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For the last 17 months,  I have gone to where most people would dare not imagine, VEGAN!! It has been a wonderful improvement to my health and, to many friends and family members surprise, we do not miss any of the animal products that were once enjoyed during the previous years of our lives. For those curious about Vegan Nutrition, there are many very informative documentaries out there that share helpful direction and reason for consuming the Healthiest most nourishing food on earth.

What is “Vegan?”
• Plant based Nutrition-
• Grown in the Earth-
• Preferably Organic-
• Not from Animal sources (Dairy, Eggs, Honey, Animal Tissues)

*These are responses to some of the questions I receive about nutrition, if you are interested in learning more, I would be happy to answer your questions* What are some recommendations for consuming Vegan cuisine? High Carb, Low Fat (Don’t worry Protein is in everything you eat, and in the quantity the body requires). Can you grow muscle with Plant protein? Yes, plants have more protein than the human body requires, and the best part is that you can eat as much and as often as you want. Most plants are primarily water. The high water content in plants allows for the weight consumed to refuel, to hydrate and to decrease recovery time, promoting muscle cells to grow.

My questions for you:
-Do you have a hard time sustaining energy during the day?
-Are you starving to lose weight? And does it work?
-Do you love eating food but are not sure if you eat too much?
-Do you want to prevent cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and many other disorders?

I cannot say enough about what this change does for health and athletic performance. If you are looking to see improvements in every aspect of life, my suggestion for you is to GO VEGAN!!

If you place your happiness conditionally on a future state of perfection, then you’re not alone. Perfectionism has become so common in Americans that many now refer to it as a disease. This blog teaches us how and why we enter this “perfectionist” state of mind, and how to use yoga and other “right-brain” practices to release our expectations and embrace our present condition.

Our brains are divided into two hemispheres. Neuroscientists agree that each hemisphere has dominant functions…For example, the left hemisphere is devoted to seeing things in parts (perfectionism!!), critical thinking and math skills. The right hemisphere is where creativity, holistic thinking and intuition originate. Oftentimes, one hemisphere is more active than the other. A student who is writing a comparison/contrast essay is going to exhibit more activity from his left brain, while an artist who is painting a picture exhibits more activity from her right brain.

As we go through the day, our internal and external environments affect which side of the brain is more active. While we are each predisposed to dominance in one hemisphere (most right-handed people are left-brain thinkers), certain “triggers” can switch which side of the brain is active. Hearing music, meditating, practicing yoga and dancing are all triggers for right-brain activity. On the other hand, filling out forms, retrieving facts from memory, and working out a budget all trigger left-brain activity.

As Americans, we are largely a left brain culture. The volume of stimuli for left-brain thinking is simply greater in America than many other countries: advertisements tell us to see our lives and our bodies through material compartmentalization, teaching us to perfect each aspect of ourselves through material purchases. Our educational systems emphasize mathematics, reading and writing over art and creative expression. Casting aside the nature vs. nurture argument, we are programed from birth to favor our left brain – the hemisphere where “seeing things in parts” and perfectionism originate.

If you struggle with perfectionism (recurring feelings of inadequacy, comparison to others, feeling you must reach a goal before things are “okay”), then try incorporating these practices in your day.

1. Nadishodna Pranayama: alternate nostril breathing…This style of breathing directs an even flow of oxygen to both hemisphere’s of the brain and has a soothing and balancing effect. If you haven’t practiced Nadishodna before, request to have it demonstrated during your next yoga class.

2. Yoga practice with holistic awareness: When we practice yoga postures (asanas), we often focus of what’s not working…“I’m not lifting my leg as high as her”…“my back doesn’t bend way”….etc. Instead focus on what is working: “I’m showing up for myself”….“I just tried something new”…“I’m practicing being fully present”…etc. See the BIG PICTURE

3. Do something creative for 15 minutes: listen to music and paint what you hear, try cooking from intuition (no recipes, please!), youtube your favorite music artist and sing along to their video…

4………Fill in the blank! What get’s your creativity flowing?

Remember that when you seek perfection, you miss out on the journey getting there. Our baby steps are the fruits of our existence. The best that we can do is slow down and appreciate all the little things in life that ARE working. You never know, this mindset just might stick! 🙂

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from Wine Country Fitness!

This Year we are teaming up with Healdsburg S.O.S to send out 600+ Valentines letters for our soldiers. The Healdsburg S.O.S has sent out 3600 pounds of shipped goods to our soldiers, including but not limited to: food, socks, gloves, caps, blankets and love to keep thier spirits alive and to remind them that people back home feel for and care about them. This mission you and I will share a letter including a message (picture optional) about ourselves, where we are from and what we do, and how their
service (risking everything) inspires us to do selfless and loving things back
here in our safe beautiful town of Healdsburg.

