Tag: personal growth

The Benefits of Cross-Training

Most people are well aware of the benefits of exercise for not just the body, but also the mind and soul. We often find something we like, establish a routine, and not vary too far from it. I am as guilty of this as anyone! And while this is markedly better than not exercising at all, there’s a substantial argument in health and fitness for cross-training, or the practice of mixing exercise activities. It can be ideal to incorporate into your exercise regimen for a variety of reasons, beginning simply with novelty.

Doing the same routine every day can get tedious, which can lead to finding excuses not to work out. Simply stated: cross-training keeps you from getting bored! Different types of exercise can offer different feelings of exertion and gratification, helping to keep you motivated. This is why in LYT Yoga, we have you change direction on your mat regularly, keeping the perspective fresh and helping to keep you from getting bored.

Cross-training also allows you to seamlessly adjust your plan when life gets in the way. We’re all going to have those days where we simply don’t have 60 minutes to spend exercising. Opting for a 30 minute HIIT class or going for a run can give you the same bang for your buck when you’re short on time.

Including cross-training into your fitness program allows you to vary the stress placed on your muscles and reduce the risk of injury, as well. Any time one type of exercise is performed repeatedly, the possibility of injury increases. If there is no change or chance to rest, there is a higher risk of sprains and strains. Cross-training allows you to continue exercising parts of your body while the other parts rest.

While months of doing the same movements, again and again, can be beneficial for sports and competition, it can significantly limit the level of your overall fitness and wellbeing. If the frequency, intensity, time, and type of exercise never changes, the body plateaus and has no reason to become more efficient or more fit. Stagnant routines cause stagnant metabolism. If the body has become used to the energy and task requirement, caloric expenditure will not increase. On the other hand, if we cross-train, the body must continually make adjustments, more energy is required to meet these needs, and metabolism and fitness increases.

Finally, by cross-training, you can strengthen and condition your entire body in multiple planes of motion to improve your overall mobility, balance, flexibility, and agility. We need a variety of movements in our bodies in the same way we need variety in our diet. If you do the same exercise regimen every day, it would be kind of like eating the same meal every day. You wouldn’t get all the nutrients your body needs.

This matters at a genetic level as well, for the genes associated with how healthy and fit you are get expressed in your muscles. Research from 2014 on the programming of the human genome and human skeletal muscle after exercise found that training actually changes the shape and function of our genes. If certain muscle groups are left unused, those genes for health and fitness are left unexpressed. Which is why cross-training is so important. It maximizes the number of muscles used and therefore, the number of health and fitness genes triggered.

The LYT Yoga Method already requires moving the body in multiple planes of motion, utilizing plyometrics, core strengthening, and stability work to maximize the effects of cross-training in a yoga platform. On the LYT Daily, we offer HIIT, resistance bands strengthening, and stretch classes as well. Next month, we are launching our 6-week Build Your Capacity Program, which will be available to all people of all fitness levels. With daily classes that build in length and intensity level, it utilizes the concepts of cross-training and works towards building better habits both on and off the mat. Keep an eye out and join us! Until then, I’ll see you on the mat!

Xoxo,

Kristin

December 29, 2021
Sequencing Tips & Tricks for LYT Teachers
Hi all! I’m Teagan.

As a longtime yoga teacher, but newer LYT yoga teacher (I was in the 1st cohort of the online 200-hour program which graduated in April 2020 & completed the 300-hour in September 2021 – LYT Level 2 certified, woot!), and a recent addition to the LYT Prime platform, I thought it might be helpful to share some of the ways I put together my sequences for classes each week. Each class is different, and everyone has strategies that work for them, but I hope that by sharing my current process, you’ll get something useful out of it.

And I should say, first and foremost, if you haven’t taken Kristin William’s sequencing labs, then you need to get on that ASAP!

