Lifestyle

Photo by Dr. Kristin’s fitness RX

It’s no surprise that so many people have a hard time falling asleep—and getting quality rest once they do.

In today’s hustle-bustle society, many people rush from their beds out into their lives and get back home just in time to crash, before doing it all over again the next day. There aren’t enough hours in the day to accomplish the things we need to get done, let alone getting around to the things we actually enjoy and want to be doing.

When we do finally have some time, we relax by watching TV or reading social media and Internet memes on our smartphones. These kinds of activities actually add more stimuli to an already overloaded lifestyle, making it nearly impossible for our racing minds to settle down.

To prepare yourself for restful sleep, here are three forms of meditations that can help calm the mind and get you into more of a relaxed state so you can get a good night’s rest.

Recapitulation

Recapitulation, as taught by Deepak Chopra, is the act of reviewing your day from start to finish each evening just before falling asleep. This guided visualization can help you relax and even develop witnessing awareness—the fifth level of consciousness, known as Cosmic consciousness. It can also help cultivate lucid dreaming.

To do this, sit upright in your bed just before turning out the lights. Close your eyes and go back to the moment you woke earlier that morning. Review everything that you experienced from the time you woke up all the way to the present moment. Try to stay in a place of just observing your day rather than judging or evaluating your experiences. The recapitulation process should only take a minute or two. Don’t stop along the way and “hang out” in anything that happened along the way.

After doing this, if you need to relax a bit more, you can do some Yoga Nidra, or yogic sleep.

Yoga Nidra

Yoga Nidra is a powerful technique where you learn to relax consciously. The word yoga means union and the word nidra means sleep. It’s referred to as the state of dynamic sleep, where one remains aware. In Yoga Nidra, you’re accessing the state between waking and dreaming where your brainwaves enter the alpha brainwave pattern (Yoga Nidra by Swami Satyananda Saraswati) and you experience a deep state of relaxation. Move away from external stimulus and go inward to achieve this deep relaxation.

The Yoga Nidra process is one that takes you through a sensory experience of relaxing your entire physical body one area at a time, while bringing awareness to sensation. The duration of Yoga Nidra can range anywhere from 10 minutes up to 90 minutes, depending on the amount of time you have and your preferred level of exploration.

Check out this Yoga Nidra script that you can record in your own voice on your smartphone or tablet and play back for yourself as you prepare for rest. This one is about 12 minutes long. If you prefer to use a pre-recorded audio, there is a CD you can purchase called Deep Relaxation – Divine Sleep Yoga Nidra that has a track for insomnia called Put Me to Sleep. There are also numerous free audios you can find online for Yoga Nidra.

If you’re still awake after doing this guided relaxation for the physical body, you can bring in mantra-based sleep meditation.

Om Agasthi Shahina (Ōm Ah-gah´-stee Shah-ee´-nah)

This mantra-based sleep meditation can be highly effective for those who have overactive minds and have difficulty falling asleep.

Repeat the mantra Om Agasthi Shahina— pronounced Ōm Ah-gah´-stee Shah-ee´-nah—silently to yourself. There is no need to synchronize the mantra with your breath; just breathe normally. If your mind drifts away to thoughts, bring your attention back to the repetition of the mantra. At some point, you’ll likely doze off into a restful slumber.

Sweet dreams!

by: Tris Thorp, lead Master Educator at the Chopra Center for Wellbeing. Tris teaches weekly classes at the Chopra Center’s Perfect Health program, the advanced meditation group at Seduction of Silence, and in Chopra Center University’s Instructor Certification Programs. She is certified in Primordial Sound Meditation.

One of my favorite things about visiting new places is discovering new fruit.   All food, yes, but fruit in particular.  It’s just so… effortless.   When I go someplace new the local market is the first place I want to visit, and when I move somewhere new my relationship with my local produce vendor is the one I’m most focused on developing, over and above anything else.  You may say that I am obsessed but I know I’m not  the only one.

Sapote, Zapote in Spanish, is among my favorite fruit discoveries since I’ve moving to Nicaragua.  This is partially because it’s so exotic to me, but mostly because of the way it tastes.  Sapote is a fruit whose flavor profile tends to hang out in the deeper realms of the musical charts.  Bassy, mellow flavors that lack tartness in all ways.   If I were assigning musical instruments to fruit I would say the sapote is best represented by the upright base.  The papaya, for comparison’s sake, the cello.  Pineapple, the viola, and lime the violin.  There you have  your string quartet, and you can eat it too.  Cut into a sapote and you’ll detect notes of burned sugar, like a blackened marshmallow.  But not just that.  It’s floral notes are unmistakable, as though it has been kissed by lavender.  Texture wise it is like a perfectly cooked sweet potato that has been blended with a avocado.  You can see from the pictures how drop dead gorgeous it is. Plain brown on the outside, yes, but look at the hue of orange.  Sunset, in the palm of your hand.

Sapote is a fruit that is very amenable to dairy and coconut-milk based desserts, such as creme brulee, custards, puddings, ice cream and mousses.  Just add them to favorite existing mother recipe and away you go.  It’s also excellent in smoothies and raw desserts, and I have listed two recipes down below for you to try should you be fortunate to find yourself in a place that grows sapote.
​

Sapote Pie or, “raw vegan ”sweet potato” pie”

The first time I bit into a sapote I thought to myself, “this tastes like sweet potato pie.”  And so, this recipe was born.  I use cashews for the crust because they are locally grown where I live, in Nicaragua.  Pecans would work well too.  This is a recipe that is suitable for breakfast as much as it is for dessert.

