Tag: zen

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Fitness in a bottle

When asked about fitness, the Goddess of Pop Cher once said, “If it came in a bottle, everybody would have a great body”.  No doubt.  Except the universe – or anyone else for that matter – has yet to provide us with fitness in a bottle. So, the next best thing is to do something fitness–related everyday.  Even for just 5 minutes.  Because once you’re set with a daily fitness program, your body will crave it and your mind will become conditioned to do it, thus, it becomes easy.  Well, maybe not easy, but for sure it becomes easier to workout every day since you’ve now created a new and rewarding routine.   But don’t take my word for it – try it out for yourself.  And I’ll see you next time – R

 

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Get Killer Abs

From the streets of New York City you may have heard the age old question, “How do you get to Carnegie Hall”?  The answer: practice, practice, practice.  The same holds true for your core and abdominal muscles.  How do you get killer abs?  Practice, practice and more practice.  At the very least you’ll feel good about doing something every day to stay trim, keep your waistline from expanding, and preventing your posture and low back from suffering. Plus, the good news about strengthening your core & abs is that a short and simple workout is all it takes to feel fatigued.  So here you go – Workout #8 in my 5 minute fat burning video series that also complements workouts 5, 6, and 7.  That’s 20 minutes of core & abs exercises to chose from.  Have fun and don’t forget to breathe!  R

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Blast your Abs

What does it mean to Blast your Abs?  Simply put, it means to exercise and fatigue your abdominal muscles until you’re too tired to do another set.  And why Blast your Abs? Because when properly exercised strong abdominal muscles improves your breathing, posture, balance and flexibility, as well as reduces the likelihood and severity of back pain and protects against injury.  Not to mention a leaner waistline and much tighter belly.  A mere 5 minutes a day is well worth the effort – for anyone.  And with my fat burning video series workout #6, you don’t even have to get out of bed!  Enjoy your workout – R

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Sculpt your thighs

Who doesn’t want to burn fat and sculpt and beautify their thighs?  It’s a human thing, right, but workout #2 of my 5 minute fat burning series uses that powerful Warrior stance named after the Hindu folklore’s warrior Virabhadra.  In yoga terms, the Sanscrit for warrior is Virabhadrasana.  So get your warrior on and come sculpt those thighs!

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Welcome to the Year of the Rabbit

Year of the Rabbit

Today starts the Chinese New Year and the Year of the Rabbit.  If you were born in the year 1915, 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, or 1999, then it’s your year. I was born in 1963, so it’s also my year. People born in the Year of the Rabbit are considered to be articulate, talented, and ambitious. They are virtuous, reserved, and have excellent taste. Rabbit people are admired, trusted, and are often financially lucky. They are fond of gossip but are tactful and generally kind. It is also believed that Rabbit people seldom lose their temper. They are clever at business, are known for being conscientious, and never back out of a contract. They would make good gamblers for they have the uncanny gift of choosing the right thing. However, Rabbit people seldom gamble, as they are conservative and wise.  So for all you fellow Rabbits out there…Happy New Year!  R

 

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Yoga for low back pain

I woke up today with pain in my low back, specifically on my right side.  It wasn’t there yesterday so perhaps it occurred during the night, or maybe negative energy or tension came to reside there as a result of stress or something I did yesterday.  No matter the cause, I went to the gym this morning and wasn’t able to work it out with my usual stretching so I decided to focus on it with 15 minutes of yoga and meditation when I got home.  First I laid on my back and quieted my mind with the meditative breathing technique called Ujjayi Pranayama.  In yoga terms (or Sanskrit) it means upwardly victorious or skull shining breath which is a three part yogic breath moving from the low belly into the upper chest and throat.  Inhalation and exhalation are done through the nose – with your mouth closed – and the resulting sound is much like the sound of the ocean.  Next I hugged my knees into my chest while rounding then elongating my spine which is call Apanasana.  All the while I kept with my meditation and Ujjayi breath while sending thoughts of relief specifically to the point of low back pain.  Next I slowly rocked back and forth and side to side massaging my low back into the ground.  Next I reached for the sides of my feet moving into Happy Baby pose.  I also teach this pose in Zoo Yoga from my Yoga Survival Guide as well as Apanasana in Comfort Yoga and Ujjayi Pranayama in the very first lesson, Mountain Pose.   Next I straightened my legs best I could while holding onto my big toes – much like Paschimottanasana on your back (also taught in Park Yoga).  Next I spread my legs wide into a big V, all the while keeping my spine elongated best I could.  Finally I hugged my knees into my chest for another Apanasana, then slowly moved into my final resting pose, Savasana.  Viola!  No more pain.  Although everyone’s body is different with varying degrees of pain, give this sequence a try the next time your low back is bothering you.  It just might do the trick.  R