You can join me weekly on LYT Prime for LIVE Zoom classes every Thursday 8-9AM ET!
1. Find Your Theme
My classes almost always start with an idea/theme/body part, etc. – some concept that is going to be the throughline. Here are some of the ways that themes come to me:
- it may come to me during a class I’m taking
  - might be a cue that sticks with me – either from the teacher or something I come up with myself in my own body/mind
  - might be something about their theme that I want to chew on and put my own spin on, something that feels meaningful to me
  - might be some shapes or transitions that are in the class that I want to dissect and play around with more and in different ways
- because of an injury or pain I’m experiencing OR a part of my body that feels like it needs attention
  - I ask myself ‘what can I do to try to help myself with this on my mat?’
  - I know that what helps me can often be a way to help others
- from what I’m seeing working with my clients/students
  - issues they’re having in their bodies
  - concepts I think they need more clarification/work on as I watch them practice/move
- from something I’ve read or seen
- a body part or action in the body I want to know more about and am willing to do some research on OR one I want to educate others more on
  - I think choosing a body part or action is a great way to embody your knowledge and help others to really understand it too
- of course, there are all the holidays, seasons, chakras, states of matter, etc. to pull from
I keep a running list of ideas on my phone that is ever-expanding. Whenever I think of one, I just add it to the list. That way I’m never short on inspiration when I need to pull together a class. And I try to pick a theme that I’m really excited about to teach on a given week so that I’m showing up with as much enthusiasm as possible when I’m teaching.
1. Start Making a List of Poses/Ideas
The next thing I do is open up a Google doc and start listing off poses or movements that are in line with the theme. I think back on and also sometimes go back and look at previous classes that have relevant examples of whatever I’m looking to theme my class around. One of the wonderful things about LYT Daily, LYT Prime, and all the LYT trainings is that we have such an expansive library of resources to draw from. The more you practice LYT, the more the concepts, movements, and ideas become embedded into your body and mind, so start there, with what is already inside.
1. Refer to Other Resources for Inspiration
Depending on the theme/idea I will also often go to Instagram and look at relevant hashtags or YouTube and seek out videos, usually from physical therapists, addressing whatever topic. These are great resources that have really helped spark my creativity in the past. I always try any ideas I get from these places out on my body first to make sure they make sense to me and convey what I’m trying to get across.
1. Get On Your Mat
Once I have some ideas to work from, the next thing to do is to get on my mat. It’s true, I can design a class sitting on my bed (where I usually do work from at home), but it tends to be much more predictable, rote, and boring (in my personal opinion)*. When I get on my mat and start playing around with movement, the class often almost seems to write itself. And I get excited about what I’m putting together. This part somehow amazes me a lot of the time. Even though I’ve been planning yoga classes for over 15 years, the magic of the sequencing coming together still feels special. I love it.

* Although I have also considered designing a class called “The Obvious Class” and making the poses and transitions between poses as obvious as possible. I think that would be fun too!
1. Refinement
Ideally, I have a day or two to let the class sit before I come back to it. That way I have a little more time to process the movements and have some space away from it so that I can come back with fresher eyes and make some refinements. These days I often end up with a few too many ideas and need to do some culling or trimming to fit it into the allotted time frame.

I do also design classes where I simply get on my mat and figure it out from there; no specific idea or theme per se, but just allowing my body to speak to me and move me around my mat as it needs. As yogis/human beings, we want to be able to access the wants, needs, desires of our minds, bodies, and spirits. So being able to tack between these different layers of ourselves and listen to them is an important aspect of feeling well-balanced and fulfilled.

I hope, for those of you who are teachers, these thoughts/explanations might add something to your sequencing process. I’d love to hear about your strategies too. Feel free to reach out on Instagram @yogawithteagan.

And I hope to see you in class soon.

xo,

Teagan

Teagan Schweitzer, Ph.D., E-RYT 500

yogawithteagan.com
December 9, 2021
LYT Gift Guide 2021

Get that gift list ready! Our second annual holiday gift guide will have you checking things off for family and friends in no time, whether they’ve been naughty OR nice! We’ve got exclusive discounts on some of our favorite things so all you have to do is tie these perfect presents up with a bow and get them under the tree. Shopping for yourself? We won’t tell! Treat yourself—we’ve made it through 2021!

