From bird in my back garden to bird of paradise

“Your perspective is always limited by how much you know. Expand your knowledge and you will transform your mind.” Bruce Lipton

And your body……….

If you think you don’t, or that you won’t ever have a flexible body, there is a strong chance that you never will.

I grew up remembering my gymnastics teacher telling me I’d never be strong or flexible enough and from that day on I always classed a good day from being able to touch my toes. Believe me, that didn’t happen very often.

I was very young when my gymnastics teacher seeded that belief that would become my truth. What she did unknowingly was plant a seed of disbelief in what I thought my body could ever be capable of. This weed continued to grow within my subconscious throughout my childhood and into my adult life. I remember stretching, trying to get into better habits by attempting to stretch every day, but it never lasted long. Deep down, I thought it was all pointless, that my effort would never amount to anything because I didn’t have the right type of body.

If only I had known, what I know now. That gym teacher literally cast a spell over me that day with her words. It was all lies.

Here’s why.

All of us have a flexible body, all of us have the potential to move and shape our body in the way that we desire. You’re now probably wondering how you make that change?

What we have to do first is unravel the belief that is keeping us stuck and then mindfully start working on ourselves. I use EFT to tap on myself regularly about the way I feel about my flexibility. This helps me to bring negative beliefs and emotions to the surface which I can then work through. I have gone from not being able to get my nose on my knees to standing  comfortably in forward fold with my nose in-between my knees after 45 minutes of tapping with no yoga or warm up.

“Since everything is a reflection of our minds…. everything can be changed by our minds.” Buddha

The key issue is the conflict between our conscious and subconscious mind. This occurs when our subconscious mind plays the belief in our mind which says “you’ll never be flexible, you’re not strong enough, this isn’t safe”. Even though there are times when we feel positive and optimistic about our ability, our hugely powerful subconscious is thinking “nah, never, there is no chance I’m letting you go there” and we experience conflict.

We then have a battle on our hands because our subconscious mind processes 40 million bits of data per second whereas our conscious mind which is our minute-by-minute brain only processes 40 bits in comparison.  Our subconscious runs the show and is responsible for 90-95% of our behaviour and physical processes all day, everyday.

Our muscles respond to our subconscious, they’re not being stubborn or difficult, they’re taking orders and they’re keeping us safe. If you want to get your muscles on your side, you have to listen to the internal dialogue coming from your subconscious and you have to discover the belief that is holding you back. Then you have to work on it.

Muscle memory is vital. If you want to become better at any physical activity, creating patterns of movement to embed new physiological blueprints is essential. Training your brain creates new connections to your nervous system and muscle fibres and as training continues the muscle movement becomes automatic. As the body becomes more comfortable with this movement it will start to respond in the way you want it to whether that’s flexibility, strength, speed or all of them. Eventually your subconscious will also begin to clock the similarity in movements and will learn from the correlated emotions whether you are feeling good or bad. How far you progress will depend on the level of positive emotional intensity.

I believe that smiling when practicing yoga will make you bendier. Put too much pressure on yourself and everything will seize up.

I can make heaven or hell of my yoga mat, it can be the most frustrating and painful place or the most enlightening, magical and empowering space. I have to literally kick my ego of my yoga mat sometimes, and tune in to how I am feeling and breathe. I use this time to reset and evolve the way I have thought wrongly about my body for twenty-six years.

So how has realising all of this benefited me and how can it benefit you?

I have been practicing my yoga regularly now for just over a year and what I learn time and time again, is that to grow we can’t just absent-mindlessly reach for our toes and hope for the best. We have to be in the moment, during every moment, breathe through the stretch and notice the sounds, tensions and space that we feel in every part of our body. It’s only when we really connect to ourselves that something magical begins to happen and physically, emotionally and spiritually we begin to evolve.

Bird in my back garden pose

Here’s me in Bird of Paradise pose a month ago. It’s a yoga pose that requires strength, flexibility and stamina in the hamstrings, hips and shoulders. This was my first attempt at the pose following an hour-long yoga class.

