Yogamatters Reclaim Sticky Yoga Mat
With the launch of Yogamatters’ brand new Reclaim Sticky yoga mat and the arrival of a brand new Spring season, it seems like the perfect time to reflect upon how we might also think about newness within ourselves. Spring is nature’s ‘New Year’, and whilst the first day of January may have been the man-made calendar date for setting resolutions and overhauling habits, Spring is actually a much more natural and supportive month to make changes, focus on renewal, and to reinvent ourselves.
Just like the original Sticky yoga mat that has served its purpose perfectly for decades and supported so many yoga journeys, this isn’t about making huge changes to your mind or body. You are absolutely and without a doubt, absolutely perfect and 100% ‘good enough’ as you are. This is not about adding, improving, or denying yourself, but about removing the obstacles that prevent you from simply being your happiest, most peaceful, truest self. This isn’t about needing to be ‘better’ or different, but about evolving and adapting to life, becoming stronger, more resilient, and remarkable than you let yourself believe.
So if you feel like de-cluttering, renewing and re-setting, read on for five ways to reinvent yourself this Spring:
Spring Cleanse
After the darkness and heaviness of Winter, the lightness of Spring may have us craving a sense of physical and mental lightness too and there are natural foods that are perfect for a spring detox. All around us, bitter greens like chard and chicory are growing and are the exact nutrients that support the body’s ability to naturally detox. Herbs like cleavers, wild garlic, nettle and dandelion are also beneficial for the liver and gallbladder, which Traditional Chinese Medicine advises we pay attention to cleansing throughout this season too. If Winter was all about comfort foods, stews, festive feasts and fireside treats, Spring is all about consuming digestion-boosting spices like ginger, fennel, cumin and black pepper, and opting for steamed veg and seasonal produce. Head to your local farmer’s market to see the foods in-season, and try whipping up some cleansing seasonal smoothies and meals with them. The freshness of seasonal produce and stimulating spice will help you feel more renewed and revived with each bite!
De-Clutter
With the extra time at home over the past year, you may have ‘Spring cleaned’ your house more than once already, but when the flowers start to bloom and the skies are clearer, it can encourage us to want to clear things out too. De-cluttering has the simultaneous bonus of cultivating a clearer, calmer physical space, whilst also calming our minds too. Walking into a chaotic room can cause an exacerbation of ‘Vata’ energy (characterised by wind, air, ether, and feelings of being scattered and anxious), whilst entering an orderly room containing only the objects that ‘spark joy’ is entirely mood-boosting and soothing. An important step of renewing yourself via the practice of de-cluttering is to really commit to removing anything that holds ‘old energy’. If you’ve been hoarding magazines, clothes or paperwork you no longer need, it’s time to let them go. If you have photos or gifts from past relationships, the memories attached to them can keep you stuck in the past, and prevent you from truly moving on. Letting go of sentimental objects can be difficult, but it’s almost always the very medicine we need in order to move on from emotional blocks and old habitual patterns. Start slow and be mindful of what you honestly need to keep, and what is keeping you from evolving.
Streamline Your Routine
Yogamatters Reclaim Sticky Yoga Mat
Taking an inventory of how we spend each day can be a revealing and transformational way to make change. For the next week or so, write a diary of each day and record what you’ve been doing. Honestly. Did you spend half an hour mindlessly scrolling through social media? Did most of the day consist of ruminating over something you can’t control? Did you snap at your partner simply because you skipped breakfast and your blood sugar was low? By writing down our habitual or unconscious actions, we can make them conscious. When we’re conscious of our actions, we can choose to continue doing them, or to strip away the things that drag us down, and keep only that which supports who we want to be. Once you’ve stripped away what you no longer need, start to write down what you do want to do each day. Remember to plan-in not only work and productivity, but also resting, you-time and fun!
You do you
Saying yes to things we don’t want to do is an easy way to keep other people happy, and keep ourselves unhappy. If you can’t remember the last time you said a loud, confident ‘no’ to something you truly didn’t want to do, now is the time! When I first read Sarah Knight’s book You Do You, her advice on saying ‘no’ was a total game-changer for me. It helped me realise where I’d been living out of fear, and where I could start to make small changes in what I decided to say ‘yes’ to, and what I was only saying ‘yes’ to because I felt I had to. When we start honouring our truth, and really sticking up for ourselves, we liberate ourselves and evolve beyond our current limitations. Very often, saying ‘yes’ to things we don’t really want to do is an act of fear; fear of what others will think of us; fear of losing something or someone; fear of conflict; or simply fear of the unknown. Saying ‘yes’ when what we really want to do is to scream ‘no’ keeps us stuck in old, fearful patterns. The longer we continue these patterns, the more difficult they are to break, so if you want to make a shift and cultivate a sense of renewal this Spring, practice the art of saying ‘no’ more often!
Visualise & Realise
Manifestation isn't a buzz word. Our minds have the very powerful ability to influence our future in an astonishingly accurate way. Believe it or not, the ‘law of attraction’ is more realistic than it may sound. According to Quantum Field Theory, whatever we think about can essentially ‘direct’ our lives. Many theorists say that our brains and bodies cannot tell the difference between a real event and an event we powerfully cultivate in our minds (this is why athletes and musicians benefit so much from visualising their performances). When we attach a powerful emotion to a thought (such as becoming healthier, or feeling happier in life), we release hormonal chemicals into the body that make it feel as though it really is feeling healthier or happier. To put it simply, if we want to become happier or healthier, we can’t just sit around and wait for it to happen, we have to practice being happier and healthier. To quote author, researcher and lecturer Joe Dispenza; “When you change your energy, you change your life”. There’s nothing to lose in giving it a go, so step away from fearful thoughts, and start focusing on the future you want right now! Make it a regular practice and you could renew, re-set and reinvent yourself in no time at all!
Find the Yogamatters Reclaim Sticky yoga mat here.
The post Spring Cleanse: 5 Ways to Renew, Re-Set & Reinvent appeared first on Yogamatters Blog.
By: Emma Newlyn
Title: Spring Cleanse: 5 Ways to Renew, Re-Set & Reinvent
Sourced From: blog.yogamatters.com/spring-cleanse-5-ways-to-renew/
Published Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2021 18:06:53 +0000
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