1. Vivo Barefoot

We know that spending more time being barefoot means better balance, proprioception and body awareness which all provides feedback for better foot mechanics. When we have better foot mechanics, we can optimize the hips, knees and you guessed it…THE CORE. For when the occasion calls for shoes, throw on Vivo Barefoot—they are wide, flexible and thin to mirror the fan-shaped, flexible and sensory nature of our feet.

Vivo Barefoot starts at $135

Lara’s pick: Magna FG in Obsidian – These shoes take you from city to summit – the knitted collar is engineered to allow for enhanced natural foot and ankle mobility. Lightweight, flexible and durable; this is outdoor and everyday footwear rolled into one and perfected for feet.

Save 10% with AJBARE10

Shop at https://www.vivobarefoot.com/us

2. Asha Patel Designs

“Just breathe” is the mantra of Asha Patel—a pharmacist turned jewelry maker whose designs are symbolic but simple and brimming with intention. Mixed with meaningful gems and edgy materials, her designs are about female power, strength and beauty.

Asha Patel Designs start at $55

Lara’s pick: East West Trikon Drop Necklace—it embodies light, intention, energy and prosperity—all the things we need this holiday season and into the new year!

Save 15% with LYTYOGA, exclusions may apply

Shop at https://www.ashapateldesigns.com

3. Ted’s Brain Science

Developed by neuroscientist Ted Price, his pre-clinical research found that resveratrol may reset the pain threshold in injured nerves, cutting back on false pain, while allowing important pain signals to still make it through. Now that’s advanced pain relief! Perfect for tendinitis, muscle strains, carpal tunnel, arthritis, plantar fasciitis, and sore muscles, this is the perfect stocking stuffer for anyone who needs a little R+R—relief and recovery!

Ted’s Brain Science starts at $24

Lara’s pick: Ted’s professional strength cream is made with a formula catered to the needs of neuropathy patients and patients on blood thinners or those who are allergic to aspirin or NSAIDs—relief for all!

Save 15% with LYTYOGA

Shop at https://tedsbrainscience.com

4. Nuvita

Looking for a little self-care that gives back? Nuvita CBD oils are all hemp-derived, contain less than .3% THC and comply with the 2018 Farm Bill. From helping to balance your mood and inflammation, to tummy troubles and problems sleeping, their oils have a wide therapeutic range, and every month they hand-select a charity that supports vulnerable women and children. They also have a pet-safe formula that is specifically formulated for your furry friend!

Nuvita CBD oils start at $55.50 for humans, $19.50 for pets

Lara’s pick: CBG Infused Full Spectrum CBD Oil

Save 10% with NEWLIFE

Shop at https://nuvitacbd.com

5. K-Deer Activewear

K-Deer is an LGBTQ, female-founded and led company committed to designing high-quality activewear that’s joyful, unique, supportive and inclusive of ALL HUMANS. They believe fit, comfort and confidence are connected, so their clothes are designed for performance first. Their innovative material won’t lose resiliency over time and will even shape comfortably around a growing baby bump. Their moisture-wicking fabric is H2O friendly and provides UPF 50+ sun protection. Their bold and vibrant prints inspire us to live boldly and honestly as the best version of ourselves, and we hope you will too!

K-Deer leggings start at $88.00

Lara’s pick: K-Deer’s Mabel Stripe signature design has created a movement of treating the world with love and kindness.

Save 20% with LYT20, exclusions apply.

Shop at https://www.k-deer.com

6. Florissana

We will spend a reported $15,000 on skincare products in our lifetime. But what is really in the products we put on our skin, and what is it doing to us and the world around us? If you have been looking for cosmetics that are high quality, eco-friendly and cruelty free, then look no further! Florissana is a curated store of natural cosmetics by Jana Broeckx—a member of our own LYT community!

Florissana starts at $10.00

Lara’s pick: The Dirty Pretty Things revitalising face mask is loaded with a blend of traditional herbs, spices, and antioxidants to cool and heal the skin after a long day of moving and teaching!

