Oh My Gosh I Forgot Again

What is going on here??..

I probably forgot to do my Qi gong practice again yesterday because I don't have a regular hour for it.

Also, on Tuesdays and Thursdays I wake up at 5am to teach yoga, and these were the days I forgot...

Besides, Tuesday is my long day by myself with Razi, and it's no wonder that by the end of it I don't stop to think about what else I want to do today before I pass out.

So,

My conclusion is to practice right after my yoga class on these mornings, before I "start" my day. This would be my ideal time to practice any way, and here is my chance to do it.

It's interesting to notice how much internal resistance we've got to changing our habits, isn't it?

Even though the logical part of me says of course I want to practice every day and I've got all of the good reasons for it, there is something inside of me which keeps resisting to cooperate with the new way I have chosen for myself.

I can see it in so many different things during my week and this is exactly the reason why today I am recommitting to my Qi Gong challenge.

I want to be the one in charge of the things I do and don't do, to the way I act or react, and not letting my laziness or my mood swings, or to the kind of day I've had with Razi to control my actions.

It is too easy for me to tell myself oh well, today you are tired because... or today you have permission because...

But at the end of the day, it is me who is not happy with my lack of doing, and it doesn't matter how many reasons or excuses I've got.

So with great love to the journey,

today I am starting again.

Day 1 of my 100 days Qi Gong challenge.

I forgot to do my practice yesterday

All of the sudden, in the middle of the day, I remembered that I forgot to do my Qi Gong practice yesterday....

Which proves to me that 11 days of consecutive practice is not enough to set a new habit.

So today, I am starting to count from 1 again.

I'm not in a hurry, I want to do my 100 days of practice. To complete a challenge which I have chosen for myself.

And there's no point in explaining to myself why I forgot to practice, and how I was doing really well. The explanations do not change the fact that yesterday I did not practice. Or the fact that I've practiced for 11 days (+ a few more days before I actually set the challenge up) and on the 12'th day I forgot.

Yes, I practiced yoga yesterday. And yes, the yoga and the Qi Gong have same origin and same key elements:  breath combined with movement and awareness. And yes, I even sat down yesterday for a few moments of quiet, but I did not do my Qi Gong exercises. I forgot. 

I'm guessing two glasses of wine over dinner, which ended up late, didn't help me to remember, and yet, in this moment today I choose to start counting from 1 again.

Other than that, in my practice this week I felt much more connected to the exercises I'm performing and I've realised that I feel better for it.

For example, in the last month prior to this challenge I've suffered from wrist pain, probably due to inappropriate hand stand practice, and on the second day of this challenge the pain has totally disappeared and hasn't come back.

Also, I got my monthly period yesterday, right on time and without any pre menstrual symptoms whatsoever, which is always a sign for a good flow of qi in your body.

Without this challenge I would have told myself that it's ok that I skipped my Qi Gong exercise yesterday because you need to take it easy in this time of the month. And even though it is perfectly fine that I didn't do my practice yesterday, I'm still starting this challenge again.

It feels really good to have this reason to get right back to the practice, even if it is only to prove to myself that I can totally practice 100 consecutive days of Qi Gong.

No matter what.

Are you enjoying your challenge?

With love

Miri

9 Days of Practice

I am very proud of myself. I've practiced Qi Gong every day in the last week and I am loving this challenge.

Why did I need to challenge myself to spend 10 minutes of my time doing something that I love? It's kind of interesting, isn't it?

The simple fact is that publishing my challenge with you guys makes me do my Qi Gong practice. And I am enjoying every moment of it! 

After the first couple of days I felt kind of high from doing it and from giving myself some quality time. On the third day I already needed to convince myself to practice and on the following days I had to remind myself I am committed to you too and not only to myself.

The best thing that happened was that on the days I didn't get a chance to practice during the day - I practiced at night time, before bed. So because of this challenge I actually took 10 more minutes before getting in the sack to practice Qi Gong. Without this commitment I would have totally said to myself 'ah, never mind, tomorrow is another day'. And it feels good. It feels good to do the excercises and it feels good to hold my commitment.

My mission for the last week was to just practice, without giving too much thought to how it feels or whether I am actually manipulating my Qi. And that was great because I practiced no matter what, even when I felt like it was purely physical and my mind wasn't there.

And for sure I got the benefits of that practice, even when my mind was trying to trick me into quitting.

Other good things which happened last week -

On the days when I felt like I needed a midday nap, instead of doing my practice and other things around the house, I had a nap and rested WITHOUT any guilt.

Because whatever else happens, I KNOW that I am doing my daily practice.

Also, I completed TWO of my other projects which I have started some time ago and "didn't have time for", just because all of a sudden I felt inspired to work on them again (I completed the second out of three tasks in a mindful art journaling course I'm doing, and I finished two crochet pillows for our lounge !!)

I am aware that this is only the second week of my 100 days challenge, and I am not setting myself any other goals just yet, because my mission for this week is to just keep going.

Keep doing what I already know is good for me.

Like the yoga master Sri K. Pattabhi Jois said, do your practice and all is coming.

And if I feel like it, and the muse hits me again, I will complete some other projects, and if not I still will have practiced Qi Gong every day of the week. :-)

So how about you?

Feel like sharing about your first 9 days of practice?

I'd love to read your comments here or on Facebook.

Woohoo

Miri

No more excuses - and a new challenge

When I got pregnant with Razi I somehow stopped writing for this blog.

And I have millions of reasons why and how it just didn't work out, and today - I'm choosing to write again.

I'm choosing to commit to my own happiness again.

To strive consciously towards the better feeling emotions and to give myself longer stretches of joyous times.

I'm talking about those moments when I feel so happy I can barely contain all that love. When my eyes get all teary from excitement, and I KNOW it is all good.

These are the moments I wish to experience more of, instead of the ones filled with things I "need" to do, guilt for not doing enough and feelings of low self esteem.

So I am writing this today in spite of the excuses.

And in order to help myself get back on track, I chose a new challenge for myself:

100 days of Qi Gong.

I practice Qi Gong, but not regularly.

And I love this practice. It is simple, doesn't require too much effort and is very very effective.

It is calming, gets the blood flowing, healing and much more.

And surprisingly enough, to actually get its benefits, you have to practice...

It is not enough to know it, I have to practice it :-)

I know I can practice 10 minutes a day.

There is no preparation needed, I already know exactly which breathing and visualising exercises I am going to be doing, so all I need to do is to take a moment for myself (when razush is asleep), stand up and practice.

Would you like to join me?

My goal - perseverance 

I have already made countless of resolutions in the past couple of years and started too many projects which are waiting for me to get back to.

So what I really care about at the moment is the daily practice, and not so much what the actual practice is.

Just the act of doing what I know would be beneficial for me and choosing to give it time - that's what I need right now, to follow through.

(And then the benefits of the actual practice on top of that)

Do you feel like developing a new habit? and doing that thing you've been thinking of for a while?

Now is the time :-)

My plan is to practice (without a clock) 10 minutes a day for 49 days in a row,

Then to rest for one day,

Then to practice for another 49 days in a raw,

And then to rest for another day.

Together - 100 days of happy practice

(As I learned from the Spring Forest Qi Gong)

I'm excited :-)

I've practiced today and planned my daily practice so I wouldn't have to think about it (and have another excuse for not practicing)

And the count starts tomorrow!

Don't forget to tell me what's the challenge you chose for yourself and to set a reminder on your phone. 

I promise to keep you updated

Lots of love

Miri

My cutest excuse