Tranquil Tuesdays: When The Deck is Stacked Against You

A few months ago I indulged in the TV show Survivor and I was surprised to find that a lesson I learned from a reality show has stuck with me so strongly.

In this particular episode, there was a challenge in which 2 recently voted-out contestants (a male and a female) had the opportunity to return to the game. For this particular challenge, the eliminated players had to form the tallest structure by stacking cards one by one before the time ran out.

Survivor Blood vs. Water- Episode 12
Photo Courtesy of: Survivorz.wordpress.com

As the minutes ticked by and the stacks grew taller, sweat began to pour down the two contestants’ brows as they nervously placed yet another cards atop their wobbly structure. 

The female contestant had taken a substantial lead against the male player until suddenly, during an attempt to place another card on top, the entire tower plummeted. Cards flew everywhere. She let out a huge sigh of defeat, and with less than a minute left on the clock, knew it is unlikely that she could catch up to the other player’s 7 foot tall tower.

Other contestants yelled out words of encouragement such as “Nice try”, making it clear they thought it was over.

But the female contestant continued to plow on.

The camera zoomed in to the determined and passionate look on her face. She proceeded to hurriedly pick up the cards and began to build a new tower. Slowly, her stack of cards began to rise to one foot…and then higher. Not once during this time did she look over at the other player’s far higher tower next to her.

Seconds remained when, unexpectedly, the other contestant’s stacked tower completely crashed to the ground. The woman miraculously won the challenge with her 2 foot high stack of cards! She smiled widely, relishing in the notion that she got to stay in the game.

Hitting the Wall of Limitations

Photo Courtesy of: The Huffington Post

The next day while in yoga class, I too felt as though I was no longer in control of my stack of cards.

My peaceful mind suddenly began to roam wildly when my back unexpectedly experienced an intensely painful muscle spasm. I began to grow upset as I had done everything I was supposed to do in order to prevent the pain from occurring that day. After all, I had drank plenty of water, had slowly and patiently worked myself into each yoga posture, and even heated/iced my back prior to arriving for class.

For the past year, I have had terrible back spasms, some so crippling that I have had to miss out on many important events. I have worked furiously to feel better by going to many specialists such as a chiropractor, acupuncturist, physical therapist, and spinal surgeon. 

In addition, I practice at least 30 minutes of yoga daily in order to improve my flexibility and remain physically healthy.

Yet, some days I still feel as though I am experiencing day 1 of excruciating pain all over again. While one day I may feel incredible in a yoga posture, experiencing a sense of painless openness; other days may require a lot of blocks and modifications in order to get into the same pose.

On this particular day in yoga class, my back hurt even while lying down in Savasnasa. As everyone around me lay there calmly, slowly sinking deeper and deeper into a feeling of tranquility, I continuously squirmed around, hoping to find a comfortable way to lie down that would eliminate the intensely hot pain I was experiencing.

Suddenly, my mind went back to the woman on Survivor and how she dealt with her toppled structure. And so I turned over onto my stomach, slowly inhaling and exhaling. While my back sure didn’t feel like a strong and sturdy tower, I knew that I should be proud of my effort to get to yoga class. By staying on my yoga mat and working through the pain, I too was choosing to stay in the game.

Dig in and Dig Deeper

So the next time you feel defeat setting in, I urge you to push past it. Going to yoga for me is like getting my car washed: I know that is a helpful and necessary part of my routine.

If you don’t nourish your body and mind regularly, all of the “muck” that you didn’t wash off prior to the next storm will get stuck there even deeper. So do yourself a favor and take control of your hand of cards.

Below is your daily dose of inspiration....

Create a Tranquil Day,

*Tranquil Tuesdays will be the first Tuesday of every month. 

*For one of my favorite yoga-stretching YouTube videos that helps me to find back relief, click here.

*For more tranquil related articles, read the article "A Novice's Tale of Yoga Journaling" that I wrote for the Yoga Blog.com or check out November's Thankful Tuesday series: Parts 1, 2, & 3

Thrifty Thursdays: An After Thanksgiving Guide- Leftover Madness & Detoxifying Twists

Photo Courtesy of Tory Stone
Follow her on Instagram: @Tory_Elizabeth_

 Its Thrifty Thursday and what's more thrifty then making that Thanksgiving meal last and last?