Save 15% with LYTYOGA

Shop at https://www.florissana.com

7. Sobrietà Boutique

Living alcohol free doesn’t mean you have to stick to water and soda! This holiday season, enjoy some healthy non-alcoholic alternatives that will surely make your taste buds happy! This boutique also has a great collection of uncommon goods perfect for any adult on your list!

Sobrietà Boutique starts at $10.00

Lara’s pick: Teetotaler White Wine—because wine not?

Save 10% with YOGA

Shop at https://www.sobrietaboutique.com

8. Baxter Blues

Sitting for too long in front of our screens leads to pain in our head, neck, shoulders, back AND hips, but it can also place a tremendous strain on our eyes! With the workforce spending an average of 7 hours looking at screens each day, we are exposed to tremendous amounts of blue light, resulting in interrupted sleep, migraines and eye disease. Block out the harmful blue light with Baxter Blues with function and style!

Baxter Blues start at $95.00

Lara’s pick: the DREW in cappuccino because why can’t we feel good and look good for all of those zoom calls?

Save 15% with code YOGA15

Shop at https://baxterblueglasses.com

9. Rovectin

“To return back to where it was” is what reverti means in Latin and is also where the name, Rovectin, originated from. Rovectin began when a brother simply wanted to help his sister restore her severely damaged skin from chemotherapy. Now it is a celebrated brand with incredible restorative qualities for all skin types. While we may not be able to turn back time, (and after the last year and a half, we might not want to) we can at least care for our skin and keep it looking healthy and fresh!

Rovectin starts at $19.00

Lara’s pick: Barrier Repair Facial Set—a cleanser, moisturizer and anti-aging oil to complete your skincare routine!

Save 15% with code LYT15

Shop at https://rovectin.com

10. Kanuda

Physical Therapists unite! A pillow that helps with alignment and posture? Sign us up! Kanuda is the perfect pillow that integrates physical therapy benefits to ensure proper neck alignment while sleeping on your side, helping to reduce pain and sleep better!

Kanuda starts at $79.00

Lara’s pick: Piano Air Pillow – this pillow is designed to provide cervical spine and shoulder support with a soft yet elastic texture.

Save 15% using code LYT15

Shop at https://kanudausa.com

11. Sohum Candle

When you light your Sohum candle, SoHum illuminates your intention—be it a room to smell good, to a life to be more enriched. Together, let’s brighten our awareness that we are safe, we are supported, we are loved.

Sohum Candles start at $15.00

Lara’s pick: Cardamom Tea + Citrus—fill your room with the scents of grapefruit, ginger, cardamom, tea, pink pepper, cinnamon, and amber, balanced by cedar and vetiver for a sophisticated holiday punch redux!

Save 25% using code LYT25

Shop at https://www.so-hum.ca

12. *NEW* LYT Yoga Mat

After this last year, we may need an extra reminder—WE CAN and WE WILL! Our new yoga mat designed exclusively by Lara gives us a compass to better align our down dog and handstand and helps us guide our directions in our practice.

Mat costs $111

Save 20% with code GIFTGUIDE

Shop at https://shop.lytyoga.com/collections/accessories/products/new-lyt-yoga-mat

13. Rollga

One of our favorite foam rollers on the market, Rollga is designed to stabilize the hips, align the back, and increase range of motion, and is ideal for muscle recovery, fascial health, and functional restoration of movement. Because of its contoured shape that fits the curves of our body, this roller reaches trigger points that are difficult to reach with ordinary rollers while naturally restoring our fascia lubrication and helping to stimulate oxygen-rich blood flow for healing!

Rollga starts at $49.99

Save 15% with ALLYBNOEL

Shop at https://rollga.com

December 2, 2021
Three Rules of Gratitude
by Professor Jeremy David Engels, PhD, E-RYT500 (@yoga.professor)

What’s your gratitude practice?

In addition to being a longtime mindfulness, meditation, and LYT yoga teacher, I am also a scholar and professor of communication. In my book The Art of Gratitude, I argue that gratitude matters. The words we use to describe our emotions are important, as they influence how we and others feel.