Filling
2 cups ripe sapote, chopped
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon agar-agar
parchment paper
1/2 teaspoon oil, such as coconut, or vegetable

Pulse the ingredients in the food processor until all the ingredients come together to form a ball.
Line a pie pan with parchment.  Grease the parchment with oil.
Press the nuts into the pan.  Spoon the filling in, chill until set.

Sapote smoothie

A real carotenoid powerhouse blend.  High in cancer fighting antioxidants and great for your eyes.  
1 cup ripe sapote, chopped
1/2 cup ripe papaya, chopped
1/4 cup raw carrot, chopped
1 cup milk, cow,
​coconut or nut milks all work
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup iceBlend everything but the ice.  Once blended add the ice and blend again.  If it’s too thick add more ice and blend again.

1. Remoulding Reality: There is so much we don’t know about what we know. Having been raised in a culture that deeply values hierarchy and money, we have been secretly trained to hold rules that might be enslaving us instead of propelling us forward. Our idea of success is buried in things that don’t touch the Soul, Yoga Trainings begin to ask more. Begging the question again and again, is that true for you, are these ways of existing true for you? Some how in some way, something opens and all of a sudden the need to hustle and feel stressed about not having enough, transforms into “holy shit, I am so taken care of.”

2. Space Holding: Ever feel like no one ever really quite listens to what you are saying? Their physical ear is there, but they’re not hearing the words or the frequency beneath the words?   Well, Yoga Training, helps you to not be that friend. As Teachers, we become guiders in Life whether we chose that or not. When we begin to look at our lives with a higher resolution microscope, we learn things about life and the way it works and in that, we gain empathy, understanding, and compassion. So, when friends and family come to you, you can actually listen with a tuned in ear to the pains they are speaking of without needing to try and push it away with statements like, “it’s going to be all good, he is a jerk any ways, or you’re going to be fine.” Being able to Listen, is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself, your community and humanity.

3. To Live: Yoga Training helps you to understand Life. In this you gain the Courage to really start Living it – outside the bounds of who and what someone told you, you were suppose to be/do. When we start to observe what the body is experiencing, it becomes a beautiful guide that moves you towards your authentic truth. When we are in line with truth, ease arises, and the Dance of life begins underneath our feet.

4. Freedom: I bet you, you often hear a calling for something more and you have been ignoring it for a while now and there is something deep within you that is getting louder and louder asking you to listen. The Souls cry for freedom. Answer that call. The time for change is Now.

5. Strength and SURRENDER: Learning the pulsation of life can help you move through the tough times with more Grace. Unfortunately (fortunately) tough times are an essential part of life and learning; imagine learning from the rough patches in a much less stressful and tumultuous way. Not everything needs to be dealt with head on, Yoga can teach us to surrender to that which we can not change and to look a little deeper in order to see the truth of the matter, which is always humbling and filled with Powerful Teachings.

6. Re-inhabit Intuition: Living in a society that is mostly based on lies, we have grown to stop trusting our intuition. That which guides us to who we are and our highest purpose. This can lead us to wondering, “what am I doing, what is the point?” Not knowing your purpose can make it really hard to wake up each day, moving through the motions that aren’t moving you. Yoga Training can help to build Self-trust and Confidence to stand up for what you are feeling; as well as, offer a space for others to drop their lies and start moving toward speaking truth and having the strength to say the hardest of things. Moving lies out of the body makes space for deeper movements and more profound moments in life. Life becomes much more juicy!

7. Dissolve Suffering: Suffering exists due to undigested emotional experiences, which tend to inhabit the tissues of the body in the strangest ways. As we practice asana, engage in breathe work, and meditate, these stagnancies begin to move, bringing emotions to the forefront giving us a chance to dissolve past happenings and release them from there grip on our day to day living perspective of life.

8. Threshold meets Change: Often, when we reach the edge of something, friction has built and its hot, frustrating, and it feels like it might collapse you, so we turn around and go back to what we already know and that courageous part of us turtles once again. The cycle ensues. What if, you learned to meet these thresholds and had skills to yield through them? You may start to desire these times of great change instead of fear them. Grace may begin to exist as a consistency in your personality.

9. Authentic Self: Who are you? Be that. Scary? Maybe. Impelling? Most definitely. Yoga Training can help you begin to move through life guided by what really serves you in all senses: food, relationships, work, and love life. To live in complete accordance to that which you were designed for.

10. Navigation: Yoga training teaches us how to begin chipping away all the built in patterns that we have created over time through our experience in this life. How does one begin to “listen” to the inner guide, to have courage to follow it no matter what, to speak truth even when the voice quivers and the truth is hard. Observing the journey of Yoga in the body-mind-spirit continuum teaches us so much, allowing us to start observing moments in a much more profound way.

