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| Fit-Twist Yoga |
Here are the five more secrets that I want to share with you:
1. Gratitude: I appreciate my body and what it does for me. I am grateful for cooking healthy food that tastes great. I am thankful for all the benefits of a regular yoga practice that empowered me to fulfill my highest purpose.
2. Happiness: Being present, enjoying each moment is really good. It is the secret to lasting happiness. I source joy from every day experiences and no longer chase after elusive things that brings instant gratification but do not serve my purpose.
3. Insight: Create space and time to reflect, to ask deep questions about what is meaningful to you. Find your passion and purpose.
4. Community/ belonging: Yoga is all inclusive. Everyone is welcome regardless of age, race, size, religion, income, status, etc. It's the great equalizer because yoga teaches that we are all one. I love the yoga community, Studies show that loneliness is harmful to our health and well-being. A sense of belonging and community is very important if we want to be healthy inside out.
5. Mindfulness: I was not aware of how much harm I was doing to my body with my diet and exercise regimes. I struggled with weight since childhood and was called "Fat Girl". I was bullied and teased for a long time. I got sick and tired of being known as "Fat Girl" so I managed to lose 40 pounds in less than a year. I was thin and I proud of myself, but I wasn't happy. I didn't feel like I was good enough or thin enough. I ran every day as part of my high school tennis team and loved the high that I got afterwards. I ate less, ran more and got a flat belly. Little did I know that I was anorexic. Yoga allowed me to get in touch with the hurt and trauma, to ask for help from a coach and let go of my sad story. I still tend to be hard on myself, but I catch this bad habit and remind myself to be kind. Are you mindful of your internal dialogue? Do your thoughts and beliefs empower you or sabotage you? Are you mindful of what you consume? Do you let bad news, gossip and negativity affect you? Do you choose food that is "real, whole and good" for you or do you eat fake fast food because it's convenient? Be a "Guardian to your mind, body and soul".
6. Self-care and self-love
If we don't love ourselves and take care of our health, how are we able to love and take care of other people? In The Power of Partnership, Riane Eisler wrote about Your Relationship with Yourself (the mind body and spirit connection). "Common sense would say that you should treat yourself like (a best friend but many of us are quite mean and nasty to ourselves. "We criticize ourselves unmercifully (and have) an inner tyrant who keeps saying (mean thinigs to us)". Be aware of your self-talk. Is it empowering you or sabotaging you? We are either our best friends or our worst enemies. I was called "fat, clumsy and stupid" so often as a child that I believed that there was something wrong with me. I struggled with body shame and low self-esteem as an adult. Yoga helped me connect to the inner truth and love myself (flaws and all). Thanks to my coaches and yoga, I let go of my sad old story so that I could create a happy new one. Everyone has a story, but when you are the victim in that story, you feel helpless and hopeless. I want to let you know that you can create a better, healthier story by choosing to practice self-love.
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| My Daily Choice |
Ingrid Cheng
Author of The Anti-aging Secrets of Yoga
Health Coach
Yoga Teacher
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