Here are my three rules for how to practice gratitude.
1. Practice gratitude every day
Scholars have documented the many personal, social and health benefits of gratitude. Gratitude can lower blood pressure, reduce anxiety, improve sleep, and make people feel happier and more at home in the world. In general, research shows that the practice of gratitude reduces suffering and promotes individual well-being.

So the practice of gratitude each day is important – but it also requires the right philosophy and the right rhetoric.
1. Avoid the language of debt
Many of us regularly say “I owe you one,” “I owe you a debt of gratitude,” or some other phrase that means basically the same thing.

In doing so, gratitude becomes a kind of a debt incurred during daily life that I need to repay.

In The Art of Gratitude I argue that the trouble with the language of debt is that it transforms how we talk about gratitude into a transaction. When gratitude becomes a daily practice of counting and keeping score, and when we only do kind things for others when they can repay them, it’s easy to start thinking of life itself as a series of economic transactions—and this way of thinking is so limited. Life is not a transaction. Life is not a debt. The value of our fellow human beings can never be captured in economic terms.
1. Recognize interconnectedness
My academic research is influenced profoundly by yoga philosophy. I define yoga as a practice that aims to reduce suffering in the world by sensitizing us to our fundamental interconnectedness with all living beings and the earth itself. This is what it means when we say that yoga is union (from the Sanskrit root yuj, yoking, connection, union).

In the United States, it is common to speak of self-reliance. But no person builds their life alone. Everyone is supported. The yogic practice of gratitude, or “santosha,” encourages practitioners to acknowledge and give thanks for the many forms of support that allow them to live their lives.

To breathe is to take in the same air that others breathe; to stand is to stand on the same earth that others stand on. Without the air, or the earth, shared by all, we wouldn’t be here. The practice of yogic gratitude encourages people to recognize that they are part of the world, not separate from it.

It also teaches people to recognize that to reduce their suffering they must also work to reduce the suffering of those around them. Often people don’t see it this way, but there is no injustice that affects someone else that does not also in some way affect each one of us too.

True gratitude is a practice of recognizing our interconnectedness – that we are all in this together, and that we need each other to face the challenges of life in a world beyond our control. True gratitude is a practice of yoga, and yoga is a practice of true gratitude.

Feel free to reach out and tell me about your gratitude practice! You can connect with me on Instagram @yoga.professor
November 25, 2021
Career vs job: following your passion

Hi! I’m Taisie Grant.

Growing up I always believed that in order to be ‘successful’ in life you had to follow the stereotype; the big corporate role, the highly admired job title, the big salary and a prestigious level of responsibility.
Otherwise – you would be classed as a failure – a nobody.

In the same vein though, I felt this immense pressure on my shoulders that I had to live up to this preposterous expectation and that if I didn’t achieve all of the above then I would have indeed failed. Of course – writing this to the audience I know it is to be shared with, I’m sure a lot of you will understand where I am coming from but will also know that there is a lot more to life than the societal expectation surrounding success. Unfortunately, I do believe society has a huge amount to be held accountable for when it comes to people ending up in a groundhog day job rather than a career that they love and why a lot of people go through life in a ‘job’ that as every Monday morning rolls around, causes them to wake up shrouded in fear and anxiety. What I have also realised, however, is that in order to find a career that you love – you, first of all, have to know what you are passionate about. And that, after having spoken to a lot of people about this, can sometimes be where the first hurdle lies. I have heard more than once that people have no idea what they are passionate about. Unfortunately, life sometimes doesn’t give us time, or should I correct myself by saying sometimes we don’t make time, to step back from the daily grind to really look at ‘what we love’ and what really sets our soul on fire because we’ve spent so long in auto-pilot with the blinkers on.

Getting up, going to work, coming home, numbing out from our miserable day in the office, going to bed and then rinsing and repeating, over and over. Well, all of the above was me. 23 months ago. I had been in a world that I realise now was so far against every grain in my body – trying to fit, trying to make it work, trying to pretend I was a success and most of all trying to pretend I was loving it. Spending all of my time worrying about what everyone else was thinking about me and how I would be viewed, dare I say it validated, rather than worrying about what was important to me. Living in line with my values, standing firm and sticking to my beliefs. After a series of serendipitous events – I happened to, through recommendation, end up at a magical place on the East Coast of Kenya – and had signed myself up for a 200hr YTT having not ever done more than five yoga classes – perhaps a bold move? But I didn’t care. I was at breaking point, in a terribly bad mental black hole, and my mental and physical health was really suffering, horribly. During those three weeks away, as cliche as it might sound, they have gone on to become three weeks that absolutely changed my life.