11. Life becomes an Offering: Empathy. Through working on your Self, the vastness of what makes you begins to reveal itself and within that, we start to see that we are all things: crazy, wild, kind, and free. It is only through allowing yourself to experience all of Life’s emotions, that you begin to make space for the uncalculated pathway of others. Each Life, each Soul is having a different experience than you and your way and learning’s may not be their way. Once this is realized, there is space for you to not attach to their experience but rather joyously (sometimes frustrating) observe them as they unfurl, at their own special pace, way, and time. Not to be corrected or fixed, only Loved through the process. The Ultimate offering.

Any Yoga teacher I know or human that has taken a Yoga Training has said they believe that this should be a mandatory life program. I agree.

Namaste

Written by Breathe in Life teacher, Sarah Zandbeek. Join Sarah on her 200 HR YTT in India this November 2016.

We have been through several months of ups and downs, emotional extremes, fits and starts, breakthroughs and changes, despairs and elations, successes and failures. We are a little road weary and slightly hyper vigilant about “keeping it all together”. So the theme this month is BALANCE because that is what we all desperately need at this time and the influences of the times support it.

It is a time to carve out space for assimilation and integration of what we have gone through in the past months of both conscious and subconscious changes and much personal growth. There is an edge to this month and personal boundaries will be tested as we strive for more balance in our lives. It will be important not to over react but rather to see balance in terms of boundaries more as a dance than a hard edge. It is a great month to observe and tackle any addictive behaviors, black and white belief systems, extreme mood swings, irrational fears and attachments to anything in the past.

We have an opportunity to start a new chapter this month launched by a beautiful new moon on September 30. This new chapter needs to have us looking forward not back. RELATIONSHIP is another theme for this month and works with BALANCE by inviting us to bring everything that is out of balance into right relationship.

What does BALANCE look like?

There is balance between doing and being. We all know what “doing” looks like and some of us have been “doing” way too much. The irrational fear is that if you loosen up the “doing” somehow everything will fall apart. We have a somewhat erroneous belief that the state of “being” is where nothing happens. It is a vacation, a stepping out of or a withdrawal from life. It certainly can be that however the positive expression of the state of “being” can be very active where a lot happens. We should never underestimate the power of assimilation and integration. Most of us carry so much undigested and unassimilated material that it is a wonder we can focus on anything.

So it will be important to pay attention to your “doing” and “being” states this month and to bring them into a better relationship with each other so you can be more balanced. “Being “states include meditation, prayer, being with nature as you walk or sit, silence, rest, sleep, being receptive, listening, and just simply consciously “being” with others, your food, your environment, your cup of coffee etc. Being is also Presence so practice being present and bring that presence into all of your “Doing”. It will make the doing more focused, efficient and balanced.

Another area of working with balance is to bring more moderation into your life. Look at any place you experience extremes from energy levels to emotional reactions to addictive behaviors to overworking, overthinking, worry and fear. Anything that threatens to consume you is out of balance. This is where boundaries come into play. You may need to say no to what threatens to consume you in order to achieve balance through moderation. Cut back on anything that feels like too much whether it is being initiated by you or by someone else. Some boundaries you will have to set for yourself and be disciplined about keeping them. Some boundaries will need to be set against what is coming at you from the outside and you will also need to be disciplined about keeping them, not in a rejecting or hard edge way, but in a loving, flexible but firm way.

Balance is also needed between work, study, play and rest. To be truly balanced you should have equal amounts of each one in your waking hours. Very few people achieve this but it is a good reminder about what to strive for eventually.

Another area of balance is the relationship you have with trust and intuition vs needing to know. The need to know can cause severe anxiety when the information simply is not available yet. In an emotionally centered year and especially during higher emotional times, the mind needs to take a back seat and allow the heart and emotional intelligence to take over. This is highly uncomfortable for those who are intellectually centered but necessary for achieving a state of balance. So practice trusting your intuition and gut feelings and be less mentally hypervigilant about what you cannot control. You will sleep better.

How the month shows up:

YOU PERSONALLY

This is a huge month for manifesting new parts of yourself provided you take the time to integrate and assimilate them. It is also a potent month for truth telling. Anything that has been swept under the rug because you did not want to deal with it or you were afraid of how others would react, is likely to surface. Anything you have been in denial about with regards to health, personal addictions and negative behavior patterns, may end up staring you in the face, demanding change, especially around the full moon time mid- month. Don’t be angry. Approach issues that surface with compassion and an intention to support and heal as you would help a wounded child. After all, much of this can be traced back to old childhood wounds.

It is important that you do not allow these issues to derail you or cause a set-back to your manifesting new and wonderful parts of yourself. Remember it is just the back of the closet that still needs a good clean out. Get help if you need it.

In terms of bringing more balance into your life, pay attention to your energy expenditure, listen to your body, get comfortable carving out time just to “be”, get more exercise if you need it, be more social if that is lacking or set some boundaries around alone time if that is what you need. Follow inspirations to bring new expressions into your life and work on your boundaries. It is OK to say “no” and it is OK to say “yes” when your intuition tells you to.

For the physical health aspect, it is a good month to get your diet balanced, your exercise balanced and to take care of any health concerns you may have been in denial about. If there is an imbalance, your will know it.

RELATIONSHIPS

Because balance has a lot to do with relationship, this is a big theme this month. Where do you want to put your energy? With whom do you want to spend your time with? Where are the energy leaks or loose boundaries or habitual behaviors that keep you in relationships that are not healthy?