I lovingly called my attempt “Bird in my  Back Garden”. What should be happening is my leg should be completely extended and my foot beside my ear, a variation of standing splits. Though I laughed at myself, I felt proud of my attempt, just securing a bind with my hands underneath my thigh felt like a brilliant achievement.

Three weeks later during my Friday lunch break I popped over to Bend Fit Mend for a 45 minute stretch class. We would be focusing on our hips only, which would mean we would practice and breathe through five or six positions to thoroughly warm up and open our hips.

Stretching correctly is everything

What I value is the knowledge of knowing how to stretch right and how and what we are activating and what it should feel like. This has fueled my progress in ways I didn’t think would ever be possible.

Find a yoga teacher who knows their stuff

In my experience, finding a yoga teacher who is obsessed with anatomy and how our body moves and flows is the best thing you could ever do.

During the session we focused on the complete internal functionality of the hip, how it moves, and noticing where it doesn’t normally move past. We then spent time warming the back and front of the area around the hips before moving into warming the deeper muscles.

The result from just a few stretches was a much fuller movement ability and a deeper understanding of how the legs rotated in the hip socket while stimulating fresh blood flow.

Bird of Paradise after 45 minutes of focused stretching

At the end of the class I asked Amanda if we could try out Bird of Paradise. Although I hadn’t given the pose another go since the first time, I had been continuing to practice my yoga and at that point my hips felt warm enough to take a deep breath and go for it.

Forty-five minutes later and here I am. Leg extended and for a brief moment, long and entirely straight.

The benefit of practicing very few moves with a real expert is that you can just breathe into the area and create space. You also have time to mindfully make adjustments based on their 1-2-1 coaching. This gives you more time to experience the big differences from making a small change in the positioning and what this can mean for your body.

These are my eight tips for you and your fitness journey:

1. Do you believe that your body is capable of what you want to achieve?
2. What other beliefs do you have about how successful you will be at achieving your goal?
3. Do you enjoy working towards your goal?
4. When you work out or practice, what emotion(s) are you experiencing and what might that be doing for your body?
5. Do you feel that the way you move is correct and making optimal use of your energy?
6. How do you know if you’re engaging the right muscles?
7. How do you usually feel after a session – happy, content, wanting more or glad it’s over?
8. Where are you noticing progress in your body and where are you not.

 

If you have any questions or comments, post them below 🙂

Hannah x

 

The wonder of muscle memory and being a badass

Your muscles are a genius

 

We might forget what we had for dinner yesterday but our muscles remember pretty much everything if they are trained well enough. Here’s a little story. One of the my best friends Briony, learnt to ski with me on a school trip to Austria over 15 years ago. Fast forward to today and she can still get down a mountain on a blue run with no tumbles. Consciously she might have felt nervous and a little tense, but her legs remembered how to get her down a mountain in one piece. Unconsciously her body was doing all the hard work, not a surprise when our unconscious mind processes 40 million bits of data  per second in comparison to our conscious minds working through only 40 in the same timefame.

Here’s the magic – when we learn new skills and train our muscles we create a physiological blueprint. Your brain creates new neuro pathways which connect to your nervous system and muscle fibres and as training continues the muscle movement becomes automatic. A weeks worth of skiing was enough to solidify the feedback loop between Briony’s brain and muscles in her legs and over a decade and a half later the pathways which had been archived were reactivated. So much so that within a day of being on the slopes Briony had moved from level one of ski school to level four. Pretty awesome.

Although I’ve skiied a bit more regulary, I’ve had a similar experience. No lessons since I  was 15 and my ability to get down a mountain has been entirely dependant on muscle memory. I’ve learnt this week that when skiing feels most natural to me it’s when I focus on my breath. I’m still working on my short turns and parallel technique and I’m at my best when I activate my turns through my breath. Inhale, ski left, exhale, turn and ski right and down the mountain I go. Everything flows and the breath literally lifts my body up and then down as I melt into my turn. Actively breathing helps my body to move more rhythmically which enables me to move faster and deeply relaxed.