 I'm someone that can't just reheat leftovers in the microwave. I find them boring and tasting very "blah", and so I wanted to help you add a dash of a little "something, something" to those Turkey Day leftovers. 

Below are 2 brand, spanking new recipes perfect for re-creating your Thanksgiving meal. They are not only popping a lot of flavor, but also a little "healthified" too. And speaking of healthified...

I  have also included links to my favorite 5 free YouTube Detoxifying, Yoga Twist videos below. These videos are great for ringing out the body after that heavy holiday meal and I have made sure there is an option for all levels.

I wish you all a wonderful day filled with lots of memory, great food ( Thanksgiving Recipes), love, laughs, and hopefully a little bit of creativity.

Enjoy the day and try not to sweat the small stuff! Instead, leave the sweating for your detox poses later tonight!

Crispy Mashed Potatoes & Stuffing Latkes-*Printer Friendly Version

*You can leave out the turkey if you’re feeling all “turkeyed” out,

 or sub the turkey for another type of meat such  as chicken.

*Substitute coconut oil for 2 T more olive oil or 2 T. of unsalted butter.

Cranberry and Turkey Leftover Quesadilla-*Printer Friendly Version

My 5 "Go To" Detox YouTube Videos

For 10 min. of Yoga Twists

Restorative Yoga Sequence by Esther Ekhart of Ekhart Yoga 

This restorative sequence rebuilds energy and restores balance in your body. 

(Grab a couple of pillows for this one!)

Yoga for Holiday Meal Digestion by Tara Stiles of LiveStrongWoman

This 10 minute heart-opening, total body twist is the perfect detox kickstart. 

Tara is a fast-talking yoga instructor, yet provides calm, well-guided steps.

For a 20 min. Everyday Stretching Sequence

Safe Stretches for Full Body Yoga by Jen Hilman of PsycheTruth

Jen has a lot of great videos for stretching. 

She is very easy to follow along, even while watching TV.

20 min. Intermediate/Advanced Detox Opening Classes

20 Minute Yoga Class: Lengthening & Opening  by Colleen Saidman of PlumTV

This  energizing total body yoga sequence gives excellent instructions and provides a beautiful beach view.

One Hour Yoga Flow Class for All Levels

Yoga Flow Class for Beginners to Intermediates by Yogi Nora Channel

This class provides a great balance of stretching the hips, working through sun salutations, and performing detoxifying twists. The instructor is very happy, relaxed, and makes you feel like you can sit into the stretches for a lot longer than you may have originally thought. 

And now for your daily dose of inspiration...

Photo Courtesy of: Kelsey J. Andrade

Thankful Tuesdays: A Lesson on Weathering the Storm

Update: In honor of Thanksgiving, I have added a few of my personal recipes to the Creatively Lu Printer-Friendly Recipe Page. Here are the links to my Popover Rolls, Mini, Baked Sweet Potato Latkes , and Turkey Sausage, Apple Challah Stuffing. 

Its Part 3 of the Thankful Tuesday series and today I want to expand on last week's post involving the 'upper limit problem' (ULP). As I have discussed in Part 2, we all have at some point in our lives experienced a version of the ULP, in which we control a thermostat for how much love and success we are willing to allow into our life. Therefore, if something really great happens and shifts the dial to a higher setting then we are used to, we subconsciously find ways to turn the dial back down. We put the temperature back to a place that is more in our comfort zone by inviting in all of our "worry thoughts.".

"Worry thoughts” are similar to that feeling you get in the pit of the stomach just before the drop-off on a roller coaster. As you reach closer to the top of the hill, you feel the butterflies start to set in. But as you know, when you choose to push past those limiting fears and continue on with the ride, you can certainly get through that scary experience. Today I want to help you to begin to view that feeling of butterflies as a reminder that good things are ahead. 

A time in my life in which the “worry thoughts” really tend to creep  is when I look back at old pictures of myself. I see the photos and begin to feel a sense of sadness waft over me. I wanted to try and expand past those limiting fears in order to reach a higher dial setting.