Finding balance in relationship does not necessarily mean eliminating the relationship although sometimes that is what is needed. It may be simply enough to reset your boundaries in order to bring more balance. For example, if you are in the habit of spending way too much time listening to a friend’s constant complaining about their life, you may need to set a boundary against that behavior and decrease the amount of time you allow that friend to take.

If there is a deep imbalance in a relationship that has not been addressed, it is likely to surface as a truth mid-month. Around the full moon time could be a challenge for relationships or it could be a fabulous reset using the higher centered energy available at that time. However, if new boundaries are not honored, the claws may come out. Be careful not to react in a way you may regret later.

Balance also includes re-evaluating how much time you spend in relationship with yourself as opposed to time spent in relationship with others. For some of you it may mean putting yourself out there to connect more, and for others it may mean limiting the constant social activity in order to give yourself some alone time for much needed time to “be” and to integrate.

ENVIRONMENT

This is a good month to de-clutter. You may be feeling the urge to simplify, downsize, get rid of things you have not used for a while, go through old papers, toss and clean, and generally get yourself to a place where you are managing less in your physical environment. Balance also includes de-cluttering your inner landscape of worry and obsession especially about the things you can do nothing about, like the weather or other people’s actions. As you de-clutter, you may also be very inspired to improve your surroundings in some way and bring more beauty into your environment.

Imbalance in weather patterns globally comes to our attention again and there will be new findings and truth that surface about global warming and other environmental conditions. We may see more events caused by the imbalance of “too much” or “too little” especially around water. The environment in general feels more destabilized in terms of being able to predict anything. The earth is going through her own changes and manifesting new aspects, demanding attention, and making sure we do not get too comfortable in our old habits. Wind is likely to be a strong force this month.

BUSINESS/PARTNERSHIPS/PROJECTS

The biggest issue this month is the uncovering of corruption. If you are involved in a business that is part of a larger corporation, be prepared for fall out if any of the practices are in question or if integrity has been compromised. At the same time, you yourself may question what you have been putting up with and where your personal boundaries need to be adjusted.  There are likely to be shake ups on many levels with regards to partnerships and projects. Whenever there is shake up, much creative energy is released and can be used very productively as long as the people involved do not get mired in anger, blame and finger pointing.

It is very important this month to always look forward and to be solution oriented instead of trying to digest past failures and injustices. Let them go and focus on the future. It is a great month to start something new but keep in mind the balance piece and start it right. If you are overextended, simplify something. If you are feeling a lack of activity, take a risk and jump into a new project that inspires you.

DATES AND TIME FRAMES

October 1-7: This is an expansive time launched by the new moon on September 30. You may be inspired to de-clutter, start something new, change your look, and finish taking care of any business that did not get handled in September. The good news is that you should have the energy for it as well as the enthusiasm. Make sure you do not add too much more to your already full plate.

During this time frame be disciplined about letting go of the past especially any experiences of restriction, lack, difficulty and challenge. It is a new time and it is important to embrace the possibilities and to trust that things can be very very different. The exercise in balance this week should include time to take big deep breaths and to enjoy being with what you have, instead of worrying about what you don’t yet have.

October 8-15: This is an active time that can have you running in circles and experiencing chaos if you are out of balance. Time management is a necessary study as well as boundary setting. This could be an extremely productive time when a lot comes together in a really good way as long as you approach your life with presence and balance. If you find yourself losing your train of thought, becoming irritated, fearful or overwhelmed, stop everything and take few breaths to reset through a state of being.

As we approach the full moon on the 15th be aware of crisis points in your life and see them as opportunities for breakthrough rather than breakdown. There may be people out there behaving badly, Don’t be one of them.

October 15: Full Moon is, October 15 at 10:23 PM Mountain Daylight Time (MDT). This is a fiery and potent full moon designed to push through and push forward. It carries a punch that may be a welcome energy for some that perform well under pressure but it may be challenging for those that prefer a softer method. This moon also influences the uncovering of hard to look at truths that may surface during this time. The good news is that the power of this full moon time gives you the tools to embrace truth and allows you to accept, change and move forward.

Watch for explosive reactions and don’t get yourself embroiled in drama that is not yours. Stay away from conflict if you can and focus instead on something that you are wanting to express in a larger way in your life. This Full Moon can feed that expansion in a powerful way.

October 17-22: We are dealing with the aftermath of the full moon and the result of seeing the truth about what is imbalanced in your life. Whether it is relationship, health, attitudes, beliefs, addictions, or behaviors, this is the time to eliminate, change, commit, resolve and bring discipline into what needs to be different.  Pay special attention to the balance between doing and being and work with that container as you reinvent some of your daily practices.

There could be radical change that occurs in your life during this time either initiated by you because of new boundaries and resolutions or because of someone else’s new boundaries and resolutions.

There could also be radical change occurring on the planet due to environmental or weather events, social unrest and global incidents. The energy is still that of “crisis” so remember to use it proactively to push through some barrier instead of being trampled by it. Powerful time frames can either be super transformational or very difficult or both.

