Welcome to my Mind Body Helper Blog

Posted by: Julie Lusk

Here’s where you’ll find plenty of resources to unify and balance your mind, body and spirit connection with yoga, meditation, guided imagery and real relaxation. Uplifting quotes too!

You’ll benefit from my 30+ years experience and get excerpts from my books and CD’s. I’m the author of Yoga Meditations, 30 Scripts for Relaxation, Imagery and Inner Healing (2 volumes), Desktop Yoga (R), and Mind-Body Mastery.   My CD’s include Real Relaxation: Yoga Nidra, Wholesome Relaxation, Power of Presence, Wholesome Energizers & more.  Remember to consult your health care provider since this info is not intended to replace medical care.  Full disclaimer.

Kick your shoes off and make yourself at home!

Never Give Up – How Yoga Transforms

Posted by: Julie Lusk

Please watch this video of Arthur, a disabled  Gulf War veteran, who had given up on walking unassisted ever again- until he started practicing yoga.

This is one of the most motivating stories I’ve seen.  Watch how his life transformed once he started practicing yoga with determination and perseverance.

He inspires me to never give up and to keep trying – and to encourage you to do the same.

 

Mother’s Day Quotes, Women’s Retreat, Special Sale

Posted by: Julie Lusk

Celebrate Womanhood at a Retreat – You deserve it!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

 

Meditation on the Fly

Posted by: Julie Lusk

Watch this 3 minute video if you ever have trouble keeping your mental focus while meditating.

It shows what happens when a Samurai Warrior takes a sword to a pesky fly.

This lesson on handling distractions is priceless.

 

 

Yoga Salutation to the CAT

Posted by: Julie Lusk

When the student is ready – the teacher arrives -  meowing

What is mindfulness and why does it matter

Posted by: Julie Lusk

Let me share with you the best definition of mindfulness and its benefits that I’ve come across.   Diane Poole-Heller shared it with us at the recent NICABM conference.

Mindfulness is the moment to moment awareness of present time, inner and outer experience, with a non-judgmental and non-evaluative stance.

Research has shown that a mindfulness practice helps develop all 9 functions of the Pre-Frontal Cortex.

1. ANS Regulation – Sympathetic and Parasympathetic Balance
2. Attuned Communication – felt sense of other’s experience
3. Regulation of emotions
4. Response flexibility
5. Empathy
6. Insight – self awareness
7. Fear extinction – GABA fibers to amygdala
8. Intuition – deep knowing
9. Morality.

 

Holiday Energizers

Posted by: Julie Lusk

Whether you’re celebrating Christmas, St. Nicholas, Kwanza, Winter Solstice, Navidades, Hanukkah, St. Lucia Day, Boxing Day or New Year’s, the holidays can be stressful.

 

Decide now whether this year will be full of the season’s stressful traps or fulfilling with plenty of treasures to be thankful for.  Take some time to set priorities and make the necessary changes so the holidays are inspiring and energizing instead of a drain.  Pay attention to what your needs and wishes are for your body, mind, and heart while finding the balance with sharing with others.  I hope these Holiday Energizers from Whole Person Associates help you as much as they help me.

Cheers!

 

Know what goodies will fill you.  What kind of contact will be fulfilling for you?  What kind of gift exchange will be meaningful to you?  What do you need to help your heart and soul feel refreshed?  If you know clearly what you want, it’s easier to choose activities that are likely to satisfy your desires.

 

Ask for what you want.  Don’t hint.  Don’t wait for someone to read your mind.  Don’t expect others to guess what will satisfy you.  Speak up.  If you’re lonely, ask someone to share your celebration – or ask to share in someone else’s.  If you love surprises, let people know.  If you need time alone in the midst of togetherness, say so.  If you can’t get what you want, want what you get, it’s much more satisfying than wishing for the impossible.

 

Give yourself permission to feel as you do.  Listen to yourself.  Feel what you feel, not what you “think you are supposed to feel,” or “wish you felt.”  When you feel down, feel down.  It won’t last forever.  When you feel excited, go ahead and enjoy it.  Trying to manipulate your feelings or act contrary to them will distance you from yourself.

 

Select celebration patterns with care.  Remember your past and bring it into the present.  Your “treasure box of memories” will contain pain as well as warmth and joy and it offers you a personalized source of depth and richness.  Repeat a tradition you’ve always kept.  Ask others about their rituals, pick one that’s new for you, and try it out.

 

Make positive contact with others.  At parties, make sure you have a good conversation with several people.  If parties aren’t your bag, make contact in some other situation (a neglected neighbor? with a religious group?) If your friend or family list is too short, look around for others in the same boat.  Try volunteering at Meals on Wheels or the crisis shelter.  Someone in your community needs your love.  Reach out to others – for both of your sakes.

 

Set priorities.  List all the things you want to accomplish.  Cross out unnecessary activities.  Refuse to suffer.  Do unpleasant tasks as quickly and painlessly as possible, then reward yourself.  Keep for yourself the activities you enjoy, even if they aren’t essential or could be done by others.  You need them.  They nurture you.

 

Turn obligations into energizers.  Rituals and traditions that characterize our celebrations can stimulate spiritual reflection, excitement and wonder.  Even exciting tasks, repeated year after year, may turn into obligations.  Creatively update tasks so they provide new energy.  If anything conjures up an image of drudgery, try a new approach that can energize you.  Traditions can help us get through the difficult times when our feelings don’t quite match the occasion.