Recently, I stumbled across an AIM group conversation from my middle school days. In the conversation, my 5 friends who I had eaten lunch with daily invited me into a chat room. They wanted to tell me that I was no longer able to sit with them at the lunch table and reading the chat more than 11 years later, still made me feel a sense of sadness.

In the AIM chat, the “ring leader” began by saying; “Alright on behalf of our table I would like to say that you can no longer sit with us at lunch. You can show that all now by saying ‘I do.’” And so one by one... each girl typed “I do.” These girls who had "voted" me out of the lunch table had been my friends since first grade.  I responded simply by saying; “I had no idea anyone felt this way.”

 When I read my response to those girls in the chat, I instantly felt that I was back in that very moment, sitting back in the computer chair in my childhood home and feeling that same shocked, raw emotion all over again. I began thinking; “How had I not known they didn't like me? What was wrong with me?” That’s when it hit me, I associated past photos as a time in which I did not feel worthy.

After reading the AIM chat, I went and got out my middle school yearbook, where I found that my school picture had been crossed out with sharpie. I had felt bad about myself during this time and knew that I wouldn’t want my future self to have to view the photo. Suddenly, my mind flashed back to going to my grandmother’s house in Indiana. Growing up, I stayed in the guest room which had a shelf in the headboard adorned with a plethora of photos featuring the 7 grandchildren. I remember placing all of the frames containing my picture face down. Suddenly, I realized that there was a pattern of “worry thoughts” tied with having to look at old photos.

Last Monday, I went through my old, family photo albums looking for a photo that felt paralyzing. A photo in which if I walked into my grandmother’s house, I would surely turn the frame over. I knew that it would be very therapeutic to share the picture and so I posted it on the blog for last week's Thankful Tuesday. However, after I posted the photo, I realized that I did not feel completely like I had conquered the "worry thoughts" connected to it. 

Writing the blog feels a lot like writing in a personal journal and its easy to feel like I am simply sharing a lesson with a few close friends. And so I knew that if I wanted to work on pushing past those limiting fears, I’d have to take it a step further. That night, I decided to post the photo on my personal Facebook page.

As each person began to “like” my photo, I felt as though  each “like” was an alert that said; “this person from your life viewed the photo, and this person, and oh yeah, remember him...he saw it too.” I felt those butterflies fill up in my stomach, and I simply wanted to hit the delete button on the photo before the next “alert” could occur. But I knew that the fear was something I could and should push past.

That photo above no longer holds power over me. The very next day, my best friend came over, looked at the photo, and simply said "Do you remember the movie we watched that night?" I paused and thought to myself, this photo happened more than 5 years ago, yet I still have the same inner circle of friends, who are some of the most kind-hearted and supportive people that I know. I was worthy of their friendship then and I am worthy now...and you better believe we have lunch together often.

Have you ever listened to a storm on a warm summer night and heard the alarming sound of thunder grow closer and sound louder? Just as you think it couldn't possibly get any worse, there is one more terrifyingly loud, BOOM! sound. Shortly after, however, the clouds begin to part, the sun comes out from its hiding, and things go back to usual. This is exactly what occurs in life.

 I really hope that no matter what type of storm you are currently weathering, you truly believe in yourself and know that it will become a lot less hazy soon. Today I am incredibly grateful to get to share this lesson with you and I hope that you all know how beautiful and special you all are! I hope this post can be your friend at the lunch table, when you need it most. 

Below is your daily dose of inspiration...

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Thankful Tuesdays: A Lesson on Expanding Your Limits

Today I am very thankful for some great advice I received over the weekend. The lesson I learned is something that I think can resonate with all of us. And so I encourage you to pass it on!

Last Saturday, I attended a Tech conference where I took classes on branding, SEO, Social Media, and more. I drank in each class like an unquenchable thirst for marketing knowledge. It felt so great to be in a classroom, really focused, and really invested in the subject matter. I began to grow excited about all of the potential for my blog and career, in general. But as the day wore on, that old familiar feeling of “fear” began to strike. By lunchtime, I felt a drain in my energy and a loss of focus as I began to wonder, “Why did I deserve to be at this conference?” After all, I wasn’t some important person with a well-known brand name like Skinnygirl. I started to let my fears limit me. However, that same day I had the good fortune of talking to one of the speakers after her course on branding. As I began to tell her all my blog ideas and grow more and more excited, she really helped me to stop and joyfully resonate that “there was something there.” But since it felt wrong to just feel joy, I also shared with her my fears of not succeeding. I had so many fears of taking a nontraditional career path, a path far different than the one my father and I had discussed and always planned for. And so she suggested that I read “The Big Leap” for some guidance.

