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Growing through gratitude
Nov 08, 2019
Life can throw a lot at us, especially at work. And when we are in the thick of things with long TO DO lists, clients, and distractions it can be challenging to be grateful for all of it....am I right?
However, if we manage to keep our cool and approach each moment with an open mind and a willingness to learn we can. This approach, which is called the growth mindset, is a powerful lens to look through (and thankfully one we can develop and hone).
The essence of the growth mindset is to always be looking for the lesson in the situation so that we can learn and grow and become the fullest version of our self.
So by taking a step back and looking at the situation from a wider lens we can learn to ask better open ended questions such as: What can I learn from this? What is the universe trying to tell me? What tools do I have to handle this situation?
These are far different from the opposite fixed mindset that asks closed ended questions such as: Why is this happening to me? Why can't ...
Ready, set, gratitude: FREE Gratitude Challenge starts today!
Nov 01, 2019
I'm proud to say that today is day 823 of my daily gratitude practice! What started as a suggestion from a friend over two and a half years ago is now a staple of my morning routine that I love.
The suggestion to start this practice came to me when I was in a dark period in my life, struggling with depression and lack of motivation. So I thought, why not give it a go? And I'm so glad I did.
The interesting thing that I have learnt since is that a daily gratitude practice is scientifically proven to help people with depression by increasing levels of serotonin, shifting their outlook and improving their mood.
It is for these reasons (and so many more that I will share with you over the next month) that on November 1st I started a free 30 day gratitude challenge on my Facebook page and Instagram page!
Science tells us that in as little as 20 seconds a day, feeling authentically grateful stimulates a release of dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin that helps you feel happy, calm and con...
3 Ways That Being Stressed Out Slows You Down at Work and in Life (and what to do about it)
Oct 14, 2019
Does this sound familiar....?
Alerts pinging you from your email and phone, the world's longest to do list, clients sending in bizarre requests, sessions to be at and others to plan for, with no end in sight. You might even be clocking mad overtime hours and taking your work home with you, giving you no downtime to recover.
Stress at this level can be absolutely crippling to your performance, health, and ultimately your happiness, plus it's one of the biggest threats to work place productivity.
While some stress is helpful because it lights a fire under your booty to motivate you to take action, chronically high levels of stress can lead to burnout, chronic fatigue, insomnia, anxiety, and depression. Plus, stress is a risk factor for every major chronic disease!
A quarter of all Americans feel that their job is the most stressful part of their life!
This means that it is absolutely important that we become aware of some of the telltale signs that you or someone yo...
Stressed to the max at work?
Oct 07, 2019
If so, you are definitely not alone and the truth is that way too many people feel this way!
Chronic stress can wreak havoc on your health and happiness, yet is something that far too many people deal with on a daily basis simply because they don't yet know what to do to ease the burden.
While some stress is helpful to get us up and motivated to take action, if left unchecked, stress can quickly take a toll on your body and your mind.
Take my client Emily for example: who when dealing with major family stress developed lower back issues and sciatica pain. Since it is very common for problems to manifest as physical symptoms it was essential that we integrated relaxation techniques plus stretches and exercises to help her feel like herself again and get out of pain. And thankfully she did!
Far too many people wait until they are in pain or are super stressed to take action because they think they just don't have the time, know how, or resources to change things.
Thankfully, there...
Desk job giving you neck and shoulder pain? Mini Yoga Breaks will help!
Oct 03, 2019
Have you ever said to yourself: It's not worth doing ______________
(fill in the blank with: Yoga or Stretching or Exercising) because I only have a few minutes?
If you have, you are definitely not alone! Learn more in this week's Vitality Tip!
It's funny how sometimes we use this logic on ourselves right?
By telling yourself: unless I have X amount of time, it's really not going to do any good or make me feel any better. FALSE!
The truth is: every little bit counts and does have the potential to make you feel better!
But the mind can be a funny thing sometimes. Talking you out of taking a few minutes to move, breath, and stretch by spinning a story about how its pretty much a waste of time unless you can do it for a long time......weird logic!
The truth is it is ideal to be moving your body frequently throughout the day, by getting up often, changing positions, moving around etc...all things that may not happen that often when you are working on a computer.
We all know how...
