If you follow me on social media you’ve had a peek behind the curtain of my gelato addiction- it’s been a problemo for years. I’m one of those people who can stand outside on a freezing NYC night and eat a whole cone while shivering; of course I prefer to eat it in Italy in the sunshine, but I’m not that picky.
Thankfully I’ve learned more than how to rock a handstand from practicing yoga, including how so much of what we do is born out of habit.
I used to believe that I needed a piece of dark chocolate or a scoop of ice cream after dinner or my night would not be complete; and I did that for years. I didn’t eat it because I had a huge craving; it was just habit. ( Ok, sometimes I had a huge craving)
The great thing is, the same way we pick up habits that aren’t healthy, we can develop positive ones.
Meditating for 10 minutes each morning, doing 10 sun salutations before you hop into the shower, replacing your nightly chocolate with fruit or your diet soda with flavored water are all things that you can start doing today.
You just need to decide to do it, and commit.
“Unless a commitment is made, there are only promises and hopes… but no plans” –Peter Drucker
The times I’ve tried to lessen my sugar intake without committing to guidelines haven’t worked. I’d not eat it for a few nights, then have it one night and go right back to unconsciously grabbing for the Green and Blacks every night after.
The commitment needs to be specific, and you don’t need to wait until January 1st to put it into effect.
Will you meditate every morning before work for 10 minutes, or cut back to one coffee a day by skipping the afternoon latte, learn how to nail a handstand, or maybe you want to join me in ditching sugar by only allowing yourself to have a treat once a week on Saturday?
Once you decide what it is you want to commit to, pick a time each day to practice it- so whether that’s meditating every night before bed, practicing handstand for 5 minutes before you hop in the shower, or taking time to cut up fresh fruit or alternate snacks that will cure your sugar cravings at night. Each small step you make to commit to making that change will add to your success of following through.
One thing that can help you make a commitment is not only committing from your head, but also your heart. If we put our mind to work at following through with a commitment, but it lacks heart, there’s less of chance that we’ll follow through.
To help lead with your heart, you need to physically be O P E N HEARTED. For some of us, that’s a tall order, as our universally tight shoulders inhibit us from completely opening up our heart center. But I’ve got something that will help- I made you a video with a cool modification on how to get into wheel pose.
If you’ve tried to do this pose before and couldn’t do it, try it the way I instruct it here, as it gives you a TON more space in your shoulders and lower back.
All of this heart opening will not only help you commit to a new healthy habit, it will also help you from looking like a hunchback down the road. You’ll thank me later, I promise.
XO
Danielle
