How I Stay Sane

Hej Hej from Sweden, where my family has been spending a fun week exploring and eating our way through Stockholm and now immersing ourselves in the local ski culture and reuniting with dear friends.
Last month, I wrote about sprouting seeds and sure enough, many ideas planted during the past year began to germinate all at once. Among them, one that I am particularly stoked to share with you is a Yoga Retreat that I am hosting next fall…in the Maldives! More information on this and other happenings is on the website, under "My Offerings."  With several new projects to tend to, I have been deeply grateful to have my daily practices to rely on for support, energy, and balance.
As with many good habits, it takes commitment, patience, and time to establish a healthy routine, but a minor disruption or a short break—like a holiday--can be all it takes to land us back in outworn patterns.
Because it’s unrealistic—and also no fun—to try to maintain our diet, fitness, and lifestyle habits all the time, we can determine which healthy habits are most essential to maintaining our well-being and stick with them no matter what. Knowing which habits of eating, exercising, and daily living are absolutely key to keeping us feeling good means that when we go on holiday or have extra demands at work or home or face some other interruption to our daily routine, we not only withstand the change, but we flourish through the challenge.
My essential habits are:
1.Drink hot water in the morning
2. Practice yoga asana and meditation
3. Eat Greens
Wherever I am in the world, whatever items are on the to-do list, however jam-packed the day may be, I make sure to do these three actions to the degree that is possible that day.
Ultimately, however, it is not the actions themselves that matter as much as it is the feeling or flavor—the bhavana—with which we act. No matter how many green smoothies you imbibe, sun salutations you perform, or hours you spend in silence on your cushion, if you’re doing it with the aim to fix, perfect, improve or punish yourself, you’d might as well to sit on your couch drinking beer and watching reality television—it’s a lot less effort and will lead you to the same results: unfulfilled, disconnected, and probably very bloated. On the other hand, when our actions arise out of our own heart’s deepest intention, the results are behaviors that enable us to thrive..
Perhaps you can spend some time considering which habits are fundamental for you to feel good in your body, mind, and spirit? Write them down. Do them every day. No excuses.
Feel good every day no matter what.