Body Confidence and Staying Motivated.

Today i would like to talk about Body Confidence.

I am probably the worst offender when it comes to having no self confidence,  I was bullied at school (for any number of reasons and, many times, for no reason at all) so for years it was hammered into me that i wasn't good enough, i was ugly, i was unfashionable, i was fat.

 To be truthful, looking back, i wasn't fat, i was actually skipping lunch so i could have enough money to buy cigarettes , and lost a lot of weight in the process. Am i ugly? I'm not sure, some days i like the look of my face, and some days i don't. Unfashionable? Probably, we didn't have much money for name brand clothes(which is oh-so-important apparently).

Those 8 long years of being bullied, day in, day out, just for being me, took their toll, and being an impressionable teenager, full of hormones, still growing into myself and my body, i believed them. That i wasn't good enough. I was ugly. I was fat.

After leaving school, it was only then that i started to look at myself in a different light. I got angry! So unbelievably MAD that i let those girls get to me and hit me where it hurt!

 Why the hell should i feel bad for being me?

 I didn't choose to look the way i do, i didn't choose to be shy at school, i didn't choose for our family to have little money.

But i know what i did choose. 

I chose not to give a flying f*ck about what people (or Society) thought of me! 

I am choosing to get fit to show MYSELF that i can bloody well do it and come out on the other side fighting!

Which brings me to the other point of this post. 

Staying motivated.

Every time i feel rubbish i am going to come back and re-read this.

 Do you have a similar story? Then go away and write down every single reason why you want to do this and put it somewhere you can see it.

You are going to have days where you just cannot be bothered to do a single workout.That's fine!

  Do not feel bad about it!

Don't punish yourself for being human. The world isn't going to end just because you had a lazy day. 

Namaste. 

Who Am I?

Hi :)

I'v decided to change the name as it didn't see to really reflect who i am.

So who am i?

I'm a crafter,i paint, i knit, crochet, (sometimes badly, i still can't knit a decent sock!!) i don't want this to be just like every other yogic blog (not that there's anything wrong with them, it just isn't me)

I'm not spiritual in the slightest, i'm not looking for enlightenment, i just want to practice yoga.

I swear. I smoke, does that make me a bad yogi? Probably, to some yoga practitioners, who seem keen to judge people on how they live their life, in the guise of fake concern, rather than focusing on their own life and their own yoga practice

I shall leave this here for you to read, if you like.

http://www.yoga-tribe.com/blog/why-judging-people-makes-us-unhappy

I have a tattoo, on the small of my back

"I walk the line..." by the legend Johnny Cash

That single line has so many meanings for me, so i'm not going to get into it now.

I like lots of different types of music. including country, opera, rock, some classical, quite an eclectic mix really, depending on the mood i am in. 

I'm hoping that this blog will reflect who i am as i explore this new world, i will fall on my arse more than once, i will probably face plant more than once too, but i suppose it's just part of the process. 

A Peaceful Place

Ok, so this blog is to separate my yoga practice from everything else that i talk about on my other blog, because i know that some followers probably won't be interested in my ramblings about yoga, so if you are here from my other blog (or by any other means), welcome! 

As some of you know, i started practising almost 3 weeks ago, i've processed so much information in this time, but i still have so much to learn!

Already i've began to make subtle changes in my life.

The picture above is my practice and reading space, piled with blankets and cushions for support when i need it.

I crocheted a pair of yoga socks, to keep my feet warm (i feel the cold very easily) but that allow me to grip the mat

I decided the living room needed a splash of colour, it looks washed out in the photo, but in real life it really is quite beautiful! In the corner behind the bookshelf you can see what currently passes for my mat, a piece of foam pinched from the sofa bed in the spare room.

I've noticed that my breathing has changed, and i really look forward to getting up in the morning so i can start my routine and try new poses.

I'm not looking for perfection (but a little would be nice!) i took this picture to see where i could improve, this is the Downward Facing Dog,  and i can see that i need to relax my spine a little.

My arms look a odd as they are double jointed.

I've began devouring any articles i can find that talk about different styles of yoga, poses, methods of breathing, and i am really, really enjoying the process! 

I  also smoke, and already i've realised that it will probably be impossible to pursue practising yoga and continue smoking at the same time. I'm not promising miracles mind you, it's early days yet, but as a start i am cutting down.

Yay! :)