I realised that I didn’t have to live constantly against my grain. And that I also didn’t need to live a life where I constantly felt like I had to compete with everyone in my peer group; experiencing that suffocating feeling of never being good enough and always feeling like I was failing compared to everyone else. Yoga has taught me one of the biggest lessons in my life. The practice of self-kindness and self-compassion and that lesson alone has opened my mind in more ways than I could ever have imagined.

It also has taught me about passion and purpose and given me a realisation as to what I was born to do. There now isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t feel fully aligned to myself and the value chain I stand for and live by.

I realise how incredibly jarring the many years before now that I have not been aligned to these have been. It has meant that I have learned to be more content with my present situation – rather than constantly berating myself for not being ‘enough’. Or what I deemed was enough.

The trouble with never thinking you are enough though however means that whenever you achieve something – you are still never satisfied because there will always be someone doing what you believe to be ‘better than you’, appearing to be more ‘successful’ than you – so you just constantly set yourself up for a life of unhappiness and an inability to ever find contentment. Through yoga and movement – I have finally realised what I was put on this earth to do. And despite there being times where I have felt completely hopeless and lost, wondering what on earth I had done giving up my good salary and all of the security which comes with having a job, I now truly have a career. A passion. A purpose.

And let me tell you, it is one of the most exciting and liberating things to happen to me in my 30 years. For all of the days where I have worried over where my next paycheck might be coming from, not once have I regretted my decision to quit my job and follow my passion.

I do not ever have to question my values – because I now am able to hold strong the values I put above everything else, and as a result, can choose to work with those who honour the same values. I often felt in my old jobs like my moral compass was at times highly compromised and challenged. Making a career from my passion has given me freedom in ways I didn’t think was possible. The freedom to work and travel knowing that I can still earn while I am away. The freedom to go to new places and then create my work from there. The freedom to explore avenues that really interest me. The freedom to meet like-minded people and not have to pretend to be what I need to be – I can just meet them as me.

I have also redefined my definition of ‘success’. So many of us are entrapped in the belief that we can only be successful if we adhere to the societal guidelines and expectations of how and what we’re supposed to achieve. This is one of the most suffocating things to hold yourself against. When you redefine success to what YOUR definition is, the world becomes hugely exciting! And you feel expectation melting away – as success becomes what YOU make of it and no one else. And it can be absolutely anything! Something as simple as that you are living in line with your truest self. And if you ask me, I’d take that any day over selling my soul to the devil to have someone else’s validation!

I cannot encourage you enough to do the same! To find and explore your passion if you have something that you are passionate about; or if you don’t, to go and find something.

My only word of caution to you would be to have the financial stability to allow you to do this, as at times this has been unsettling, but for me going back to the old life of a ‘job’ seems like something I couldn’t even begin to imagine doing. It seems alien and so far away from the life I have now created. Yes, there might be times where I have to work the coffee shop or wait on tables in these early days to keep me afloat. But that is a small price to pay for the opportunity to truly shape your own and, as a result, other people’s lives.

I don’t want to get to the end of my life and say – I wish I had done X. I want to write my story starting from now. No regrets. The only thing you need to do is believe in yourself. And believe that you can make it happen. There will always be people who try and dissuade you otherwise for all manner of reasons – fear, jealously, their own unhappiness – but as long as you are committed to the path that you know was meant for you, you are the only person who needs to believe in what you’re doing and in yourself. So go bravely, go boldly. Find your courage. Find your strength. And dare to jump into the unknown and let me know what happens!