October 23-31: Activity settles down some and you may finally feel as if you have a better handle on the balance in your life. You should definitely carve out time for integration and assimilation especially if you have experienced a big change or launched some new big project. Your closets should be clean and the de-cluttering well on its way. This is a good week to pamper and nurture yourself. Those around you should have gotten used to your new boundaries and you should feel a certain thread of harmony and ease. Trust it and be grateful.

If this is not your experience perhaps there is more work to do. Perhaps out of fear or resistance you have not set good boundaries and have not embraced change or you are working too hard and not monitoring the excess on your plate. It is never too late to go back, take a deep breath and do what you know needs to be done. You will be happy you did.

October 30: New Moon is Sunday, October 30 at 11:39 AM Mountain Daylight Time (MDT). This is a good moon to get clear on new intentions and to set your priorities so that you can maintain the new found balance in your life. If you have weathered a big change, now would be a good time to anchor whatever new situation the change has brought into your life.

Have a great month!

Lena

Blog by thepowerpath.com

Photo by inhabitat.com

Click this link to watch a video about the building of this earthship:

North America’s first urban earthship lands in Calgary

________________________________________

A radically sustainable structure made of recycled tires and cans is set to help Canada’s largest urban agriculture farm produce even more food for Calgarians in need.

What is believed to be North America’s first urban earthship — an approximately 500 square foot eco-friendly structure located on Grow Calgary’s 4.5-hectare pocket of land, just west of Canada Olympic Park — is nearing completion.

Even in the dead of winter when Calgary’s temperature dips below 20 degrees Celsius, the earthship greenhouse will allow Grow Calgary to do what the non-profit organization does best: grow food for Calgary’s less fortunate.

“It’s going to dramatically impact our capacity,” said local food activist and Grow Calgary founder Paul Hughes.

“It’s going to have a massive positive net impact on our operations. We’ve been looking forward to this for a long time … This is really outside the box for Calgary.”

The earthship at the Grow Calgary farm in Calgary. MIKE DREW / POSTMEDIA

Volunteers first started building the unconventional structure out of upcycled, salvaged and donated material in 2014, but soon ran into issues with city building code rules.

Grow Calgary successfully appealed a demolition order and applied for the proper development permits and volunteers, led by project lead Scottie Davidson of EcoNerds, got back to work on the project this summer.

“I’m really proud that this group fought through the heavily layered, deeply entrenched bureaucracy to make this happen. We had a bulldozer ready to plow it. That’s what the city wanted to do,” Hughes said.

Over the weekend, volunteers nearly finished closing in the structure, which still needs some aesthetic work before it’s officially complete.

Constructed out of old tires rammed with earth, cans and bottles that act as bricks, and featuring systems including solar panels, earthships have the ability to treat and recycle greywater, generate electricity, produce food and regulate temperature.

The concept originated in New Mexico in the 1980s and was invented by American architect Michael Reynolds, who visited the province two years ago to help build Alberta’s first official earthship on rural land near Lethbridge.

While the self-sustaining structures are typically homes that people live in, no one will live in Grow Calgary’s earthship, which means it doesn’t include the electricity or sewage systems prominent in other earthships.

Instead, the project that Hughes and Davidson believe marks the first time an urban earthship has been completed in North America will regulate its own temperature and be used primarily for early germination.

“The whole square footage is for food production,” Davidson said.

Grow Calgary’s earthship boasts two distinct growing areas and unlike most earthships, which are private residences, the one-of-a-kind structure will be open to the public, Davidson said.

Beer cans and old tires were used in the earthship greenhouse. MIKE DREW /POSTMEDIA

Grow Calgary believes all Calgarians should have access to healthy, local food and since its creation in 2013, the urban farm has donated pallets of fresh produce to organizations including the Calgary Food Bank, the Calgary Drop-In and Rehab Centre, Inn From the Cold and the Calgary Women’s Emergency Shelter.

Hundreds of local school classes have come to the farm to volunteer and learn about food, and Hughes said the earthship has provided an opportunity to teach children and teens about repurposing and upcycling.

“When we show kids (the earthship), they’re fascinated by it,” Hughes said, noting the school groups have a common response to the unusual structure.

“This is the coolest fort ever!”

Article written by Annalise Klingbeil of the Calgary Herald

One of the best times to detox your body is when there is a change of season, but these practices can be done all year long or whenever you feel like you need a boost. I do these daily and like to think of the process as a daily mini retreat I do for myself. It’s a moment where I can have a dialogue with my body. These five rituals will take less than 15 minutes a day, so enjoy yourself while you give your body an opportunity to get rid of toxins and thrive. Other benefits? During the process you become more aligned, have more energy, and are ready to face the day. Plus you will feel great thanks to the time you have decided to take for yourself.

The set up of your bathroom is important as it helps you relax. Switch off the light, light candles, and put on some relaxing music. This takes less than a minute to set it up. I invite you to do it, it’s good for you!

1. Dry body brushing

Brushing our teeth two to three times a day is feels so natural, it’s habitual. Believe it or not, our bodies needs brushing too, just like our hair and teeth! Dry body brushing is a great way to detoxify your body and eliminate over a pound of waste a day! The skin is the body’s largest organ and it eliminates 25 percent of the toxins in your body each day, which equates to over a whole pound of waste! Every minute we lose over 30,000 dead skin cells, which are replaced by new healthy skin cells.

