1) Date night: My husband and I are busy (he works 10-12 hours a day & I just commit myself to so many things that I'm never home). I've realized that it puts a strain on our relationship when we don't make time for each other because we have to remember why we fell in love. Wednesday night is our designated date night. We go out to eat so that no one has to cook and we talk, just like we did when we were dating. We don't have his girls to care for, we don't have business to take care of and in fact, I typically leave my cell phone in the car or at home. I found myself almost scheduling something and realizing, no, I need that time. In the past, I would've just scheduled it and paid the consequences later which is usually my husband telling me that I need to be home more.
2) My morning yoga/meditation time. I was doing so well with this for a while. I would spend 10-30 minutes in the morning in some type of movement or meditation. Then I got really busy and I would oversleep or I would schedule something else like exercise or some excuse as to why I can't do it. That was probably a year ago and I've had a hard time recovering. I NEED that time in the morning to get quiet and get centered before a busy day at work. My job is very stressful and it's dealing with a LOT of personalities, both co workers and clients. I HAVE to have that time to get quiet, center myself, get focused so that I can be a better person throughout the day. If not, I can become grouchy and then I'll do something that I'll regret later.
My friend Lynne, who is also a yoga teacher at Greenville Yoga, told me that she gets up in the morning and sometimes, all she does is sit on her mat. She feels like at least she is sitting there, on her mat, with a focus there vs watching tv or sleeping. Then she may decide she wants to do some poses and once she gets it going, there's no need for arguing. I've tried to use that motivation for myself and so far, it's worked.
Benefits of morning yoga/meditation:
a) it gets the kinks out - I'm a little rusty in the morning, I need to get moving. Actually, I read an article about our muscles and how these little fibers build up between our muscles. If we don't move them or stretch them, those fibers can become knots and we lose flexibility over time. Next thing we know, we have issues with our hips, our backs, our necks, etc. Movement in the morning breaks those little fibers loose and helps us maintain our flexibility
an article on benefits of morning stretching
b) Preparing for the day - I can go on and on about why meditation is good for you and that may be another post but I've noticed that even when I only spend 5 minutes in quiet meditation in the morning, I am more able to be grateful for the life I have. I can take that time to pray for someone, send loving thoughts, and realize that things are more important than me, and the issues I think that I have. In 2007, I was struggling because of the stress of my job and I started a morning meditation practice. My life has changed so much since then, mainly in the way I handle situations and people. It doesn't take much effort and the benefits are much greater.
"Daily meditation and prayer allow God into our lives. They put us in contact with the true power of the universe. Meditation and prayer not only benefit our individual lives, but benefit our world. As we change our thinking, as individuals and as a species, our external world will shift to fit our new collective vision of the world."
~Marianne Williamson
So, now how do I get consistent? I don't know. I think its one of those things where I'll never be perfect, so I just have to start each day anew. So far this week, I've been pretty good. It hasn't been an hour long class like I'd like, but it's been something and that's a start.
How do you find consistency?