 The next day, I downloaded the book on my Kindle and began reading with determination, and of course a little bit of apprehension. Within the introduction pages, I greatly resonated with the concept on limits:“If I argue for my limitations, I get to keep them.” This felt like an Aha! Moment for me. While this notion is so simple, it is also so profound. When I say I can’t do something, of course I can’t, and when I say I can, of course I can. Therefore, what I am grateful for on this Thankful Tuesday is all of the times in which I really astounded myself by saying “I can.” I am grateful for how far I've come today:  

When I was a sophomore in college, one night over dinner, I declared to my parents that I was going to run a half marathon. My parents gently pointed out that I  could not run a mile and so maybe I should try a 5K in the springtime. However, I felt determined and unwavering in running a half. The next day, I went out and bought the “Beginner’s Guide to Half Marathon Training” and a new calendar. I went home and looked for half marathon races and found one 13 weeks away. And so I wrote in my calendar, each training day up until Sunday May 24th, the big circled/starred Race day. As I looked at all of the training that was ahead, I felt a huge amount of fear slowly start to creep in, “But I’m overweight, how will I not get winded?," "I am a full time student, how will I find the time?”And although those fears haunted me and I felt a huge pit in my stomach, I pushed past my limits and immediately registered/ paid for the race.

The next day, I set out to the gym and eyed the treadmill very apprehensively. I started my warm-up with a brisk walking pace and watched as the 5 minute warm-up went by way too fast, my hands felt heavy as I went to hit the up arrow to turn my walk into a jog. I thought to myself, here goes nothing, and so I began to run, envisioning the finish line. And I know what you may be thinking, how could you picture the finish line when it was day 1, mile 1 of your first workout? I envisioned the finished line because I was subconsciously pushing past my upper limit. After jogging a mile, I hit the stop button and there flashing before my eyes was: Distance: 1:00 miles. I had taken my first step on my journey to health.

As the weeks wore on, I felt that there was some sort of motivation missing. I knew that towards the end of each run, I wanted to up the speed and push a little harder but felt like I was running out endurance and could not do that. I realized that I needed some sort of “distraction” for longer workouts. And so I decided to start taking spin classes.

I loved the dark room, loud music, and ability to zone out for the hour. However, I recognized that all of the spinning instructors seemed “super human” like they were merely sitting on the couch watching TV. How did it come so easy to them? There were times when I wanted them to say things like “Good Job", "Just a little longer", "You can do this” and create that bike route visualization I so craved. I wanted to be able to envision the “heavy tires stuck in the mud” during the hills section of the spin class. And so it was roughly 3 months after my first spin class, that I decided to become a spin instructor.

And while my journey to health is a lot longer than you have time to read today and I will continue to share candid lessons and stories in the months to come, I will quickly summarize what happened next. I ran the half marathon that Memorial Day and got to run the last block to the finish line with my dad who had never showed more pride nor a bigger beaming smile than he had that day, completed a 3 hour spinathon 2 weeks later for American Red Cross, and received my spinning instructor certification over Thanksgiving break that same year. I also lost 45lbs lbs. and went on to get my personal training certification the following Thanksgiving break.

I share my story in order to inspire you to look at your fears a little differently. The next time you feel that large paralyzing sense of fear sweep over your body,  understand that this is a sign that there is exciting things to come. That fear is there to show you that you are very close to reaching your “glass ceiling” that you have built for yourself. That “glass ceiling” represents the bar you set for where you think your limits should lie. The glass ceiling is your "cut off" point for the amount you currently “allow” yourself to be happy, successful, etc. Once you meet that “max” load, that feeling of fear is there to greet you as a reminder that you should be careful not to exceed those limits. And so my advice to you is, don’t be careful. Take charge and sit in the front row of your life, you got this!