How to do it: Use a brush with soft natural bristles, preferably with a longer handle. Synthetic bristles often contain chemicals that are best to avoid. Begin brushing at your feet and work your way slowly up the body with long sweeping motions, always brushing towards the heart. When dry brushing the stomach it is best to go in a clockwise motion as that works with the natural digestive flow.

The skin may be slightly flushed afterwards but it should not be red or sore. Be sure to avoid brushing over fresh wounds, burns and cuts. The skin should be dry but not excessively dry when brushing. If you shower after brushing, it will help remove exfoliated skin cells.

Benefits: It stimulates the lymphatic system and helps with muscle tone. It removes dead skin cells. It makes your skin softer, smoother, and tighter by increasing the flow of blood, and improves circulation, which reduces the appearance of cellulite. It also improves digestion, reduces stress, and energizes your whole body.

2. Hot towel scrubbing

This is like living a spa experience at home! Body scrubbing can be done before or after your bath or shower, or anytime during the day. All you need is a sink with hot water and a medium-sized cotton washcloth. Doing it at the sink has a deeper physical, mental, and emotional effect than doing it in the shower. For a maximum effect, scrub your body twice a day: once in the morning and once again in the evening. Scrub for 2 to 20 minutes, depending on the amount of time you have.

How to do it: Turn on the hot water and fill the sink. Add a few drops of lavender essential oil if you wish. Hold the towel at both ends and place in the hot water. Don’t burn yourself! Wring out the towel. While the towel is still hot and steamy, begin to scrub the skin gently. Do one section of your body at a time: for example, begin with the hands and fingers and work your way up the arms to the shoulders, neck and face, then down to the chest, upper back, abdomen, lower back, buttocks, legs, feet, and toes. Scrub until the skin becomes slightly pink or until each part becomes warm. Reheat the towel often by dipping it in the sink of hot water after scrubbing each section, or as soon as the towel starts to cool.

Benefits: This activates the lymphatic system. It calms the mind, reduces muscle tension, relieves stress, and helps spread energy through your chakras. It helps you create a profound and loving relationship with your body. It promotes circulation and opens the pores to release stored toxins. Done it the morning, it will reenergize you and it deeply relaxes you at night.

3. Coconut oil pulling

How to do it: Before you eat or drink anything, put ½ to 1 tablespoon of coconut oil in your mouth. Swish it around for 5 to 20 minutes. At first, you might feel disgusted having oil in your mouth. Start with 30 seconds and keep at it as you will feel the benefits quite rapidly. While you are swishing it becomes toxic so spit carefully into garbage bin or toilet. Not in the sink as it will clog it up. Then rinse your mouth a couple times and wash your teeth.

Benefits: Coconut oil pulling will kill cold and flu germs, and bad breath. It whitens the teeth, prevents cavities and gingivitis, and strengthens the gums. It heals cracked and dry lips, reduces inflammation, decreases bacterial load in the mouth, detoxifies the body, and helps regulates hormonal imbalance.

4. Tongue scraping

Tongue scraping is simple and inexpensive, yet completely transformative!

A tongue scraper is a thin, U-shaped device made of stainless steel or plastic, consisting of a blunt edge that removes build-up from the surface of the tongue. It originated in Ayurveda, which says that people who use it are more expressive and thoughtful, better public speakers, and more sincere and authoritative conversationalists. Interesting, huh?

How to do it: Apply a few quick strokes after brushing your teeth. Use the round edge to scrape gently down, while applying slight pressure. Rinse under running water and gently scrape again until no white residue is left.

Benefits: It helps fight cavities and prevents bad breath. It reduces excess mucus in the mouth, and in turn the nose and throat. It reduces cravings greatly and resensitizes your taste buds, which makes whole foods taste more delicious than ever. It even enhances kissing by making the tongue more fresh. You’re welcome.

5. Water with lemon

Lemons are jam packed with nutrients, including vitamin C, B complex vitamins, calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, and fiber. They contain more potassium than apples and grapes!

Because of how hard lemon juice can be on the enamel of your teeth, it’s important to dilute it with water of any temperature (though lukewarm is recommended). Drink it first thing in the morning, and wait 15 to 30 minutes to have breakfast. This will help you fully receive the benefits of lemon water.

The popular belief is that lemons are very acidic. Yes they are! But inside the body, lemons are one of the most alkalizing foods.

Benefits: Lemon water gives your immune system a boost. Thanks to its excellent source of potassium, it’s good for your heart health, as well as your brain and nerve function. It aids digestion and cleanses your system by flushing out the toxins. It decreases blemishes and wrinkles, and gives radiance to your skin. It reduces inflammation and helps your lose weight by fighting hunger cravings. It gives you an energy boost, and reduces anxiety and depression—smelling the fragrance of lemon essential oil has a calming effect on the nervous system.

I recommend you try this mini retreat at least once a week, or by integrating different elements daily. Enjoy every minute of this sacred moment you will create for yourself.

