New Year; Full Moon

Wolf Moon, Old Moon, Moon After Yule. I find the names of the different full moons to be pretty interesting. I don't pretend to know a lot about the moon, it's just always been a point of interest for me. Now, I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel the energy present at the time of the full moon. I'm incredibly aware of the full moon and all the goodness it brings me on a monthly basis. For January, I read that the full moon was in line with Sirius, the dog star. So that created this awesome GUIDING quality to the full moon; perfect to start the new year! Sages tell us the full moon is a great time to shed things that don't serve us; to start over, in a way. I definitely felt that this month, as I've been solidifying my intentions for the year over the weekend. With the full moon last night, I feel that this week is a great time for me to "start" on the changes I want to make this year.

I purchased The Ultimate Yogi dvd collection with the intention of starting on January 8th, and getting back in the swing of a daily, home asana practice. However, I know myself so well that it'll be nothing short of a bona-fide miracle if I make it to the mat every. single. day. So, for me personally, I'm going to shoot for every other day, ultimately working up to a daily practice. That will still be a challenge for me, and I expect to finish my first attempt at the program in May or June. Another modification I'm going to make is in regards to the diet. Again, I have a hard enough time with eating well/clean as is, so I'm going to set the goal of being 80% better. Eating better is a priority for me this year, but I don't see myself doing the 3 day diet challenges that the UY program presents.

 Maybe sometime in the future I'll be ready to do the challenge in 108 consecutive days, no cheats, and follow the 3 day diet plans, but I truly feel that my modifications will be challenge enough for where I am right now. The last thing I want to do is overwhelm myself and quit (I've been known to do this).

A couple other things you can expect to see on this blog are:

*Personal writings to help me be more expressive

* Trying new recipes to help me eat better (like almond flour tortillas and other "clean" goodies)

*Book musings and after-thoughts

*Things that inspire me (articles, music, images, etc.)

2015 is MY year. I'm going to do what I think is best for me, how I think it'll work best for me. And I'm sticking to that! Feel free to follow this blog and check back regularly. I'll be posting a lot about The Ultimate Yogi program for the first part of the year, but I hope to see this blog mature as the months go on! Stay tuned for yoga, health, and inspiration!

my yoga

I'm passionate about yoga.

My other blog encompasses every aspect of my life, from family and friends, to food, to personal challenges, and things that make me smile or stop and think. This blog is meant to be all things yoga, especially pertaining to my personal journey through this beautiful lifestyle. Yes, yoga is a lifestyle for me. I want to live it, breathe it, dream it, eat it.

I began dabbling in yoga in 2007. About a year and a half ago I realized my life was empty, cold, and severely lacked discipline and direction. I began to hate myself. Then one day, I found absolute solace in my simple daily practice. It was around that time, gradually, that yoga became a big priority to me. It allowed me to stop, breathe and live. I felt alive practicing yoga when my bad moods engulfed my life.

There is still a lot I have to learn about Yoga, but I feel that [finally] I'm on the right path for me. Thus far, asanas have been the bulk of my practice, but I'm very eager to start studying and learning more about pranayama and meditation. Books help. Oh, how I love books.

I'll use this blog to keep me motivated. I'll also share whatever I might discover on the internet that helps me in my journey so that, hopefully, it can help some one else in their journey. But mostly, this is a blog, an online journal of sorts, to help me track my progress and notice the things my body is telling me at any given time. In the past year that yoga has been a driving force in my life, I've become much more aware of my body and its needs. I've noticed that sometimes, some weeks, some asanas are beyond my grasp. I might lose sirsasana for a week, or find out I can't do uttanasana when I'm sick. And that's okay. These things don't keep my from my mat, instead they encourage me to look for alternative paths so that I can practice yoga every day, in every aspect of my life.

Namaste :)