Stress Will Weigh You Down

Playing catch up with blog posts is tough and bothersome. There's no room to miss a day.
I'll do my best but it's better not to be stressed over it-- I have enough going on.
I need to work on my assignments, prepare for my online presentation, and then I get to spend time with Kaitlin later today.
I hope everyone's weekend is off to a good start. Let any stress you have go-- it'll weigh you down and make it even more difficult to take control.

Chaotic Mind

Some giggles.

I realized on my way to work this morning that, despite my calm exterior, my brain is still running with stress. Who knew that a vacation of a cruise with family would wind me up so badly? I should be able to relax now but I do have school work I need to finish and turn in in addition to getting my books for the fall. I really need a daily planner because I can't keep pushing myself like this-- to the point that I'm doing absolutely everything last minute. I've been a procrastinator but just thining how fast time goes... I need to find a way to make everything fit and still be able to sleep and spend time with Alex and my friends.

I really want to just finish this ridiculous summer semester, enjoy what little summer I actually have, and get a good start middle and end to the fall semester. 

And that's why I'm stressed. Too much in my mind. I've been getting the morning relief with yoga and laughing while trying to do yoga with my babies but when I'm at work and it's so slow... My mind is set loose. 

Having August 2nd off for TBCC will be nice-- it's always a special occasion to have a Saturday off. I really want to make the most of it. 

Oh yeah, I have a blog to work on.

I know I missed my post last week. It was actually a pretty busy week but not as productive with school work or the gym as I would have liked. I found shoes for my brother's wedding, got Alex's car fixed, went to St. Pete for the first time, ate Spinach Pie and the best Falafel I've ever had. Looked at dresses for my brother's rehearsal brunch but no luck finding the one. My best friend Kaitlin and sister Kate did Dance Marathon and raised money for sick children. Alex took down and rebuilt office spaces for the big race in St. Pete. Aaaand work was very busy at Worm's Way. I don't know yet if I passed my Regular Part Time Sales Position test but it would be awesome to be able to receive commission in addition to my pay.

I actually typed up a post on my phone on Friday but I didn't post it. I think it was really romantic with strong reference to mythology. I'll have to post it sometime once I take another gander at it. I also did take my measurements and pictures of myself for my weekly post last week but yet they did not make it to the post that did not get posted.
I've been struggling with getting going these past few weeks. I've been sluggish with my work and missing my drive for the gym. Penny is doing really good though. Her and Rinpoche actually play together. She even lets him near her food bowl (like his face right next to it. When she gets a treat she breaks it up into piece and Rinpoche has after them but when Penny is ready to eat that piece he's after, she just moves him aside so gently with her snout and eats it.

Well I have lots to do and catch up with. I made a detailed list and divided up the wants from the need to dos. Obviously the wants are rewards or things to do when taking a break from school work... come to think of it I did not include this blog post. Oh well, I did it and it's a want more than a need but it could be a need since I didn't post one last week.

One of the wants on my list is to go for a bicycle ride and I realized very recently that Alex and I have stopped doing our rides together. It seems to have stopped around the time we got Penny. Getting a dog really is like having a kid. You feel bad every time you leave them. I think the weather just hasn't been in our favor on nights when we can go out and then we're both busy otherwise or just dead tired. I think even if we're tired we should go for a quick one.

I hope you are all well and you're buckling down on school work better than I am. I wish you the best and luck during these last stressful weeks of the semester.

Drop the Bags

From YogaLouStudios' Pinterest

My yoga practice has been doing well. It's the first thing I do when I wake up-- second, actually, to feeding Mr. Turtle and watering my plants. I've started attending a yoga class again and I'm happy to say I found another wonderful instructor. Kristen's class at the USF Rec Center is mostly driven by the requests of students but the compilation works almost seamlessly. If you know me personally, you probably know that the physical aspect of yoga isn't enough. For me, it goes into one's self and helps you breathe in the life around you.
Each yoga instructor has their own philosophy about what yoga does for the body and mind and it becomes more clear each time you attend their class. You can tell by the words they choose and the sorts of encouragement they provide. Kristen's phrase is one that really solidified my liking for her style; whenever we exhale, she says "Let anything go that does not serve you."  She tells us to be in the moment and enjoy it knowing that there is no where else but on our mat that we need to be. Letting go is difficult for many people, but when numerous things pile up that provide nothing but negative feelings, I'm the first to drop it and breathe. Why hold onto something if it causes you nothing but stress? In the practice, you have to let go of all that baggage because it shows through the practice; it holds you back. It may not hold you back physically, you could very well be doing strong hand stands, but you will feel shaky inside if you are thinking about financial troubles on your mat.
I've found it improves my own practice to just let it all go, if only for a little while. That's one thing about baggage-- it's always waiting right where you left it.

Midterms then Spring Break

Hey there,

sorry i haven't been posting as often as I was. School is taking me by storm and although I manage to squeeze in my workouts, I have such little time for the blog. Spring Break is coming up so soon I'll have a little time to breathe and share more with you. Alex and I still have our make-up Valentine's Day to do so I'll most likely be cooking up a few things and doing something.
The gym has been going very well despite my levels of stress; I think everything would be worse if I wasn't going. My knees have been feeling great and I haven't even bought a split. I've started using the treadmill more and I've found I prefer it over the elliptical or bike now-- just because I get to feel my feet pound, I guess. It's also exciting that I've been doing good with my breathing-- no asthma attacks for two or three weeks now!
I hope all is well with you, readers. I'd love to hear from you to see how your own practices are going. Keeping up with the yoga? Starting a new good habit? Send me an email :)

Namaste