Deep Breaths for Less Stress Workshop
Sep 11, 2019
ARE YOU STRESSED? If you are like 50% of the population you just might be.
Stress, it seems, has become an epidemic, with many of you reporting in our recent survey that you feel stressed out at work more often than you would like.
But what can you do when you are dealing with long to do lists at home and at work, chronic tension draining your energy and no end in sight?
The mistake many people make is just to push through, drink more coffee, and take "unnecessary things" like exercise and mediation off the list of things to do.
It turns out that continually making this mistake is not only costly to productivity and happiness but can potentially be risky to your health.
Because it lowers immune function, increases chronic tension and increases blood pressure and cholesterol, stress is implicated in every major chronic disease from IBS, to heart disease, to obesity, to diabetes and cancer.
Ironically, the hustle and bustle pace of our busy lives means that making time to relax ...
Back to School, Back to You Challenge Starting Monday September 9th
Sep 05, 2019
It's back to school time so that means it's the perfect time to get back into your routine too!
Life can be busy and work gets hectic so that means its super important that you take care of yourself!
This 5 day mini challenge is the perfect way to kick that off and give you tools to:
-ease chronic tension in your neck and shoulders
-strengthen your muscles so you stand and walk taller
-have consistent energy all day long
-lower your stress levels
-boost your focus and creativity to get more done!
All in just a few minutes everyday because Yoga is amazing like that ;)
Ready to sign up? Right on! You can by joining the Yoga at My Desk Tribe here
Because it works on many systems and parts of your body simultaneously Yoga is the ultimate vehicle to help you optimize your health on all levels!
The hard truth is that sitting can take a big toll on your body so it is vital that you take breaks...
Think working out will prevent sitting disease? Think again!
Aug 27, 2019
You work out, you get enough sleep, and drink half your body weight in water everyday and if you are like most people you will think this is enough to stay healthy....but here's the crazy thing: it isn't. Many people mistakenly believe that just because they exercise regularly that sitting all day won't effect them. But unfortunately this just isn't true. Even people that work out on a regular basis are still at risk for sitting disease.
Sitting disease...what's that?
Sitting disease is a collection of risk factors used to describe the negative health impacts of a sedentary (or in-active) lifestyle. These risk factors include: obesity around the mid section, high blood pressure, high blood sugar and high blood cholesterol. These factors make it far more likely that someone will get injured, get sick more often, get diabetes, develop chronic disease and even die younger.
Given that people sit anywhere from 7.8 to 11 hours a day sitting disease is becoming an epidemic in many industri...
No bones about it: Yoga is amazing!
Aug 12, 2019
By now I'm sure that you have realized that Yoga has a long list of benefits such as relieving back pain and neck tension, lowering your stress level and boosting your productivity to name just a few! But did you know that it helps you build strong and healthy bones too?
Pretty awesome right?
In the poses we are placing our joints in a variety of positions which helps to circulate their fluid and stimulates renewal of cartilage, tendons and ligaments.
Simultaneously, the bones are isometrically subjected to forces many times those of gravity, which causes them to grow stronger.
Yoga uses such a variety of positions that it stimulates the muscles and joints from all sides! Which is also fantastic for building strength AND maintaining flexibility.
This signals the mechanosensor cells within our bones called osteocytes, which then recruit osteoblasts, the cells that build new bone, telling them it’s time to get to work.
Within 10 seconds of...
Under pressure: How slouching is taking a toll on us and what we can do about it right away!
Aug 05, 2019
It's hard to avoid. We may not even realize we are doing it. It's far more common that you might think.
What am I talking about?
SLOUCHING!
We have only to look at this very telling photo to get a clear picture of what is happening to our spines when we slouch.
On the right we have Mr Blue, a shining example of strong posture. Notice how well aligned he is: ears over shoulders, shoulders stack over hips. This is the natural alignment of our spine; the one that allows easy movement, support for the spine, free flow of oxygen and energy.
On the left we have Mr Green: in the classically rounded over computer position. Notice how far forwards his shoulders are, not to mention his head! In a slouched C curve like this the amount of pressure on his lower back is 185 mm and his head is so far forward it is probably weighing in at 45 pounds. Likely rather uncomfortable to say the least!
So what can we do? Take reg...