Me? A Yogi? No Way!!

Breathe in 1,2,3,4, Breathe out 1,2,3,4, focus on my breathing, empty my mind, release my stress through every pore. Ahh, I love Savasana (Corpse pose). Here’s the thing though, while many believe that this is all there is to yoga it’s only a small part. Like many others I never really gave yoga a second look after my original dismissal of the practice. I was so wrong about what I believed it to be. The 2 largest misconceptions I had in general was that yoga was just a bunch of easy stretching and some kind of old religious meditation ritual.

My friend told me I HAD to try it and dragged me to a free yoga practice with her and I have to say that I was undoubtedly hooked. I’ve been doing it at least weekly ever since. There is so much yoga can do for the body and peace of mind. Its a great way to release stress and toxins from your body in a relatively non- harmful way, that also helps work on balance (of course), inner core strength, and endurance. There are so many benefits form yoga that links to health, for example relief of joint pains, increased metabolism, stronger heart and lungs, and stronger digestion. Those don’t cover all of it but they are good examples and depending on what you wish to focus on you can choose which kind of yoga to practice. There are so many different kinds of yoga and there is no need to stick to just one and yet at the same time you can practice one version if you want. I became pretty curious and have tried a few; My favorites are vinyasa flow yoga and bikram yoga without all that lovely 120°F heat (the controlled temperature makes a tremendous difference and has benefits but I couldn’t handle it for more than 35 minutes. Hey! It’s a work in progress, ok?!?!)

Yoga is full of misconceptions and I could spend a lifetime debunking all of them but for now I’ll just debunk my own. Yoga is much more than easy stretching, its actually quite challenging making you utilize strength, stamina, and flexibility in practically every pose. Its a great practice because it purposely mixes awareness and concentration with movement in a very gentle meditational manner. Which brings me to my second misconception, yoga does involve old meditative rituals but are no way related to religious practices. I never have been, and don’t believe I ever will be, pushed a religion onto me during any yoga experience. Think of all the Hindu references in yoga more as tradition passed down from teacher to teacher.

Trying out yoga and liking it doesn’t mean you have to change anything about yourself or your lifestyle either. I believe everyone should be dragged to it at least once. Hey, I know its not for everyone but why shut the option down without looking into it? I do it because I found that I genuinely enjoy it, nothing less nothing more. If you want to learn more about it or even find some helpful links, my bestie wrote about yoga as well! So, without further ado, I’ll continue my Savasana (corpse pose). Breathe in 1,2,3,4, Breathe out ,12,3,4…

Tree pose – Tadasana

Warrior II Pose – Virabhadrasana

Dancer’s Pose – Natarajasana

Bound side angle Pose – Baddha Parsvokasana

Toe stand Pose – Padangustasana

You can practice wherever you want… even on a tree!!

Totally a Yogi! – ♥ AR

Where do I belong?

For the longest time, my entire childhood in fact, I never really thought I fit anywhere. As a kid, I really struggled not being able to fit into one certain group or “stereotype” completely. I was always too different. I know how strange that sounds now as an adult, having accepted that there is no “one” facet that completely defines me.

I am the Italian child to South American parents growing up in the United states. As a young girl, I was proud of being from a place as beautiful as Italy, but when I would be asked questions I’d never truly know how to answer since I came to the U.S. when I was five and was never really able to retain any solid memory of my Italian toddler years. Growing up I had many cultural differences, among them customs, from my friends. The differences were not just European and American but also Hispanic. I would speak Spanish with family, English with friends and teachers (as well as speaking for my parents), and always watching Italian television with family. Eventually I realized that of all three I would have to grasp and adapt to more American customs since I lived and grew up here; the struggle with this was that my parents were stuck to another culture and took them longer, especially as my sister and I became teenagers with more liberties, to adapt.

In my teenage years, the sense of not fitting in came from the cliché concepts of stereotypes. While I did not fit just one, I wanted to because I wanted and needed (or so I believed), the security of friends and a place to belong. I never just fit in one clique; I hung out with all the emo/punk kids , I used to dance and be a ballerina, I had a bunch of nerdy clubs and get together I would participate in, and I loved yearbook and the friends I had there. Eventually I realized soon enough that it was okay to not be able to fit into one kind of identity. We are all a part of everything, making us all amazingly unique and different and there is such great beauty in  that.

There isn’t one facet that defines or identifies me more than another. I am an Italian woman with Hispanic parents raised in the United States. I am reader, baker, yogi, occasional writer, dancer, swimmer, avid music listener in all genres but country, a Netflix binger, and a collector of Spanish fans and Venetian masks… okay now it’s getting weird but that’s the point. My identity is not easily defined by one facet but way too many and I accept that. My identity is being able to be a well-rounded person with unique characteristics that can’t be tied down into just one stereotype. I am beautiful just the way I am. I am self-acceptance, and my Identity belongs with people (friends) who appreciate that.

What’s your identity? – ♥ AR

The Case of… FOMO?

Recently another term that has been coined in the early 2000s is picking up tremendous popularity in our ever-changing youth’s vocabulary. In our culture where we are constantly trying to make short word shorter, there is the lovely tool of acronyms. The acronym I’ve heard the most recently is FOMO. FOMO stands for “fear of missing out”. I’m honestly not completely surprised that this term has become so popular when every young person is constantly reading about what their friends are up to on social media and comparing their experiences with other people’s statuses and posts.

Somewhere deep down we all have that small fear of missing out on something important that may be happening in the real world, or on a great opportunity to experience something beneficial. It’s just how life works, how emotions work. It has become much more evident  because of social media, and in my personal life with friends. In fact, this weekend it seemed like I experienced a lot of different reactions to FOMO and while it was quite annoying, it was also a little concerning to realize that not many of us know how to deal with it.

It’s ok to have FOMO, but you need to be careful to not let it get to you. FOMO can lead to irrational thinking of depression where you start to believe you may not be good enough to hang out with, or irrational rude behavior like inviting yourself to certain events or ordering others to invite you. Just remember that you are not the only one who struggles with this fear, and that if it bothers you there are other ways to go about it. I prefer talking about it, talking about my issues and feelings. Why am I feeling this way? Why does it bother me that my best friend went to dinner with her boyfriend’s mother instead of me? Why is the fact that “Betsie” is hanging out with this other group of friends more than our group bugging me? Talk it out with whoever it is that makes you feel left out. I promise you from experience it helps clear the air and it helps you feel better without becoming jealous or holding grudges. Make an effort to go out more often or to invite others more . You will realize that in reality you actually aren’t missing out on much. Instead of feeling left out, feel happy for whomever because it seems like such an accomplishment, and know that one day you’ll have an amazing opportunity if you keep your eyes open. We as a culture, as a generation need to stop selfishly personalizing every issue. We need to feel happy for others and go out and treat ourselves to happy moments whether they are with friends or by ourselves. Remember you have experiences your friends don’t so don’t fear missing out on theirs, they should be fearing about missing out on yours! ;P

After such a serious rant, I thought you would enjoy some comic relief!

Fix your FOMO!  –  ♥ AR