inspiration as I was teaching a class to my chair yogis this past week. We were
doing shoulder rolls and I could tell by the look on peoples faces that it felt
really good. I asked the class, “Does this feel good?”. They replied
in unison, “Yes!”. Then I asked, “Do you want to feel good everyday?” to which
they replied, “Yes!”. To which I replied, “Then do it every day!”
It
sounded so simple. Want to feel good? Then do something everyday that makes you
feel good. Now, you might be thinking (as I did) why don’t I? What gets in my
way from doing something that actually nourishes me on all levels of my being?
I have moments when I consider doing something and have a flash that
although it might seem good, is it actually doing me good? For example, when I
look at a glazed doughnut I think, “yum…that looks delicious. I’d love to
take a bite out of that!”. But, something stops me from doing so and I believe
it to be experience. In the past, eating a deliciously sweet, yeasty glazed
doughnut would give me this feeling of contentment…fleetingly. Then the
result of it was a headache from the sugar and a bellyache from the gluten.
What seemed like a good idea actually didn’t serve me in the long run. So what
I thought would satisfy my sweet tooth, aggravated the other systems in my
body.
Another example is saying “yes” to something which swings us out of
balance by overcommitting. We might think we’re being supportive of someone or
something else, but too often I witness this as going to our own well once too
often. We tap into our reserves and over time the proverbial well runs dry. We
are no longer able to offer a helping hand to others because we haven’t
re-stocked our own energy stores to be able to do so. I have seen this so often
reflected in people making themselves sick by simply saying “yes” to others and
not to themselves.
So how can we get on the path of doing something that
makes us feel good everyday? First, let’s identify what it is that floats your
physical, emotional and spiritual boat. When people move and stretch their
bodies – it feels good. When people nourish their bodies with whole foods and
oxygenate their cells through breathing- it feels good. When people drop all
that they’re doing and quiet their minds and close their eyes – it feels
good.
When we over-caffeinate, consume too much sugar or processed food,
don’t get enough sleep, overcommit, move too little or stay connected to our
technology all day long – it doesn’t feel good.
This is an opportunity to
identify what makes you go “ahhhh”. It often doesn’t take more than a few
seconds to roll your shoulders or take a deep breath.
In fact, you could
try it right now…let me know how it feels. Feel good? Want to feel good
every day….?