Being a badass on the slopes

Skiing from a ego centred place is a no no. It’s natural to want to zoosch down a mountain looking like the pros. But I’m not a pro and beating myself up for not being one is a huge waste of time. The moment I put pressure on myself to perform my muscles tense and nothing flows, suddenly getting down the mountain becomes a zillion times harder.

Brene Brown, one of my favourite TED speakers talks about what it is to be a badass and the power of vulnerability – well being on a mountain makes me feel pretty vulnerable at times so her wisdom suddenly became hugely relevant to me.

So here’s another story….

After a great first day on the slopes we went higher up the mountain. Having tamed a red run already I was feeling confident and excited about what the day had in store for me. Fast forward two hours into our run on the second day and I felt broken. The blues were fast, steep and bumpy and it was so hot on the mountain, I was tense and gripping so hard that my little toes were burning. I was concentrating so hard on navigating the snowy terrain that I couldn’t  flow. I was having a miserable time and I was beating myself up for not keeping up with the others. Brown maintains that ‘badassery’ is about showing up, daring, falling , feeling our way through tough emotion and rising again. Well I’d shown up, I’d been daring, I’d definitely taking some calculated risks, but although I hadn’t taken a tumble, emotionally I was beginning to fall and the pain I was experiencing only made it worse. So I took myself out of the negative environment I was creating for myself and chilled on the side of the mountain with an Orangina (tastes amazing on the slopes), some water and loosened my boot straps. The others came to meet me later.

After lunch we were planning to ski down to a bar for a little apres rave in a mountain bar (perks!). I could have got in a cable car, but I knew I needed to ‘rise’ and get back on my skis. Cue a steep and busy red run and I felt hugely tested mentally and physically. I took my time and got on to the blue, I started taking some deep breaths and slowly my flow began to return. I can’t tell you how tremendous that beer tasted when I got to the bar. I’d made it, I’d ‘risen’, I had conquered that negative voice in my head, I’d worked with my body, I felt like a badass. Now I don’t have the fear or the self-doubt. The last two days on the slopes have been bliss, even if the conditions have worsened and I feel more at home on the mountains than ever before.

Maintaining my body

It’s also reminded me to give my body lots of love and not just expect it to get me down the mountain all day everyday. Like a car after a long journey I’ve been giving it a service – yoga in the chalet every afternoon. From my neck all the way down to my feet, I’ve had no DOMS (delayed onset muscle soresness) and every morning I’ve woken feeling fresh. In fact everyone that’s joined me in some stretching as felt super for it, noticing the benefits on the mountain the very next day.

I’m going to come away from my trip to the Courchevel mountains feeling physically and mentally stronger. I now know my mind and body more intricately. I know it’s a cliche but the magic does happen out of your comfort zone, you just have to graft for it and use your vulnerability as a key motivator. Your body can do it, the challenge is to make your mind believe.

Watch Brene Brown share her wisdom here – it’s the most watched TED talk of all time.

Your vibe attracts your tribe – how to build great friendships at the gym

I have met so many amazing people from just smiling and moving; it’s a universal language.

Chris Odle 

Goofy smiles shared by friends – between 7am and 8.30am everyday we have the time of our lives

Gyms and exercise classes can create the most incredible little pockets of community. I never anticipated that I would be make so many intimate friendships in my late twenties. By attending regular gym classes I have met new people who have given me the opportunity to uncover things about myself and my body that I didn’t know existed – my love for movement and yoga are two of them.

In my experience, friendships formed at the gym can help us to peel back a layer of ourselves and reveal passions, motivations and strengths we aren’t aware of. They can also help us to understand the old beliefs we hold about ourselves, that no longer serve us and are holding us back. Friends do this by supporting us to challenge what we think our bodies are capable of and help us to stay focused on our goals.

