Day 900

What are the effects of 900 days of consistent yoga and mindfulness practice?

Let’s have a look…

 

  • What does 900 days of yoga practice really mean?
  • What am I learning?
  • How am I different?
  • How has my body changed?
  • Has my overall emotional state shifted?
  • What are the nature of my dominant thoughts?  
  • Am I a better person?
  • Am I a healthier person?
  • Are my priorities clearly defined?
  • Is my Purpose present and measurable?
  • What is my Long View?
  • After the 1000 Day Yoga challenge…what’s next?

 

Ability to Observe Your Mind

For introspective readers, one of Yoga’s secrets of consistent practice is the ability to observe your mind. Yoga can indeed be a mental experience. The practice of yoga is a mental and physical experience and the emotions expressing through our physical bodies can sometimes be felt during a contemplative sequence.

When we truly integrate, we are merging physical body, mental and emotional states and greater consciousness, the sense of something larger than our individual selves.

Breath work is the final component of our experience. We learn to breathe deeply and together. We learn to observe and be conscious of our breath. The breath connects all the parts that make us whole and tethers us to each other and possibly something larger than our individual sense of self.

 

Explore Your Own Answers

First, I urge you to take a few minutes and answer the questions at the start of this post before you read my responses below.

Even if you are not on this 1000 Day Yoga Journey… what is YOUR committed journey? Have a look and see how these questions apply to you.

Consider stopping here and going to the top of the page and begin crafting your own responses.

My 900 Days

What does it mean? A consistent practice takes discipline and setting priorities to do anything for one thousand days. Has this experience motivated you to set a thousand day intention for another area of interest?

What am I learning? 1000 hours of focused integration creates balance of all kinds. Physical balance, mental and emotional balance leading to a deeper connection to self and others.

How am I different? I look forward to my daily practice, it grounds me.

How has my body changed? My weight remains the same. I have more muscle tone, improved balance and flexibility. I have noticed in photos I am still aging, we are not stopping time.

Has my overall emotional state shifted? I am more aware of negative emotions and how they impact my overall well-being. I am consuming less news.

What are the nature of my dominant thoughts? I am able to shift away from a negative thought more quickly, knowing it does not serve me. I am better examining a recurring dominant thought and asking why it may be there?

Am I a better person? This is so subjective. Perhaps I ask those closest to me? I HAVE deeply embraced a daily embodiment of “the other person is you.”  This has required my ego to take a ride in the back seat. 

Am I a healthier person? I have great energy. My sleep has improved. I still deal with esophageal issues in the evening and at night if I eat too late. I have eliminated all gastro medication. My intuition says to practice an elimination diet and to pursue a functional medicine doctor. I intermittent fast from 5 pm to 7 am daily.

Are my priorities clearly defined? Our practice occurred throughout the Covid pandemic. I seem more introverted. I value highly my solitude and private time. I’m not sure I will ever live as public a life as I did pre-covid?

Is my Purpose present and measurable? Some days yes. Some days no.

What is my Long View? I see my Long View to be on my mat every day. To connect with my intuition, to remain curious, to mentor, engage. How can I make one persons life better today? How do I continue to integrate body, mind, emotion, consciousness?

After the 1000 Day Yoga challenge, what’s next? Our Yoga Lab made a memory many of us may always associate with the Covid pandemic. Our practice provided a nurturing path through a life experience none of us saw coming.

Just like a deeply connected cast in a stage production we had a beginning, March 15, 2020, a middle with hundreds of days of practice and a 1000 day closing. I feel a tightening in my gut as I write these words, thinking about our cohort coming to a close. We have created a shared bond through this experience that will always be a part of who we are.

I do believe when we give up something we treasure it is replaced with what we most desire and life is even better.

What is next has yet to fully emerge…I am listening.

 

The Other Person is You?

If you’re curious about what I meant when I said, “the other person is you” or if the phrase  spontaneously resonates with you, you may find this post of interest: The Other Person is You

 

Sat Nam. ~ Rocky