The Soldiers Receiving Valentines Letters are ground forces located in
Afganistan 2days trip from base living in remote mountains and facing
extreme conditions every day. These Letters are not letters to represent any political or Ethical view, the intention behind this service is to share, love and practice compassion.

Please deliver your letters to:

1500 Healdsburg Ave
Healdsburg, CA 95448

Thank you for your help uplifting the hearts of our soldiers!

In our bodies, breathing is the only system that can be performed both consciously and unconsciously. This blog explores the power that these two forms of breathing give us, while making suggestions for how to use this power to live a fulfilling life.

Each form of breathing serves a unique purpose. Unconscious breathing is regulated by our sympathetic nervous system, and it enables us to survive. When we fall asleep and aren’t consciously thinking “breath in, breath out…” The diaphragm goes right on pulling oxygen into the lungs. Conscious breathing, on the other hand, regulates our parasympathic nervous system, enabling us to calm ourselves in a stressful situation and act instead of react. This extra power enables us to step back from the grip of survival instincts and connect with our spirit (higher self).

The connection between breath and spirit is no secret. In many languages, the words for breath and spirit are actually the same. In Hebrew, “ruach” means both “breath” and “spirit.” In Greek, pneuma means both as well. Since we have the power to regulate our breath (conscious breathing), and breath is synonymous with spirit, we have the power to regulate our spirit. That’s a pretty cool power to have!

This ability to “regulate spirit” is so powerful because it gives us a method for finding meaning and fulfillment in our lives. When we drift through the day feeling fragmented and disconnected, we are often disconnected from our breath as well. The next time you feel this way, notice how you’re breathing….If you’re taking short, shallow breaths, it’s time to change how you’re breathing. Try taking 10 deep breaths and notice the effect this has on your body, mind, and emotions. You will simultaneously feel more conscious, calm and collected – the three “C’s” that characterize spiritual life. To live a spiritual life has many meanings, but the meaning that feels true for me is “to live fully awake as your best, most loving and appreciative self.” When you are in this place, you see how all things are connected, you feel how all things are connected, and you are able to make decisions that support health and vitality. If you use your breath to live this way, you are on the fast track to a joyful and fulfilling life!

If you or someone you love is ready to connect with breath and spirit on a deeper level, contact Ashley to talk about starting a private yoga program.

As the seasons change and school gets back into session, the air crackles with pressure to prepare for tests. Students at Healdsburg Junior High and High School face deadlines in every class, stress from teachers and parents to achieve high scores, and the looming task of choosing a major, a college, and a career path.  SRJC and university attendees, further down that road, though perhaps no more certain of their occupational destination, encounter pressure from all directions to prepare for exams, pack their memories with formulas, names and dates, come out
on top in class.  Amidst the rush, students, parents, and teachers alike often forget that the biggest tests in life aren’t true/false, multiple choice or short answer. The real tests are the ones that reveal and shape our character.

These tests are subtle, and we have to slow down to score well. When we slow down, we open ourselves intuition and insight. Seeing our world more clearly, we’re better able to show up for the people around us, listen to our hearts, and make positive health choices. Through slowing down, we discover a feeling of wholeness and inner peace that cannot be found through studiousness and competition alone.

Here are some steps to help you score well on the tests that matter:

1. Schedule in time for yoga: When we take the time to turn inward, we’re better able to show outwardly. Similarly, bending our bodies in new ways produces a mind that is equally flexible.
2. Schedule time for high intensity exercise: When we work through physical challenges, we empower ourselves to rise above the challenges in our lives.
3. Make time to prepare your own meals. When we take responsibility for what we eat, we are more likely to choose fresh ingredients and moderate portions.
4. Spend time each day with family or a close friend: Connecting with others reminds us of our interconnection with all beings.

By following these four steps, you will improve the quality of your life in immeasurable ways. In so doing, you become better able to pass all the tests life brings your way. So go ahead, sit down, and ask yourself this: which tests am I going to pass this season?

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Do you ever struggle to make your actions match up with your words? Perhaps you say you want to lose 20 lbs or train for a 10k, but you never reach that goal. Instead, you remember other things you need to be taking care of, or you procrastinate, telling yourself, “I’ll start tomorrow.” In order to overcome this vicious cycle and start achieving those goals, write this down: when I stop moving into my past and I stop moving into my future, I start moving within myself.

Your power lies in the present moment. If you drift through your day caught up in memories, regrets, or the details of your past, you take up cognitive space that could be used to experience what’s right in front of you. If the person who wants to lose weight is caught up in memories of name-calling and embarrassment, he’s not likely savoring the meal that’s in front of him, and more likely to binge later. Similarly, if our runner spends her time day dreaming about the outfit she’ll wear on race day, who she’ll invite to support her, what she wants to do afterward to celebrate, etc. she’s not devoting her energy to the piece that will get her across the finish line: challenging her body to perform its best.