These types of friends sound pretty rad right? Here’s the magic formula to finding them….

1. Smile

It’s so simple but smiling actually makes all the difference. When I work out at 7am, the members at my gym see me in my truest and rawest form – sleepy, scruffy hair and likely to still be rubbing sleepies out of my eyes. I sound delicious right? Seriously though, a big smile can enable us to all transform, and a grin alongside a simple “morning” and an upbeat “how are you doing” will put anyone at ease. Start doing this and see what happens over time.

I smile and acknowledge everyone, sometimes people don’t always smile back but you’ll find that in time, they will do. Be gently persistent, people can feel really shy and vulnerable at the gym.

2. Find the busiest classes

If you see a large group of people working out together in a freestyle area or in an exercise class and they all look like they’re having a super time, ask them why. Ask them what’s good about it and what other classes or sessions they recommend. If you decide to attend the next time it’s on, you can thank them for it and ask them how they’ve been. Just from that alone you’ve built a connection.

3. Choose the time of day that you can regularly workout

Consistency is everything. If there is a certain time of day that only works for you (generally it will be around work or childcare) the chances are, it will be the same for others members. Pick one time of day and you’ll meet a group of people who you have something in common with immediately.

I go to the gym in the mornings before work and the people who I have bonded with have made the same lifestyle choice. Through busy times at work, through the dark mornings, the wind and the rain we all keep a check on each other. It makes all the difference to know that when you’re feeling tired and cold on a train first thing in the morning that there is a friendly face or two, waiting for you in the gym.

4. Chat with the class instructors or gym staff

Class instructors and gym staff are at the center of it all. Introduce yourself when they ask is anyone new to the class and say thank you when the class finishes. This group of people help nurture and grow the whole gym community and they are a great contact to have. By building a connection with them you’ll be introduced to other like-minded people.

5. Approach the people that inspire you

I never thought I would want to make shapes like this, let alone be able to do it six months ago

Never be intimidated by the people that inspire you in the gym – remember they were exactly where you are now at some point in their fitness journey. Comment on whatever it is they’re doing that inspires you and even consider asking them for advice on how you can progress. In my experience, people will always take the time out to share their tips with you. You never know where asking a simple conversation may lead you too.

Don’t ever feel as though you can’t approach the person who is looking super serious as they stretch on the mat beside you. Like me, it’s probably just their concentration face when actually they’d probably much rather chat as they stretch to pass the time.

6. Chat

I love working out, but I love it more when I’ve had a quick chat at the start of class with some of the regulars. By talking, we are connecting and when we’re connected we feel part of something more powerful than just ourselves – it feels like we’re truly in it together. It’s that feeling of being in a team that makes you work and sweat harder.

7. Don’t rush off

Sticking around after class to continue to stretch or play is the perfect time to bond. If you’re working towards something in particular – whether it’s strength, flexibility or endurance, share your dream with the people that surround you. Both staff and members can be an amazing resource for advice and tips – their passion might also give you the bug to try something new. Perhaps you haven’t considered doing what it is they’re doing, perhaps you thought you’d never be capable. Now though, through your newly established network you have the support to give it a try.

8. Compliment others

If you’ve noticed someone making leaps and bounds in their training, tell them. If you are jealous of their outrageously cool leggings, tell them. If they nailed their dancer’s pose beautifully, tell them. If they’ve moved up a weight, recognise their achievement by telling them. If you know they’ve done a 5km run at the weekend, ask them how it went and congratulate them.

Little compliments like these will lift people’s hearts and they’ll leave the gym with a spring in their step. They’re also more likely to stop and have a chat with you next time they see you.

9. Give someone a hand

You don’t always have to be an expert to help someone correct their posture, or try a new stretch that will do them a world of good. If you can do what they’re trying to do and you have the confidence and knowledge to deliver some helpful advice, share it. Seeing someone nail a yoga posture or a kettlebell swing based on the advice you have given is the best feeling in the world and better still it helps create trust which is the perfect foundation for friendship.

