Blog

Spring (Again)
Michael Ryan

The birds were louder this morning,
raucous, oblivious, tweeting their teensy bird-brains out.
It scared me, until I remembered it’s Spring.
How do they know it? A stupid question.
Thank you, birdies. I had forgotten how promise feels.

Lately, I don't need an alarm clock.
The frenzy of birdsong wakes me
pouring through my bedroom windows
well before the light does.
I've taken to imagining the sound
winding its way over my body
like the sparkles of sun on water
as though prana is entering me
here, then there, encircling my heart,
entering my feet, crowning my head.
It's a splendid way to begin a day.
So, thank you, spring.
Thank you, birds.

Take in the prana of spring
however you can, wherever
it appears and accosts you.
Maybe on a yoga mat?

We're not the kind of person
we think we are,
we're the kind of person
our habits are making us into.

Notre Dame philosophy prof
Meghan Sullivan reminds us of
this warning from Aristotle.
It stopped me for a moment.
I have all sorts of ideas about the type
of person I think I am, or hope to be.
But what would an outsider posit
were she simply observing my habits?

It reminded me of the axiom
If you want to know what's
important to someone, see
where they expend their
resources.

No judgments here, but rather
the opportunity to do a little
reverse engineering if we wish.
Am I spending my time and
treasure on the kind of things
that I most value, that have the
propensity to form me into
the sort of creature I aspire to be?

I think I'll ask myself this
every now and then.
Staying true to my yoga practice
is definitely a tick in the
YES, KEEP IT UP column.

I hope for you too.

Muscle mass matters!
Here's what I've learned lately.

1. Muscle is the most active
metabolic tissue in the body!
It helps blood sugar regulation.
As muscle mass lessens,
so does your metabolic rate. 🙁
2. Muscle helps keep your brain sharp!
Studies show those with high muscle
loss are 3x more likely to develop
dementia perhaps due to high markers
of inflammation related to muscle loss.😟
3. Muscle actually works as an
endocrine organ through the production
of myokines, signaling molecules that
exert effects on tissues and organs.😲
(this blows my mind)

After age 30, muscle mass declines
at a rate of 3-5% per decade.
After 70, that loss accelerates to
7-8% per decade.

Unless you resist this statistic
by building muscle
on purpose!
Hello, planks, lunges,
one legged balances, etc..

Bring on the yoga!

Oh, nuts, how I love you.
My pantry is full of raw nuts.
I eat a handful in between
yoga classes almost every day.
They get me through the next
downdog until lunchtime.

Hurrah! They're good for us.

walnuts: reduce both cholesterol levels
and inflammation. A regular walnut habit
improves endothelial function
and reduces heart disease risk.

almonds: help lower LDL while
maintaining healthy HDL cholesterol.
Reduces blood pressure and
improves vascular function.

pistachios: high in potassium and
antioxidants, they enhance heart
health. When I was little I loved these
because they were dyed red.
I know, the 70's, a kooky time.

cashews: high in magnesium, they help
regulate heart rhythm & blood pressure.

pecans: lots of monounsaturated fats,
anti-inflammatory polyphenols, and
vitamin E - good for your brain & heart.

Brazil nuts: awesome selenium
source for thyroid health and
some say avoiding depression.

Munch away.
Then come to yoga,
you nut!

Gulp.
Wise advice just now methinks.
Sometimes speaking out,
speaking up, or honestly simply
speaking w i t h a fellow soul
can make all the difference.

Instead of holding truth
only on the inside, I can
set it free out into the world
where it might do some good.
And honestly, this is the best way
I know to take care of myself.
I'm learning that storing things
inside my body is hardly ever
the best idea. I want to keep
things free and fluid in here
-energetically and physically-
for my own wellbeing.

So the next thing can come in
. . . . and in time, be let out.

Ah, flow.
Yes.
Let's try this
on the yoga mat.

There is an Indian proverb that says
everyone is a house with four rooms:
a physical, a mental, an emotional,
and a spiritual. Most of us tend to
live in one room most of the time,
but unless we go into every room
every day, even if only to keep it
aired, we are not a complete person.
-Rumer Godden

Gulp. Hand raised, head bowed here.
I don't think I live in only one,
but the floorboards would show
more wear in a couple to be sure.
How about you?

I like the freeing offer merely to
air out the others more regularly.
Just popping my head in to
look around and say hello.
That, I know I could do.
And who knows what happy
consequences may arise?

To a fuller life where there's
room for all our bits to expand
and all feelings are welcome.

Come expand in body,
mind, heart and breath
on the yoga mat this week.

-Virginia Frances Sterrett

"Don’t think the garden
loses its ecstasy in winter.
It’s quiet, but the roots
are down there riotous."
-Rumi

This is what I keep telling myself
as I gaze out rainy February windows
day after day, hungering for blue sky.
I just know my tulips and daffodils
are happily drinking up down there.
It's as though I can feel things
beginning to shimmy underground.
Hopefully, it's more than the mole
family that has decided to build
the compound of their dreams
in my backyard. Sigh. They need
a home too, I know. I digress.

What sort of roots are we growing?
What's been simmering in your
heart over this quiet wintertime?
New ideas of how to think about
your place in the world?
A different attitude to try on
with someone you love?
A tiny shift of perspective that
might change everything?

Let's do the work we can do
right now - tending our roots.
Spring is coming after all.
Eventually.........
and who knows what beauty
longs to arise from us.

Let's bundle up
on our yoga mats
this week!

wounded Telephus carrying Orestes (a troubled tale)

"Something I'm more and more aware of
is that what you do is your participation
in the world. So watch what your choices
are, watch what you are thinking, watch
what you are learning from your being.
I think especially as artists, you really
have to watch how you want to give
yourself to the world."
-Juliet Binoche

I think this is true even if you're not
a famous movie star. And I ascribe
to the idea that your art is what you do.
So, I think we all can move in the
world as artists - crafting not only
our landscapes but our themes, our
dialogue, our efforts at forming
connection and making meaning.

You have the power to give
yourself to the world on purpose.
And whether you realize it or not,
you are doing exactly this
all the days you're here.
And doing so in a peculiarly
wonderful way that no one
else could quite replicate.
Carry on, yogi.
We need y o u .

Bring your unique self
to your yoga mat this week.

Did you know your yoga practice
has the power to affect gene
expression? Turning down the
chronic inflammation that leads
to much unhappiness in
the body and mind?

A recent paper published in
Frontiers of Immunology found that yoga
(along with mind-body practices such as
breath regulation, Tai Chi, and Qigong)
helps to reduce chronic inflammation
by reversing the inflammatory reactions
suffered in the body through stress.

Less inflammation? Just by chillin'
on my yoga mat? Yes, please.

While the molecular mechanisms are still
a bit of a mystery, 18 analyzed studies
indicated a downregulation of nuclear
factor kappa B pathway. For the
non-scientists among us, this is the
exact opposite action stress enacts
on the body as it ramps up NF-kB,
increasing our vulnerability
to all sorts of illnesses.

We have the genetic makeup we're
born with, but what we do with it
matters enormously. Your behavior
and environment changes how
your body reads that DNA.
Epigenetics rocks!

Feel empowered and
get thee to a yoga mat.