By Ellen Gibson
Continue reading 10 Ways to Reduce Pain and INJURIES When Gardening“Some say that a garden just grows from seeds, but we think it grows from trying and failing and trying again. A garden is hard work, but so is most of the good, important stuff in life.” – Joanna Gaines, We Are the Gardeners
By Ellen S. Gibson
I have come to the borders of sleep,
–Edward Thomas (1878-1918) from his poem, “Lights Out”
The unfathomable deep
Forest where all must lose
Their way, however straight,
Or winding, soon or late;
They cannot choose.
My mother died at the end of December. It was not completely unexpected. She was 93 years of age. She lived a long life, a good life, but had been in declining health for some time.
Continue reading Yoga and GriefBy Ellen S. Gibson
Hope is a thing with feathers
-Emily Dickinson
That perches in the soul,
And sings the song without the words
And never stops at all.
Each day I come to the mat, there is the expectation that I will feel better for having practiced yoga. It could be ten uninterrupted minutes or a 45-minute class via Zoom. The amount of time matters less than showing up. Physically, my back may be stiff from too much shoveling. Emotionally, I may be feeling overwhelmed, tense, or anxious. No matter the starting point, when I leave the mat, I am stronger, calmer, and more balanced.
Continue reading Yoga and HopeCheck out our feature in Redfin’s latest article: “Moving Stressing You Out? Practice These Self-Care Tips”
The psychology of moving is well documented. Moving is considered one of the most stressful life events by researchers. No matter how much you love your new home, you might still experience moving anxiety and relocation depression. It is important to practice self-care throughout this transition, so you can stress less during your move. To help you get started, I, along with other experts from across the country, shared some of our best tips and tricks to practice self-care and relieve moving stress and anxiety.
Click below to read the full article:
By Ellen S. Gibson
The beginning is always today.
–Unknown
Greetings Yoga Friends:
I’m writing this in front of a campfire at the South Branch Pond campground in Baxter State Park. It is one day after the fall equinox, a cool, clear evening. The stars are dazzling. The moon is waxing. My partner, Stephen, and I are on our annual Baxter trip.
Continue reading The Beginning is Always TodayA year ago, I shared a blog about a healthy and well-balanced movement diet. (See July 2018 – How’s your movement diet?) In that blog, I recommended ten movements or activities to consider incorporating into your daily movement diet to optimize your health and life enjoyment. #10 was the recommendation to do plank daily. I did add the caveat that plank may not be for everyone; however, today I am sharing several variations on the traditional high plank that help make it healthy and accessible for nearly everybody!
Continue reading Plankity PlankTry breathing like this: exhale … exhale … exhale … exhale again.
How did that go? I’m guessing that you were wondering what happened to the inhale? It is a simple fact that you cannot keep breathing out without breathing in and live to tell about it! Likewise, you cannot live well without balancing the care that you commit to others with the care that you give yourself. Yoga at its core is a self-care practice. As we experience greater balance, harmony, and joy in ourselves through these practices, we are better able to care for the world around us. A win-win for all. (Click here to learn more about yoga self-care practices.)
Continue reading Inhale exhale, In and Out, Give and TakeAs we transition from summer to fall, we prepare ourselves for winter. The energy of the plant world is going into the roots. Foliage is drying and turning beautiful colors. Squirrels are busy stealing seeds from the bird feeders and hoarding food to their “storage units.” My goats are fluffing up with their new cashmere undercoat, and the chickens and ducks are molting. Bears are fattening up for hibernation.
The recent Tula Institute Get the Scoop session for the upcoming 300-hour advanced yoga teacher training in attainable and sustainable yoga was a fun and informative meeting with many great questions. For those of you that were interested but were not able to attend I have shared some of those questions and answers below:
We all know that our health benefits from moving and being active. Typically movement guidelines for health and fitness address frequency, duration, intensity, and mode. Click here to see the US Government Physical Activity Guidelines. This information is quite informative and offers the opportunity to customize your activities to your needs and interests.
Based on my experience and observations as a Physical Therapist, Yoga Therapist, and a human being living in a human body, I would like to recommend that everyone incorporate the following ten movement nutrients into their daily movement diet. (Please note that if you have a health concern, you should speak with your healthcare provider first.)