Share your love of what you do and inspire others

10. Welcome new members

Finally, be kind. Smile and acknowledge people who haven’t attended the class before. We all know what an instant relief it is when someone acknowledges our presence when we’re new and feeling nervous.

Just a mix of good old fashioned manners, kindness and enthusiasm can help you to meet amazing people who in time may become truly wonderful friends.

Hx

Five tips for the perfect headstand and what not to do

I got into my first assisted headstand on Friday 20th February 2015 at the age of 29. Yes, it was such a big moment in my life, that I can actually remember the date…. and I think it was approximately at around 7:48am! I was over the moon and absolutely stunned at my progress – it was something that I didn’t think my body would ever be capable of doing.

February 2015

This post is about my first headstand attempts and how I’ve progressed over the last eight months. I want to share everything I’ve experienced with this pose to help you achieve your upside-down goals too.

What was I doing leading up to this?

Yoga for two hours a week and circuit training between 2-3 times per week. Some circuits would include some form of weights like kettlebells or sandbags so I had relatively decent strength through my arms and shoulders.

Can anyone do a headstand?

If your body is in good physical health and you have trained and developed the necessary strength in the correct muscles you’ll be capable of achieving a headstand. It’s also really important that you understand how to correctly position yourself in to the pose – keeping your neck and spine safe is so important.

Are there any poses I can try in preparation for headstand?

Alignment is key, so nailing a perfect standing mountain pose is the perfect place to start. When you go upside down you should be mirroring the same alignment.

Dolphin pose will provide you with a super foundation for headstand. It will help you build lots of strength in your shoulders, forearms, wrists and core. As you start to feel stronger in dolphin you can start to explore shifting your weight forwards so more of your body weight is loaded on to your shoulders and you really start to engage your core. As you begin to get stronger you will be able to start lifting your toes and feet off the ground and test how stable you feel before progressing to gently lifting your legs up.

A video of my second attempt in headstand 

I thought it would be really helpful to share a video of me doing this pose (my second attempt) and then point out all the things I am doing incorrectly to help prevent you making similar mistakes to me.

When I watch this video now it really makes me cringe and I automatically hold my neck and squeal a little bit.

So here’s what I’m doing wrong……

1. I’m trying to hop up but my legs are too far away. I should have brought them closer to my chest before lifting.
2. I should have taken a little breather. Instead of continually trying to hop up. You can see I am being very impatient. Putting myself into child’s pose and taking some nice deep tummy breaths would have given my body the space to relax.
3. My head positioning isn’t quite right. I should have had the front of my head placed closer to the ground. This becomes clear, as I roll back onto the back of my head before toppling.
4. I’m relying on my head to keep me stable and not my shoulders, forearms and wrists. This is not a good idea as it puts a lot of pressure through your neck. As I bring my legs up my weight distribution falls back onto my head and neck and not through my shoulders and arms. You can see I’m swaying backwards.
5. I didn’t take my time. Breathing through a pose is vital for its development and your practice. I’m not breathing here, I’m only tuned in to my adrenaline from getting into headstand a few moments before I decided to film my next attempt.
6. I’m not engaging my core. In any inversion you need to pull everything in and everything up to the ceiling.
7. I didn’t have a spotter. Although I felt confident in my new-found ability I should have asked a friend to be just beside me in case I did start to topple – which I did. I could have done myself a very nasty neck injury.

April 2015

My headstand tips

1. Activate all of the key muscle groups to make this pose happen 

What I have learned from Chris is that you’ll get the most out of poses if you don’t leak energy – every part of your body plays some role in helping you hold the pose. If you’re not connected then you’ll struggle to transition into the pose and get the most out of it. So if you have a weakness somewhere in your body, then other areas will have to work extra hard to keep you stable. Holistic strengthening through regular yoga practice will help you to condition and tone all of your muscles.