 

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Excellent teaching moments

You may already know that my charity, The Boulevard Zen Foundation, teaches yoga to kids and moms living in domestic violence shelters (www.BoulevardZen.com).  I was inspired to start the nonprofit after visiting a shelter upon completion of my film, Boulevard Zen.   My experience with domestic violence comes via the domino affect abuse has on families as my father was a victim of child abuse until the age of 12 when his father left for good.  I have also befriended women in my lifetime that have experienced some of the most heinous crimes imaginable.  Domestic violence and child abuse unjustly robs its victims of self-confidence and oftentimes prevents kids from experiencing what we at the foundation call excellent teaching moments.  So when our yoga teachers find a unique opportunity during class to go beyond an actual yoga pose and teach meaningful life lessons, we all succeed.  And the kids remember those lessons and bring that knowledge into their lives while impacting the lives of everyone around them.  Which is why I get excited every time one of our teachers writes to me about an excellent teaching moment. Like today from Carolyn in our San Diego shelter.  It’s what we strive for and are committed to doing:  to be more than just yoga teachers and to impact lives forever. Because those lives are the future of our Nation and of our World.  Namaste – R

 

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Making Progress with a Pass-Fail Approach

About a month ago I gave my 15 Minute Fat Burning Workouts to a friend in New York City.  He was actually one of my “prototype” users when I was customizing the full body low-impact exercises.  Think Tony Soprano but shorter.  He’s also late 40’s with amazing abilities in the kitchen.  Albeit, his love of food has certainly helped sustain his 70 lbs. of extra weight.  And since he’s never been much of a gym person – nor would he be caught dead in a yoga studio – the 1% or 15 minutes of your life routine works great. It’s also one that anybody can complement with power walks or abdominals & stretching.  And in my friend’s case, I’ve encouraged him to take my Pass-Fail Approach.  It goes as follows:  At the end of each day you write a P or F into your calendar, P for pass if you worked out that day (15 minutes or more) and F if you did not;  at the end of 7 days you’ll grade each week with a P or F, Pass if you have more Ps than Fs, and Fail if vice versa;  and at the end of the year or 52 weeks later, if you have 26 or more Ps, you PASSED for the entire year.  Which means you worked out at least one hour a week for at least half the year – 26 hours – which is excellent if you really don’t workout.  Like my friend who says he’s making excellent progress.  Progress with his personal Pass-Fail Approach, and progress with all the challenging yoga and balancing I’ve got him doing as he gets stronger and more confident with each workout.  So take a Pass-Fail Approach and keep on progressing.  I’ll see you tomorrow – R

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Based on yoga principles

Utkatasana
Bicep Curl

When I refer to exercises being based on yoga principles, I’m referring to the how you do the exercise as compared to what you do and how often you do it.  In the gym this morning I overheard this twenty-something guy ask Mr. Adonis (check out my earlier blog “External Motivation”) what he should do for his biceps and how often he should do it. He also said he only read about it on the internet and found many different opinions.  That’s correct.  When it comes to asking any weightlifter or certified personal trainer their opinions about weightlifting, they all vary.  Just like yoga teachers are like snowflakes – they’re all different – so are opinions of what you should do in the gym.  But here’s something that I’ve brought into my workouts – and you can too – where you can’t go wrong:  think yoga principles in everything you do.  Like biceps.  Take a look at my posture and balance in the left picture – much like my posture and balance in the right picture.  In yoga terms that’s chair pose or Utkatasana (in Sanskrit).  Make sure the energy is radiating straight down through the crown like a steel rod going all the way through your spine down to the middle of your heels planted firmly on the ground.  Relax your toes and try not to swing or alter your posture when curling.  And curl slowly and deliberately for a better burn.  This way is more challenging than the usual swinging people do to get the dumbbells or bar up.  It’s also much more focused and effective.  And for specific lessons on bringing yoga principles into your everyday life – and the weight room – check out my Yoga Survival Guide.  There’s expert instruction on 100 key yoga poses filmed throughout the streets of Hollywood, Venice Beach and the LA Zoo!  There’s even Baking Yoga, Traffic Yoga and Prison Yoga – made especially for Lindsay Lohan.  So think yoga principles and enjoy your workout – R