Blog by Paola Susin

Nowhere more do I hear “but buying organic is so expensive!” – than living here in Vancouver (a pricey city!). So I’ll take my approach first of educating you on the benefits of going organic vs. conventional, briefly:

1. Obtain higher antioxidant content

2. Reduce consumption of pesticides/herbicides/toxic chemicals

3. Boost immune system

4. Lower antibiotic consumption as conventional meat + dairy is loaded with antibiotics

5. Environmentally friendly (reduce toxic chemicals into environment from conventional farms)

6. Reduces toxic load

7. Tastes good!

But, if this does not seem a fit and you still feel you cannot switch over entirely – it is important to know the below tricks and the importance of spending the extra buck when it comes to certain fruits and veg.

Some fruits and vegetables have more pesticide residue than others and are the most important to buy organic. You can lower your pesticide intake substantially by avoiding the 12 most contaminated fruits and vegetables and eating the least contaminated produce. Print this out – punch it into your phone – or if you have a photographic memory like Mike Ross from Suits, well you know, bravo!

DIRTY DOZEN (Buy these organic)

Apples                     Grapes

Celery                      Sweet bell peppers

Strawberries           Potatoes

Peaches                  Blueberries

Spinach                  Lettuce

Nectarines              Kale/Collard greens

CLEAN 15 (Lowest in pesticide)

Onions                                 Sweet Corn                     Pineapples

Avocado                               Eggplant                         Watermelon

Asparagus                            Cantaloupe                    Sweet potatoes

Sweet peas                           Kiwi                                Grapefruit

Mangoes                              Cabbage                         Mushrooms

Blog by Breathe in Life guide and holistic nutritionist, Meghan Trompetter

Photo by Nicola

It’s every traveler’s biggest pet peeve. You’re all fired up and ready to hit the beach and then BOOM. Your flight has been delayed. You now have an extra 5 hours to kill and no clue how to fill them. Luckily, with years of airport boredom under our belts, we have come up with a number of ways to keep busy during the dreaded airport flight delay. There’s no reason to start your trip off as a downer…so here are 8 ways to find fun in the little things!

1. Traveling with a friend? How about turning people watching into a competition? Choose someone and make up their backstory. Compare stories with your buddy, and then work up the courage to tell it to that person to see who was the closest to reality! Tip: If you’ve included some, ahem, ‘personal’ details, maybe keep those between the two of you.

2. Pamper yourself! Airports often have on-the-go-style spas. A quick 20-minute back massage or pedicure (get those toes beach ready!) can improve your mood immensely. Low on cash? Go use a massage chair for $2 and then just don’t get up after. They’re the definition of comfy.

3. Feeling ballsy? Ask that cute stranger sitting across from you out on a date to the nearest airport bar or restaurant. Chances are you’ll never see them again, so no pressure! And if you like each other and it turns out you’re on the same flight…maybe you can check another item off that bucket list….

4. Let out your inner social media mogul and turn your misery into a series of hilarious tweets. Catch the eye of the internet, and then Hollywood, and then who knows?! You could be a millionaire in no time! (Hey, it could happen.)

5. Get all caught up on your shows. Aren’t you tired of screaming at your co-workers to shut up the moment they say the words “So I can’t believe Jon Snow…”

6. Start a card game. What backpacker doesn’t carry a deck of cards or, in the case of Free & Easy Travelers, a game of Monopoly Deal? Sit down with your friends, or invite some strangers over, to wile away the time while having a blast.

7. In an especially ambitious mood? Create a scavenger hunt with your friends! Make a list of ridiculous items to find, or hilarious photos to take, and see who comes out on top. Be warned, competitive natures and boatloads of giggles may make an appearance.

8. Know your airport! Do a quick google search of what entertainment options your airport has to offer. Some airports go out of their way to ensure that travelers stuck on delays actually enjoy their extra time in the terminal. Stuck in Hong Kong?  Watch a movie in their 4-D cinema or learn to fly in the simulated cockpit. In Munich, play an 18-hole round of mini golf or take a behind the scene tour of how the airport operates. Hanging out in San Fran for the night? Check out one of the 3 aquariums or tour the aviation museum for a little pre-flight education.

As a backpacker, positivity should be right up there (alongside a good book and some aloe) on the list of travel must-haves. You never know what a travel day may throw at you: massive delays, cancellations, being rerouted to another destination…the list is endless. And that’s part of the fun! If you embrace the situation instead of trying to fight it, travel days (no matter how long) can be some of the best days of your trip. We promise!

Written by Juli Ribi of our sister company, Free and Easy Traveler

Photo by Megan Kathleen

If you have ever been to Wanderlust, you know there is a bit of magic that people take away when they leave the festival. Even if your life does not feel immediately changed, you have experienced a moment in time that will continue to serve as a source of inspiration when you re-enter the real world. Read ahead to see if any of these truths have become ingrained in your post Wanderlust life!