When learning an advanced pose like headstand make sure you get advice or research on what muscles you need to use.

2. Build your muscle memory

Muscle memory and patterning is also super important. In yoga there is always a preparatory pose you can try. As you build strength, flexibility and confidence in these poses your body will naturally find the right moment to advance. Before  progressing to headstand I spent a lot of time working through dolphin pose and downward facing dog. Forearm and shoulder strength is vital for headstand.

3. Create a solid foundation

For headstand you need to think about lifting your whole body up and grounding yourself into the floor at the same time. You need to really ground your elbows into the floor to protect your head, neck and give your body a stable foundation. Not only is this important physically but feeling stable will help you to build confidence; fear of falling or toppling in headstand affects so many of us and can become a barrier to us believing we will ever be capable.

June 2015

4. Take it slow

What’s the rush? You have to respect your body if you want to achieve incredible things. Your body is your best friend, look after it, nourish it, massage it, thank it, rest it and most importantly think positive thoughts. Your body is listening and responding to everything you say.

5. Switch off your ego

As soon as I had got into headstand I wanted to go straight back into it – I was desperate and obviously ridiculously excited! Looking back I wish I had respected my body and given it a well-deserved rest, instead I locked into my ego – I wanted to get a picture and post it up on Instagram telling everyone how chuffed I was with myself. Instagram is fantastic for sharing your progress, picking up tips and sourcing inspiration but it shouldn’t come as a risk to your health.

For more technical tips on headstands I really rate the Yoga Journal tutorial. This headstand walk through is brilliant. 

August 2015 – with Laura

Keep going with your yoga practice – you’ll find that no day is ever the same; your body will always be adapting. One day you’ll struggle with headstand, but in three months time you’ll be able to go upside down on command.

Yoga isn’t about being a performing circus seal, it’s about building a bond with your body. Your body is where you live and so yoga helps you to gently and day-by-day, strengthen the foundations of your life-long home.

Once you feel comfortable in headstand start exploring different variations in your own time. Start moving the legs into straddle, pike, frog and eagle pose. This will keep your practice fresh and identify any areas of your body that you need to give some extra love too. For me it is always my hips. Rather than shying away from them I give them more attention, and do at least two focused hip opening yoga flows a week as part of my daily practice. If you’re not sure where to start there are some excellent sessions on YouTube.

October 2015

My biggest tip to you is to keep talking to your body positively and out loud! Say thank you, say well done, congratulate it, squeeze, kiss it, hug it – every single day.  Treat it like your best friend and it will reward you with the magnificent moments and a long and happy life.

Let me know if you have any questions and good luck with your headstand practice.

Namaste x

Move

When I was about four years old my gymnastics teacher told me I would never be strong or flexible enough to be a gymnast. That comment became my ‘truth’; that I’d always struggle to touch my toes, and that getting into splits would be a dream that would never come true.

I got into my first unassisted headstand at 29

My gymnastics hobby didn’t last long and instead I took ballet and tap classes up until the age of about 18. I always struggled with my body’s flexibility or lack of it. I’d always set good intentions to stretch with the hope of creating a new habit and that this new daily ritual would help me to develop the movement I desired. The problem was that I never emotionally invested in this intention and it never became I habit. My ‘belief’ based on my experience as a four year old was that I would never be good enough and my body just wasn’t capable.

Through my training as a solution-focused hypnotherapist and psychotherapist I started to learn more and more about the thinking patterns that were holding me back and my knowledge has propelled me to breakthrough my “truth” and create a new way of thinking about my body and what it is capable of.

26 years on, by changing the way I think, I have become more flexible in the last 8 months through yoga than I have ever been. It really is mind over matter, I have learned that by believing in your body, you can transform; nurture, nourish and practice is all it takes. Success comes from your own self-belief.

This section of my blog is about movement and mobility, the benefits of yoga and stretch.