 

Give meaningful gifts.  Give blood.  Give your presents (buy something, make something) – and give your presence and pledge your time and attention – don’t just give tickets to a cultural or sports event – plan to go along and share the experience together.  Volunteer to babysit.  Remember to put yourself on the gift list.  Treat yourself to a gift that’s just perfect for you.

 

Take care of your body.  Don’t overeat, over drink, or overplay.  It saps your vitality and diminishes your ability to enjoy the holidays.  Protect your energy.  Learn to celebrate without abusing your body.

 

Pay attention to your spirit.  Listen to your core.  Touch it and let it touch you.  What do you believe?  What’s really important?  Holidays invite reflection.  Nurture this opportunity as part of your celebration.

 

Laugh.  Laugh a little or a lot, depending on your level of stress. Laughter reduces tension.  Do something unusual and outrageous each day.  Practice seeing the humor in your holiday dilemmas.

 

Wabi Sabi – The Power of Imperfection

Posted by: Julie Lusk

Good to the Core: Yoga to strengthen & flatten abdominals, tone back, legs, hips, and more.

Posted by: Julie Lusk

This yoga sequence helps with abdominal core strength and tones the back while also lengthening the psoas muscles.

The psoas, deep and large,  runs from the lumbar spine, stretches over the hip joint and under the abs, and attaches to inner thigh bone.

Traditional leg lifts, “crunches” and sit-ups are often done to strengthen and flatten the abdominal muscles.  The problem is that they also tighten and shorten the psoas tipping the pelvis forward, pushing your belly out (yuk) and misalignment of the back.

A tight psoas contributes to back, hip and knee problems, indigestion, dysfunctional breathing, instability, and other problems.

This particular yoga sequence activates the psoas muscle in a progressive manner:  first facing forward, to the side, and then turning.

Other beneficial yoga postures are the forearm plank and side plank (creates core stability and strength with a neutral psoas) and pigeon (stretches and releases the   psoas).

Consult a qualified yoga professional for instructions and contraindications.  As with all exercise, practice for your own benefits and at your own risk.

 Click here for your complete pdf handout on  ” Good to the Core:  Yoga to strengthen & flatten abdominals, tone back, legs, hips, and more” from Julie Lusk

                                   

 

It’s Summer Bucket List Time

Posted by: Julie Lusk

That’s right, it’s already August and fall is racing towards us.  Now’s the time to get serious about how you’re going to spend the precious summertime and get busy with both the inner and outer work of growing and developing in your truth.  Live.  Love.  Laugh.

Here is reflection from Joan Borysenko from her Pocketful of Miracles book.

“August is the month during which nature celebrates her maturity.  The hatchlings in the nest have found the wings to fly and the boughs of the old apple tree are heavy with fruit.  The Godseed within our hearts is also ripening so that we become more flexible, more tolerant of the shades of gray that characterize life on planet earth.

Every interaction becomes an opportunity to encourage, to be kind as we acknowledge the Godseed within all.  As the pumpkins ripen on the vine, mellowing in the shortening days and colder nights, the vine itself begins the dying time.  It’s purpose is complete.

August  reminds us of the impermanence of all things.  All that seems so dependable will someday pass away.  In that poignant knowledge we mature  into a deeper appreciation of all we have, of all we love.

Listen to the voices of the Ancient Ones that call from the roots of the oaks and willows:

Nature is setting seed,
storing the energy of the light
for future generations.
Likewise, our souls are coming to spiritual maturity -
a flexible, gracious attitude that finds intense joy
in the very impermanence of life.”

I challenge you now.  Take time to consider what’s important to you now.  Yes, everything from spending more time swimming, visiting friends and family, and eating summer’s fresh produce to the deeper things, like helping others, being kind, and doing some soul-searching.

August 1 is the anniversary of my Mother’s passing.  Every day, I miss her loving smiles and cheerful encouragement.  She taught me to live life to the fullest and to enjoy family and  friends.  Yes, life is impermanent, so let’s remember what’s important in our own precious life and treasured relationships.

Please share your comments about your bucket list – from the insane to the simple to the spectacular.

Ring Finger Mudra for Temperature Control, Stamina and Equilibrium

Posted by: Julie Lusk

***

Another one of my favorite yoga mudras  is the Ring Finger Mudra.  It’s especially helpful in the summer since it helps control body temperature.  It does this since it works with the Chinese  “triple warmer. ” There are times when I get too hot as well as times that I get chilled due to air conditioning.  This hand gesture solves it.  In addition to temperature control, it is also good for increasing stamina and feeling balanced and a steady equilibrium.

How to do the Ring Finger Mudra

• Sit, stand or lie down
• Encircle your left ring finger with the four fingers of your right hand – the right thumb  extends to the middle of your left hand.
• Keep holding your finger for a while and feel the experience
• Next encircle your right ring finger and hold it for the same amount of time.

Benefits of the Ring Finger Mudra

• Gives stamina, staying power and the power to be assertive
• Associated with the deep meridian of the liver which provides patience, serenity, hope, and vision for the future
• Associated with the triple warmer which provides temperature control for the body, which in turn regulates cell function.
• Helps with maintaining equilibrium during stressful times

Reference:  Mudras: Yoga in Your Hands by Gertrud Hirschi