I put a microphone on every day and give cues to women of all shapes, sizes, and ages, directing them how to spend 55 minutes lifting their seat, toning their thighs and burning calories.

‘Smaller equals better,’ ‘make that mind/body connection,’ ‘breathe through the burn,’ ‘avoid comparing yourself with your neighbor,’ ‘challenge yourself in a whole new way,’ ‘take it to the next level’—I use these mantras everyday at the barre to create a better workout experience for my clients. I pray that they walk away from our studio feeling a lifted spirit and a refined sense of self-esteem as well as a lifted backside and toned muscles! But it doesn’t end there. When you take a moment to strip away the fitness focus of these motivational tips, and examine them from a personal perspective, you can really reap a fuller contentment in who you are as a person.

So, here’s my everyday challenge:

• Appreciate the “smaller” moments in life. They usually define and help create the bigger moments. Take the time to listen and observe so you can detect what those smaller gifts are each day in order to cherish them adequately.
• Establish your mind/body connection. This goes for outside of your exercise hour as well, in order to value rest and make healthy choices for yourself and your family.
• Embrace life’s burn-When life hits you with difficult and painful encounters, take a deep exhale and endure, breathing through the uncomfortable situation that has the potential to refine you and make you stronger and even more beautiful on the other side. (Much like Pure Barre’s entire thigh series!)
• Don’t compare yourself. Instead of comparing with others’ achievements or failures, apply that energy toward appreciating your own belongings, body parts and blessings!
• Find an opportunity every day to challenge yourself like never before. Whether it is to confront a lingering issue with a friend, or set a new fitness goal, be bold in all that you do as you create and confront challenges with a positive determination and excitement to see what the resulting growth could be at their completion!

It might sound like a cliché, but that it is so much “bigger than the barre.”

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One of the hardest things to do as a professional athlete is to stay focused and positive when faced with challenging situations. Unexpected situations arise, both on the court and off, which challenge our beliefs in ourselves and in others. In order to rise above these situations, it is essential to stay in the right frame of mind.

There are times when I come up short. I may have imagined a different outcome than the one I got. Instead of feeling like a failure, which is easy to do, I search for the lesson in it. Every situation has a lesson to learn. You only fail when you do not find that lesson. Sometimes it takes a while to recognize, but it is always worth it. All it takes is patience, an open mind, and some confidence. Once this is realized, the ability to remain focused and stay positive becomes second nature.

It is important to recognize that an optimistic approach to life is much more enjoyable and fulfilling than a pessimistic one. There is nothing more satisfying than creating your own way out of a difficult situation. If it doesn’t work one time, I reevaluate what steps I took and I learn from them.

Knowing this, what does it hurt to stay focused, positive, and dream big when faced with a challenging situation? As a wise friend of mine says, “Why not reach for the stars? You just might get the moon!” The moon is pretty darn good!

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So yesterday was Monday. I taught six yoga classes. Yep, that’s right. Six. Some are large classes, some private, some slow flow, some vinyasa. 90 degrees in the room, loud music and great Splits59 clothing. It’s a lot of energy to put out there and a lot of prep time required. How to do it all, when there is laundry, two young children, a blog to write and an architectural design business on the side?

JUST STAY PRESENT IN THE MOMENT.

There is no need to waste time thinking about all the things that may happen later, or what already happened. That is how the mind wants to work. We want to jump to different times, different spaces. Worse yet, we waste a lot of time in other people’s time and spaces (Facebook stalking, anybody?)

When we stay present, we can apply the 3 C’s of success according to the principles of Vedanta: CONSISTENCY, CONCENTRATION and COOPERATION. We can stay focused on one task at hand, apply our skills to that task over and over to get it right. We can concentrate, not letting emotions, fear or anxiety overwhelm us with what’s ahead, and we can also work in tandem with others to ask for help when we need it (like babysitters!) to achieve success.

This is living in the perfect present. This allows to take one step at a time, and not fall apart when life seems uphill. After all, isn’t the yoga really practiced off the mat?

Om Shanti and Namaste everyone.

Barbi

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Do you want to instantly look taller, slimmer and more confident in seconds? Stand up straight. Posture has a major impact on how you project yourself, not only in physical appearance but the health benefits as well. When you slouch  forward with bad posture you’re subjecting yourself to a plethora of potential injuries, as well as a portrayal of lacking self-confidence and self-esteem.  Using good posture will help you feel better about yourself, and improve how other people view you.

Another benefit is increasing your airflow. When you stand up straight it allows the chest to open up and circulate more air through the body.  By increasing the airflow, you’ll find your energy level enhanced with less muscles fatigue.

So how do you get good posture? Know the correct anatomical alignment for your body.

1. When viewed from the front shoulders and hips should be level.
2. Viewed from the back, the spine should be vertical.
3. Ears should be directly over the shoulders, the shoulders over the hips, hips over the knees, and knees are over the ankles.

The next time you go to the gym or look in the mirror, check your posture.  Is there anything that you can correct and work on?  The more you become aware of your body’s alignment, the easier it will be to maintain your correct position.  Be more conscious of your posture in your daily activities and over time, you’ll see and feel a difference while reversing the impending effect that gravity can have on your body.

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