Sunday, December 31, 2017

Last yoga practice, last dinner, last hours 2017...


Bye, bye 2017.

I practiced in the morning. It was a great practice and exhausted me.

We had a very delicious dinner later. The chef in the Indian restaurant made it possible to offer me a vegan menu.

I'm ready to take  pictures of the fireworks here. My theory: The smaller the village, the more money  people spend on fireworks.

Tomorrow I'll get up early for a walk around the close sea.

I wish everybody a great evening.

I'm looking forward to 2018. All the best for you for the coming year. Take care.

Friday, December 29, 2017

Feeling ready for the new year and 10.000 steps


Oh my, it's time-consuming to walk 10.000 steps every day. It brings also joy to discover new locations. Sometimes cats cross the path. Getting out of the house is an opportunity to experience the winter. Cold weather can be so refreshing. One must only dress according to the temperature, then it's great to be outside.

Especially between Christmas and New Year it feels good to walk.

I somehow wait till it's the new year. I stand in the front line already. I feel ready for 2018.

Wednesday, December 27, 2017

Goals 2018


Without doubt, those who write down their goals are more likely to reach them than those who have not written them down. It's not only that it's necessary to write them down in order to be successful, one must know them by heart.
The majority might not have goals at all. They might think that their lives shall not get worse. Why not.

I love to have goals, because they give my life fire, energy, a reason to get out of bed. If you have an interest, you are more likely interesting for other people, too. This again makes life more fun.

I don't want to have the daily meals as the highlights in my life. Point. Not with 59, not with 70, not with 80 and years to come.

To write down goals is the first step. One of the main mistakes here is that one might write down the goals, but that was it. A few months later one cannot remember anymore what the goals were. Can you remember your goals of the beginning of 2017? I can't. As I know me I surely wanted to learn a few asanas and to lose weight. Haha...... but I'm not sure.

More than a decade ago I read a book by Raymond Hull 'How to get what you want'. He recommends to write down the goals daily. Then it's impossible to forget them. To write them down and not to work towards these goals is strange, so it's very likely that one also works on these goals.

There are rules how to formulate them: 
S    smart
M   measurable
A    action oriented /accepted
R   reasonable
T    time bound

A few weeks back I searched an empty journal here. I found a journal in which I had written already. Every page was filled with the same goals. It was the year 2004, the journal ended in 2006. I had reached goal Number 1. This was the only goal that was measurable in that list. Curious enough what it has been? I wanted to pass a test, I wanted to become a senior accountant. It's one of the most difficult tests in Germany and most of the aspirants fail. When I say that only 40% who strive to pass the test, get it, the number is high. Most give up before passing the test. Most accountants who want to pass the test fail several times. It's allowed to repeat it twice. I had to repeat the test and I had to pass the oral examination, too. But I did it.

My method was successful.

The other goals were not precise enough. I wrote: I want to be able to cook delicious vegan meals. How do I know when this goal is reached? A possible answer could be to have a cooking book of my own recipes. 40 recipes might be enough, 10 for each season. But this is the work when writing down goals. How do I know when I've reached it.
What are the steps towards that goal?

Today I have another day alone. Nothing and nobody distracts me. I will think about my goals 2018. It's an important activity. My time is limited on this earth. How do I want to spend it?

The number one goal will be focused on photography.

Yet  goal number 2 is Ashtanga yoga. 

The goal: 
I want to master the vinyasas. 
I want to stand up from urdhva dhanurasana and 
I want to master kapotasana.

The key words.
- vinyasas
- urdhva dhanurasana
- kapotasana
These goals can only be reached when I practice daily. I will work on a method how to learn it. I joined already a Facebook group on core strength training.
Yes, these goals bring me joy and energy. To think of this goal gives my life color.
Every month I want to check the progress.
Professionals check their progress much more often, but once a months is enough for me.

More important than reaching this goal is to practice safely. I want to avoid a setback re my back. Work smarter than harder is also true for Ashtanga yoga.

I'm curious?
Do you have goals re Ashtanga yoga?


Tuesday, December 26, 2017

Getting up early


It always seems to me that I have more time when I get up early. Early means 5 am or 6 am, rather 6 am.

The time for oneself must have priority. It's so easy to let time slip away. During the first hours of the day I'm usually fit and awake. They are the best hours for a most important person in my life: myself.

I gave my pain system time to reboot. I paused.
Back pain is almost forgotten. Almost. Sometimes when I make an awkward movement I feel a sudden pain in the lower back. But that's it.

I reboot my active life, too.
There will be time for Ashtanga yoga in the morning. Getting up earlier is the secret.

Oh my, this has been a bumpy road with that back pain during the last one and a half years. It was so frustrating, demotivating, sad.
We have to move if we don't want that life aggravates when getting older.

Our body and mind is worth every effort. It's a joy to have it when healthy, it becomes a burden when ill and injured and untrained.

I collect all my willpower and motivation to restart again with all my energy.

This man on the picture was far above 60. I talked to him on the beach between Tel Aviv and Jaffa this month. He performed acrobatic swings on that bar. He had so much joy doing it. Age is only an excuse.

I must alter my clothes when I want them to fit. I also must alter my practice to my needs. The alteration may not be huge. But I know that I will adjust the yoga practice. I know my body better and better. I learned about learning. I want this practice to be healthy and not overly ambitious. I want to challenge myself, I don't want to be bored, but it must be safe, too.

Let's keep practicing.


Monday, December 25, 2017

Your life is your life



your life is your life by Charles Bukowski

your life is your life
don't let it be clubbed
into dark submission
BE ON THE WATCh

there are ways out.
there is a light somewhere.
it may not be much light,
but it beats the darkness.
be on the watch.

the gods will offer you chances.
KNOW THEM.
TAKE THEM.

you can't beat death,
but you can beat death in life,
sometimes.
and the more often you learn to do it,
the more light there will be.

YOUR LIFE IS
YOUR LIFE.
know it while you have it.
you are marvelous.
the gods wait to delight
in you.


This poem is like a prayer. I learned it by heart. My life is my life.
I sit here on the sofa, the TV is on. My PC is on my lap. Next to me are the cookies that my mother gave me.
I feel absolutely fantastic alone here.
Sometimes one must steal time for oneself. The next two days are mine. I'll fill them with soft yoga. I'll stroll around. Who knows what else comes into my mind....

I wish all my readers a very joyful time. The next year will come so fast.....

Friday, December 1, 2017

I prepare myself for the new year


It's the first December. A good date to refresh the old resolutions to practice yoga daily. I know that I'm not lazy. It can be that the breaks between practices were necessary My body is OK. The pain comes out of fear not because of a real injury. The pain system is malfunctioning. I work on reset the pain system. Whenever I realize that pain in the back gets worse, I stop practicing. I calm myself. I breathe deeply. Oh my what an optimistic person I am. But I also see that there is no alternative. One must move the body and I love yoga.

Today I practiced late in the afternoon. The body is more flexible at that time than in the morning. No cramps were felt in the back, yet the practice was also not 100% pain free.

It's disappointing to realize what I lost, mainly strength. Yoginis don't complain. There is also nothing to complain. Action is the answer to my disappointment.

It's cold here. There was snow already. The Christmas markets are open. People shop as if all shops will close tomorrow and never ever open again. Sometimes I give in and join. I always find something.