the 7th day she also invites you to continue the ritual for 30 days.  I can definitely see the benefit for continuing the ritual as the 7 days certainly helped me feel more centered and relaxed.

Overall the program is great for beginners as well as intermediate and a ritual is definitely something to incorporate in your day to day.  As Adriene always says, find what feels good.  If her suggestions don't work for you...then find what does!!

Featured Image Credit: yogawithadriene.com

Book Feature: The Miracle Morning

To begin our featured books on the blog I thought one of the best to start with is The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod.  This book has certainly changed my life!!

Hal begins by telling what inspired the book to come to be.  The events in his life have not been the easiest and it is amazing that he was able to take all those experiences and create something so special that has helped thousands of people.  Not just to become a morning person but to better every aspect of their lives as well.

The basis of the book is to start each day with what he calls the SAVERS.  Just taking time to do these, even for just a minute each, and start your day with good energy and a positive mindset can make the difference between staying still in life and making those positive life changes.

He has tailored the miracle morning to many different types of people, from families to entrepreneurs, and from what I can find a few different languages as well.  There is something for everyone to learn from this book.  I personally have done so much growing since finding this book.

I went from telling everyone that I was not a morning person and never would be.  I would roll out of bed every morning about 15 minutes before I had to leave the house, throw on whatever clothes were the closest and did my makeup quickly in the car when I got to work.  I spent all day, everyday in a frenzied panic because I would start my day that way.

Now I still do my makeup in the car when I get to work...but the change is how I wake up every morning.  I don't quite yet do everything the book suggests in the morning...but I wake up 2 hours prior to having to leave the house.  I do prayer, meditation, journaling, yoga and sometimes I read while I drink my coffee.  All before I leave the house!!

I have come to learn to LOVE my mornings and my days go so much smoother and I am certainly a happier person!!  All it took was learning to change a few things in my mind and giving it a try.  I still love my evenings as much as I used to so I feel like my life is complete and well rounded.  I feel like I have time to improve myself body, mind and soul!

If you only had enough money to purchase one book today, I would recommend this over any out there. Take the time to start making small changes to your day to be able to find the best you that you can be.  Let me know in the comments how things went for you!

Here are a few places that you can hear from and get in touch with Hal:
Website
Blog
Podcast
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Twitter

Here are the support sites for The Miracle Morning as well.
Website
Facebook