The first two weeks of the year I was still formulating my process for this blog. I think it all began at the closing of 2008 when I was reading one of my favorite blogs, The Happiness Project. Gretchen’s piece on creating your own commandments as New Year’s Resolutions struck a chord for me. Instead of making all these specific goals to fulfill an obligatory New Year’s tradition that most people fail to live out, why not take the opportunity to create a way of life, sort of like rules to live by, for the New Year (and beyond) based on what you want from life? So after some thought and inspiration from within, those I love, and perhaps a bit of Benjamin Button, I posted my commandments on Gretchen’s blog and made it real for myself. I also shared my commandments with some friends to make it stick even more. The context of my commandments allowed for a space where I could actually formulate this living memoir idea of life exploration I call my Creating Alive blog.
My Commandments:
Act the way I want to feel
Plan and do
Honor that love is all that's needed
Rehearse happiness
It's never too late
Say Yes
Be purposeful
Cut the losses
Return to laughter
Embrace failure
I think it’s a great idea for all of us to create these types of commandments. They could be established either internally or in writing. I personally believe in the power of writing things down, so that is my obvious preference.
One of the principles I’ve learned in life about being successful is it is a much easier path if you clean house first. This could be metaphorical or literally involve cleaning your car, desk, house, garage, etc. For me I had to come to terms with living inside my body the way I wanted to. I was still taking advantage of my youth and good fortune that I could look reasonably healthy without a consistent exercise program in place. So starting the first week of January, I began a commitment to be healthy with a yoga regimen. Thanks to Jeff for giving me a wonderful gift of yoga classes for Christmas, this made it a lot easier. I committed to one class per week, and warm up sun salutations every day. I’ve done consistent yoga in the past, but usually from a once/week going to class type of regimen. This whole concept of promising myself each and every day would have been overwhelmingly not possible in my previous not-as-purposeful life!
My Commandments:
Act the way I want to feel
Plan and do
Honor that love is all that's needed
Rehearse happiness
It's never too late
Say Yes
Be purposeful
Cut the losses
Return to laughter
Embrace failure
I think it’s a great idea for all of us to create these types of commandments. They could be established either internally or in writing. I personally believe in the power of writing things down, so that is my obvious preference.
One of the principles I’ve learned in life about being successful is it is a much easier path if you clean house first. This could be metaphorical or literally involve cleaning your car, desk, house, garage, etc. For me I had to come to terms with living inside my body the way I wanted to. I was still taking advantage of my youth and good fortune that I could look reasonably healthy without a consistent exercise program in place. So starting the first week of January, I began a commitment to be healthy with a yoga regimen. Thanks to Jeff for giving me a wonderful gift of yoga classes for Christmas, this made it a lot easier. I committed to one class per week, and warm up sun salutations every day. I’ve done consistent yoga in the past, but usually from a once/week going to class type of regimen. This whole concept of promising myself each and every day would have been overwhelmingly not possible in my previous not-as-purposeful life!
However, when looking at what I wanted (mental and physical health) inside of the application of some of my commandments ( “It’s never too late” , “Plan and Do”, among others to some degree), I was able to formulate a plan I could stick with and be successful in doing. I told myself I’d work on a certain number of sun salutations, plus whatever additional stretches I felt like each day of the week. Then the next week I’d add one more sun salutation to the mix until I reached the traditional 10 (Surynamaskar A and B), as is the standard.
Since embarking on this challenge, I have done at least my daily sun salutations and additional stretches and gone to one yoga class. Though I had to miss one day of a yoga class due to some wacky weekend scheduling, I feel remarkably successful. I also felt strong enough to do a 16 minute interval jog last night.
Upon review of my newfound success, I believe I’m more committed than ever because my heart is in the right place. I no longer feel like I have to do yoga or jog regularly because I should. I really want to do these things because of inspiration. Even inside of a difficult pose, longer run, or just a dark cold morning and I don’t want to get out of bed – I still feel inspired by the healthy life these actions provide me in return for my dedication. I already feel like I have more energy and physical stamina, but I also know this is just the beginning. I can already sense the old familiar power my yoga asana practice invites in the other aspects of life (mental and spiritual). Taking on physical exertion, practicing breathing sequences, and sticking to a regime are all a daily reminder of my internal strength and commitment to life itself. Now that goes way beyond a mere workout. I really could dedicate a blog solely to the benefits of yoga as a whole, so there will more on this later.
Since embarking on this challenge, I have done at least my daily sun salutations and additional stretches and gone to one yoga class. Though I had to miss one day of a yoga class due to some wacky weekend scheduling, I feel remarkably successful. I also felt strong enough to do a 16 minute interval jog last night.
Upon review of my newfound success, I believe I’m more committed than ever because my heart is in the right place. I no longer feel like I have to do yoga or jog regularly because I should. I really want to do these things because of inspiration. Even inside of a difficult pose, longer run, or just a dark cold morning and I don’t want to get out of bed – I still feel inspired by the healthy life these actions provide me in return for my dedication. I already feel like I have more energy and physical stamina, but I also know this is just the beginning. I can already sense the old familiar power my yoga asana practice invites in the other aspects of life (mental and spiritual). Taking on physical exertion, practicing breathing sequences, and sticking to a regime are all a daily reminder of my internal strength and commitment to life itself. Now that goes way beyond a mere workout. I really could dedicate a blog solely to the benefits of yoga as a whole, so there will more on this later.
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