I missed y’all yesterday but my work day ended up being a little cray and when I finally sat down to blog at 10 p.m. it was a no go. I am having issues with my server so I apologize if you have been experiencing long load times or database errors. My host assures me they are working to get the server running normally again. In addition to the blog being a no-go, so was my workout. I was hoping to do some cardio and weights but ended up covering the front desk at the club instead. By the time 7:30 rolled around and I finally had the opportunity to workout all I wanted to do was go home. Oh well, one of those days!

For the last few days I have kind of been in a food slump where nothing really sounds good (except cheesy, buttery quiche at brunch Sunday…always good). I haven’t felt like cooking or even going to the store to restock for the week. So I have just been keeping it simple and it’s working for me.

Lots of smoothies and juice  (and always lots of coffee! :D)

Also salads.

(source)

And multiple cans of this soup. Sometimes food doesn’t need to be complicated or involved, you know?

What do you eat when you’re in a food slump and needing simple/basic? 

Enough food, let’s talk yoga. I have been teaching a 90 minute hot class on Sunday mornings for almost two years (minus the few month teaching hiatus I took late this summer/early fall). I love teaching this class. My regulars call it “yoga church.” I spend more time prepping for this class than any other. I always have a new playlist, a reading or message and teach some sort of skill, arm balance, pivotal pose, etc. It feels more like an experience than just a class for me and I truly feel like I have the opportunity to take them through a journey where they can bring whatever they’re going through and feeling to the mat and leave feeling renewed and ready for the week ahead.

Last Sunday we focused on the mantra So Hum.

So = I am
Hum = All that is

I am all that is.

I am not the label that I have given myself. I am not the label society has put on me…mother, banker, brother, runner, teacher, funny, flawed, outgoing, shy, gay, straight, athletic, smart, rebel, go-getter, volunteer, adventurer, pretty, unloveable…you get my point.

I am expansive. My soul is beautiful. I see the divine show up within me and all around me in my daily life. I am free from attachment to labels. I am okay with change.

You can use this mantra for meditation or as a breath focus as you move through your practice. You inhale “so” and exhale “hum.” Or inhale “I am” and exhale “all that is.” I find this mantra to be a great way to get out of my head and in sync with my body and mind. If you use it for meditation you will want to find a comfortable cross seated position and set a timer for as little as 3-5 minutes or up to 20-30. Kudos to you if you can make it 30 minutes. I have a lot of work to do with my meditation practice. If you use the mantra for practice, find your ujjayi breath (nose breathing only) and focus on deep, steady and full inhales and exhales while silently repeating the mantra.

Give it a try, even if you don’t think that meditation and mantras are your thing.

Meditation…yes or no?