Contrary to popular western habit, we are only meat to focus on one thing at a time. Studies prove that when you multi-task, your ability to compete projects declines. I know this because I just wasted fifteen minutes after opening the internet to look for scholarly evidence and got sidetracked by an interesting article….As you can see from the previous examples, our powers are drawn thin when our attention is divided in multiple directions.
So what are we to do about this? How do we attain the level of focus that will allow us to see our priorities clearly and align our actions accordingly? Remembering the wise words from the start of this blog will help you focus on the present moment (when I stop moving into my past and I stop moving into my future, I start moving within myself). In my next blog, I’ll introduce a technique called “holding your space” that’s intended to help you stick to your priorities regardless of the distractions, setbacks, or limitations you may encounter.

Do you ever crave coffee in the morning or question if you have the energy to make it through the day? Many companies are aware of these feelings, and the make a profit off of selling you products filled with caffeine, sugar, and other stimulants. The truth is that you don’t need these “miracle drinks” to get through the day. I’ve never been a big Star Wars fan, but there’s one thing that George Lucas got right: the power of the “The Force.” Call me a nerd, but hear me out when I say that you can energize your body, jump start your mind, and motivate yourself and your friends naturally with “The Force.”

Now, when I say “The Force,” I mean use your Jedi Power to re-program your mind, body, and emotions. They are all connected, so when you improve the state on one area, your overall state improves. Studies performed by psychologist Robert Zajonc found that participants who smiled regardless of the emotion they were originally experiencing felt happier overall after the test period. These participants used the “body aspect” of the Jedi Power to retrain their emotions and improve their overall state. The reverse is also true: when you feel happy, your “emotional aspect” of Jedi power improves the state of the body (you have more energy).

Then there’s the “mind aspect” of the Jedi Power. Like a movie reel, the brain is constantly producing a story. The body takes this story very seriously, and can be affected either positively or negatively depending upon its content. When the story says empowering things about the body, the body receives positive reinforcement for its behavior and it feels energized. If you’ve attended bootcamp, you may have experienced this firsthand: when you were doing lunges and lifting weights, I encouraged you to tell yourself “I can feel my heart rate pump and I feel my energy increasing!” Ashley does something similar in her yoga classes. She has you create an intention for your practice, so that the mind reinforces the body with positive feedback about the progress it’s making. With some of her private clients, she uses a journaling technique to re-train the thoughts, emotions, and physical responses to exercise and help those individuals maximize their energy potential.

This is what it comes down to: your mind is like a muscle. Flex it! If you use the tools that make the mind stronger, like rewriting that script in your head or setting an intention for your workout or yoga practice, you enable your body to tap into its energy stores. So, use the “Jedi-power,” make some energy, and change the way you live your life.

We usually hear the expression “bent over backwards” paired with laments of great effort and little fruition. “I bent over backwards to get my taxes done on time and ended up owing $500!” After so many negative associations, it’s not surprising that backbends have become next to last on our to-do list. Here are some interesting perspectives that might have you rearranging your priorities…

The yogic perspective: Yogis are interested in how people respond to the world around them. In the 4,000 years since yoga began, they’ve also had some time to study how the mind, body, and emotions are interconnected, and they’ve noticed that when we experience fear or sadness, our physical response is to guard ourselves by rounding our shoulders around our heart. Picture a child who’s just been picked on at school. Over time, this exposure to sadness and fear manifests physically as “poor posture,” weakening the muscles in the back and shortening those in the chest. Providing a solution, yoga offers “heart openers:” backbends which counteract both these physical symptoms, allowing our muscles to release their grip on fear, sadness and depression.

The scientific perspective: Physiologists offer us insight about why backbends are so up lifting. They offer a gentle massage to the adrenal glands, located above the kidneys. This boots your metabolism, offering benefits similar to a cup of coffee without the crash later. The muscle work required in active backbends (think cobra, bow, and wheel) boosts the heart rate and releases endorphins and other “feel good” hormones into the bloodstream, while the work itself builds strength in the arms and tones the back of the body. When you look great and feel energized, what’s not to smile about?

So, the next time you hear someone complaining about how they “bent over backwards” for something, you can offer them a healthy solution to their woes: grab your yoga mat and do just that!

Tips for Healthy backbends:

• Warm up
• Lengthen the spine in entry
• Go slowly, moving to where you can take full, deep breaths
• Follow backbends with light twists

You shouldn’t attempt backbends if you have any acute disk injuries or are pregnant. Do not consume caffeine or eat large meals before doing advanced backbends.

For more information on:

• Developing a home yoga practice
• Customizing a sequence for your needs
• Healing injuries with Yoga
• Reducing illness