Gratitude

In my private yoga training, I have been working on setting intentions for my practice. In line with that, I selected a home practice based on Shiva Rea's empowering sequence in Yoga Journal. In this flow, Shiva Rea assigns mantras associated with the specific emotions evoked by each asana.

As I worked through these poses and focused my intentions, I was overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude. The vinyasa yoga flow was indeed empowering and as I moved through each posture, I became aware of my own strength and possibility. I felt a profound gratefulness for my body, for the movements that I am able to make, for carrying me through my life.

So often, we take our bodies for granted ... not thinking of them at all, or simply treating them like a shell, or even a hindrance. We abuse our bodies by eating poorly, ignoring signs of sickness, willfully engaging in habits that damage our bodies like smoking.

But our body is our life. We experience our lives through our bodies. We all have to meet our physical needs - on a daily basis - before we can accomplish anything else. As children, we express ourselves physically first. We clap to show happiness, reach up to our mothers to show love, duck our heads when we are shy. When we are healthy, we are happy. When our bodies our strong, our minds are invigorated. The muscles and tendons and ligaments in our bodies support us, allow us to express ourselves and carry us through our lives. Overcoming physical challenges gives us courage to tackle other kinds of situations. When our body's health deteriorates, our lives become tenuous. Instead of ignoring your body, take a moment to say "thank you" for all the work your body does taking care of you. Make sure that you are taking care of it!

Today I am thankful that I have a healthy body.

Today's workout:
60 min. elliptical (interval program) (5.72 mi)
35 min. resistance training
60 min. yoga