In the wonderful words I’ve learnt from our yoga mama, Lara,

I’m pulling for you!
Taisie xxx

November 7, 2021
Jana’s skincare story

Hi

I’m Jana Broeckx, a certified LYT teacher, computer scientist and cosmetics enthusiast. I’m gonna tell you a story of how my skincare routine led me to live a more balanced, integrated life.

I’ve had dry, easily bruised, sometimes painful skin my whole life. When I was a teenager my mother even took me to a dermatologist once because the skin on my head was ALWAYS painfully itchy. He told us some teenagers get acne, some – like me – can get symptoms like dry, itchy skin. He prescribed a certain shampoo we had to special-order from the local pharmacist as it wasn’t something they usually had in stock. It relieved some discomfort, but the itch came back quickly after washing.

The shampoo had a label on it that said “no parabens”. I read it a thousand times, but one day in 2013 I became curious enough to look up what it actually meant. I found all of this information about how so many of the ingredients that are very commonly found in generic skincare and make-up items can possibly have serious effects on our skin, our largest organ, or even overall health. Many items are filled with filler ingredients that do nothing but dilute the product so you need to repurchase quickly. On top of that – which was the worst part – many of these items are tested on animals. Something I had never thought about before, I just assumed it was a thing of the past. It isn’t!

For a while there it seemed like all common products you could find had ingredients in them that I didn’t want to use anymore for various reasons. Eventually I found the green beauty community. Products that are generally made with more natural ingredients, using mostly plant oils and extracts that are often safer to use and gentler to the skin. My skincare routine went from standard lotions and creams to one-ingredient oils and flower waters for a while. As a university student this was great. These items were cheaper than what I was using before and often lasted longer as they’re more concentrated.

One thing I struggled with was the make-up part. In mid-2013 there were a lot of bad products out there. Not in terms of ingredients, but performance. It took me years to find colour cosmetics that had ingredients I liked and performed the way I wanted. At the time it felt impossible to find items that would last a whole day. By the time it was noon, it either was gone or looked unappealing. It honestly took me years to find items that I liked.

I mentioned in the beginning how this changed how I lived my life, so let’s segue into that for a second. In my search for healthier, simpler beauty products, I found a lot of blogs and websites that would mention topics like sustainability, plant-based eating and animal welfare. Honestly, this was not something that I had looked into or thought about at all.

Then in early 2014, while I was enrolled in the first year of my master’s, our schedule was so intense and my grandparents were having serious health issues. I was so stressed out I started suffering from intense stomach pains to the point I had to go lay down on the floor in child’s pose and hope it would be over soon. My doctor prescribed a peppermint oil supplement. To my surprise my pain went away almost completely. This sparked curiosity in me once more. If a supplement had such a big effect, then what would the impact of our diet as a whole be? I remembered all those skincare blogs talking about a plant-based diet. So after a lot of research I became 95% plant-based and both my skin and digestion had never been better.

In January 2015 I ended up watching several documentaries that kept popping up on blogs that I used to find skincare or make-up reviews and vegan recipes. One documentary in particular, Earthlings, really shook something in me. The impact that we as humans have on the planet and all the non-human animals living around us is enormous. Why was this something I had never even considered in my life? And what was I doing with my life if I knew all this information and didn’t do anything with it? So I became vegan and a couple months later I joined a vegan activist group here in Belgium.

For the first time in my life I felt like I was part of something meaningful. I wasn’t just going through the motions of things I thought I should be doing. I started becoming a lot more aware of the impact of my choices and actions on the people, planet and beings around me. It was a big step towards connecting – maybe for the first time in my life – to my CORE.

OK… back to the skincare part of the post. I eventually found amazing, natural (colour) cosmetics. But I was ordering them on so many different websites as none grouped all the good brands together. I was spending quite a bit of money on shipping. So I decided to start Florissana – a vegan cosmetics webshop based in Belgium with all the goodies – (in the beginning at least) as a side business. I wanted it to be easy to find good, vegan items as I know many people in my life would never put in the amount of hours I had to find an alternative that was more sustainable and animal-friendly. I can test the products so you don’t have to.