1. You enjoy telling time in the number of friends met, downward dogs held, and ohms chanted.
2. You can be states away from your family and friends but feel right at home.
3. You know how to turn any yoga pose into a dance move if the beat turns up.
4. Your daydreams at work are filled with dance parties, tasty food and long afternoon svasanas.
5. You know that yoga is highly contagious and your fourth class will invigorate you as much as your first.
6. You can take your first class or your 100th class and still not be able to touch your toes.
7. You learn the meaning of “going with the flow” whether in yoga class or joining a conga line at a concert.
8. You are thankful for the advice your mom gave you to drink water, wear sunscreen, and bring layers.
9. You find yourself singing a chant or mantra in the shower.
10. You have filled countless journals with words of wisdom, new friends’ phone numbers, and goals for the future.
11. You can meditate in any space big enough for you to cross your legs.
12. You start to wonder if we could reverse the drought by recycling the sweat of a Wanderlust yoga class.
13. You have summited the mountain many times on your way to take group selfies or take a class at the Highest Place.
14. You get weird looks for stretching in abnormal places.
15. After Wanderlust, you may be in your normal work clothes, but underneath are temporary tattoos, tribal art paintings, and an ever-so-slightly-toned six-pack.
16. You are willing to get up at any hour for some guaranteed svasana.
17. You tell people you speak multiple languages, including Sanskrit.
18. You sometimes buy pine air fresheners just so you can close you eyes and imagine you are back in nature.
19. You know you always need to have a vacation to look forward to, whether it’s six weeks or six months away.
20. You know there is always magic to be found, even if it’s the last piece of glitter that falls out of your hair after you’ve returned home.

Written by Cameron Cler

Imagine always having the strongest mind in the room.

That would mean being smart, sure.

But more importantly, you’d be grounded and unflappable. No emotion would corrupt your judgement. No distraction would diminish your focus.

This is trainable just like when you hit the gym.

What follows is an exercise that comes from my coaching and combines a meditation strategy that Will Kabat-Zinn taught me with a procrastination strategy that Tim Pychyl taught me.

Will is a long time meditation teacher. Tim studies procrastination as a professor at Carleton.

The “I Am Aware” Five Minute Meditation

This meditation exercise is a very simple twist on breath based mindfulness meditation. The twist revolves around the phrase “I am aware that…”

1. Close your eyes.
2. Start counting your breath. Shoot to count 50 breaths. That’s 5–10 minutes.
3. Your mind is going to wander. When it does make a mental note of what you caught yourself thinking about. This is important: make that note as a complete and grammatically correct sentence that begins, “I am aware that {fill in the blank}.”
4. When you are done noting the distracting thought return to counting your breath at the place where you left off.

These are some sentences that I say during a meditation.

• “I am aware that I’m thinking about what to eat for lunch.”
• “I am aware that I’m rehearsing a conversation with Tim.”
• “I am aware that I’m drafting an email responding to a complaint.”
• “I am aware that I’m wondering who will win.”

The great thing about this exercise is that it is generalizable. You practice during the meditation, but then you use it for your own goals during your day to day.

The Awareness-Focus Loop

The reason this meditation exercise will work for many of you is because it trains a really specific mental skill, the Awareness-Focus Loop.

There are tons of feelings that sit right below your conscious mind. Unaddressed, these feelings actually guide the majority of your decision making.

Maybe you’ve heard this as the rider (rational brain) and the elephant (emotional brain).

With effort, the rider can guide the elephant. But with any distraction, the elephant takes over.

The good news is that with effort you can examine those subconscious feelings with your rational, conscious brain.

The “I am aware” exercise uses a nifty trick. For practical purposes, your language center is active only with your conscious mind.

So by framing your examination of your wandering thought as a fully formed sentence you’re guaranteed to be moving the feeling from your subconscious to your conscious.

Quite often the thought just disappears at that point because it’s too trivial to keep focused attention on.

In any case, having awoken your rational brain, you have the opportunity to bring your focus back to what you rationally want to be focusing on.

In meditation, that’s your breath. In work, that’s your current task.

A lot of people think of meditation as spiritual and/or calming. It can be. However, there’s a growing interest in meditation from high performance fields.

Hedge fund managers meditate to manage cognitive biases. Athletes meditate to reduce anxiety and get into a flow state. Even the military is taking up meditation.

For these high performance cases, the Awareness-Focus Loop is the key skill that you train during a meditation.

High performers take the “I am aware” exercise and apply it as they live their day.

• “I am aware” that I’m pressuring myself to make this shot.
• “I am aware” that I am experiencing a sunk-cost bias.
• “I am aware” that I think we should scrap this project.

Curing Procrastination with The Awareness-Focus Loop

This is the insight that Professor Tim Pychyl gave me about the source of procrastination. So often we procrastinate over trivial feelings of anxiety.

And the procrastination takes hold simply because we never truly examine what the anxiety is.

As a cure, meditation helps us notice that we’re procrastinating, become aware of the anxiety, name the anxiety, and then deal with that anxiety.

So often dealing with the anxiety is as simple as naming it and deciding it’s not legitimate.

This is the Awareness-Focus Loop in action for a use case that almost all of us have.

After you’ve practiced the meditation, look out during your day for times when you’re procrastinating. That’s when you want to apply this skill.

The Blessing of Multiple Mental Pushups

People come into meditation feeling like their mind needs to go completely blank.

To steal a Will quote, “If your mind doesn’t wander, go to the hospital.”

He’s saying — it’s human for your mind to wander.

But I want you to think of your wandering mind as even more positive. You’re meditating to practice repetitions of the Awareness-Focus Loop.

But you can only get an honest repetition in if your mind wanders. Consider each repetition to be a single mental pushup.

How many mental pushups do you want to do? As many as possible.

Contrary to your initial expectations, you should be happy when your mind wanders. In the long run, you’ll get more reps in and build mental muscle faster.

Blog by Tony Stubblebine