This whole journey started as something so superficial, but ended up inviting me to go deeper within. Facing your inner demons and conditioning of course comes with its own difficulties. This eventually led me to start a vinyasa yoga practice. Maybe the details of that whole journey will be a story for another day. But it was someone in the vegan activist group I joined that pointed me in the direction of the right yoga training where I met Lara. As if it was all meant to happen. LYT Yoga truly helps me to keep living in an integrated, core-connected way, to continue to learn and grow for myself and others. And it all started with a bottle of shampoo.

Are you intrigued and want to start incorporating more natural products in your routine or are you looking for alternatives for specific items? Reach out to me on Instagram (@jnabrx) and I’ll point you in the right direction!

Oh… that itch on my scalp… it disappeared when I started using gentler, greener products. And my skin? It has never looked and felt better.

Jana

October 28, 2021
7. Adaptability: Move Through Life With More Freedom
In this episode, I discuss how we can all become more adaptable in our body, in our minds, and in our spirits so that we can move through life with more freedom.

So what is adaptability and why is it so important?

Adaptability is defined as…
- the quality of being able to adjust to new conditions.
- the capacity to be modified for a new use or purpose.
What a great concept to incorporate into our lives!

Really, adaptability is fundamental for our own personal growth – in our yoga practice, our movement practice, as human beings, and as members of society – because it allows us to change, morph, and evolve as the things we can’t control change around us.

And because there is so much going on in the world and things seem to change faster with every passing day, adaptability is more necessary now than ever before.

Neural Wiring

When we start doing something new, we need to repeat it to make the wiring in our brain stronger.

If you haven’t climbed on the monkey bars since you were a kid, or ever in your life, then your body and brain aren’t adapted to do that. The wiring in your brain isn’t very strong, and we have to think about this in relation to movement.

But in addition to repeating movement, we also need to challenge ourselves to grow. Otherwise, we may stop being adaptable and become rigid.

What helps us be more adaptable?

First, open-mindedness.

Now, this isn’t easy by any means, especially when it comes to the starkly divided political environment in the United States. It can be difficult to be tolerant and open-minded towards views when they don’t match their own, but that practice of tolerance will actually help everyone, in the long run, become more adaptable.

Second, positivity. You can decide your outlook, to a certain degree. I know that thinking positively isn’t going to fix everything, and I’m not suggesting that positive thinking will overcome chemical imbalances or trauma, but too many of us get caught up in our own negative thoughts.

Even going back to the mid-20th century and Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking, it has been studied and demonstrated that a positive attitude can lead to positive events in your life.

Third, resilience, or your ability to bounce back. When you’re stuck in a rigid mindset, things just happen to you and they often stop you in your tracks – but when you are resilient, you can stumble and still move forward.

Here are my favorite strategies for cultivating adaptability:
- Observation. After we start observing ourselves and noticing when we feel tense, nervous, discontent, or grumpy, we can then figure out tools to help us.
- Look for the gray and eliminate absolutes. Embrace the gray, find the colors that aren’t black and white, and look at things from a new perspective!
- Connect to your core. Your core is who you are at your essence, and your core strength aligns you with your purpose and your core values and helps you cope better when things don’t go your way.
- Embrace the new. This is always good for growth, even in small amounts.
- Self-care. This can be really difficult for some people to think about and incorporate, but you can’t serve others or live life to its fullest without serving yourself first. You’re also more likely to feel good about yourself, which will help you engage in more positive emotions and improve your outlook on life! You can decide what this looks like for you, but it needs to incorporate movement because movement is always the pathway for adaptability.
- Rewire your brain. We discussed how the neural wiring in our brain works already, but I want to emphasize how critical this is for cultivating adaptability in every area of your life.
To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit: lytyoga.com/blog/category/podcasts/

Connect with LYT Yoga and Lara Heimann:

Instagram Lara Heimann – https://www.instagram.com/lara.heimann/

Facebook Lara Heimann – https://www.facebook.com/lara.f.heimann

Instagram LYT Yoga – https://www.instagram.com/lytyogamethod/

Facebook LYT Yoga – https://www.facebook.com/lytyogamethod
November 12, 2018