Funky #ForearmFriday! #poseoftheday

Happy #ForearmFriday, sweaties! Today for #sweatpink's #poseoftheday, we're talking Funky Pincha (Option 1 is Tripod Headstand).

This pose used to be incredibly awkward for me! I had a regular Tripod and Forearmstand practice, but every time I tried to kick up into this hybrid inversion, I was at a loss. I felt lopsided. I didn't know how I was supposed to hold it when my balance wasn't centered.

But that's the yoga. (Oh boy, that's a discussion for another time...)

I've established my affinity for trying postures that scare me on the beach. There's no fear of falling in the sand. So after not attempting this pose for a while, I tried it out on the beach a few years ago when it was a pose-of-the-day for another challenge. It was awkward, hard, and unnatural, but I got up there. And got some hang time!

The theme for the day back in October of 2013 was a pose that felt impossible. I'd been really focusing on my forearmstand (this was the same trip I tried handstand away from the wall out on the beach and again surprised myself!). I knew I could hold forearmstand AND tripod headstand, so this was in fact physically possible for me. I just had to try, and try, and try again. 

Holding it long enough for my mom to capture a shot was the motivation. I knew I could get there, so now I just needed to keep working and progressing. It's not a super regular part of my practice, so when again it was a pose-of-the-day a while later, I was reminded that I hadn't been including this in my flow (well, handstand really eclipsed so much of my practice....hello, #handstand365). Because I had been training so hard for handstand, I had the core strength to float right up into this funky pose. I was shocked! 

Yes, I know how it all interrelates, but it was still amazing to me. The awkward weight distribution between a hand and a forearm wasn't a factor. The focus of getting my hips up over my shoulders without losing the integrity of my spinal alignment within handstand completely translates across to all of our favorite inversions. 

Don't you just love that sensation of when you surprise yourself with what you can do?! When you drop the expectations and give something a go just for the hell of it?! That happened to me over the summer with another forearmstand variation: palms touching. This always seemed impossible too. And then I gave it another go. 

Have fun with funky forearmstand (or any variation or Tripod Headstand) today, sweaties! Show us your variations! #sweatpink #flexandflow #poseoftheday #stopdropandyoga #yogaeverydamnday @FitApproach @Lizwilsonyoga

Get Upside Down Today! #poseoftheday

Today for #sweatpink we're talking inversions. There isn't much to say that I haven't already about getting my feet up in the air. There are so many ways to invert, and I love them all!

HANDSTAND

This one gets a big fat, "DUH!" I think I've well-established my love of handstand...

#handstand365 - My daily handstand challenge, 1 year down!

#harderthanitlooks - The documentation of my attempt at handstand (and headstand) on a SUP board.

Handy Tips from a Handstand Addict - 5 tips for working handstand

FOREARMSTAND

We've also established my love affair with pinchamayurasana, aka forearmstand...

#forearmfriday - 7 steps to forearmstand

Photo by Stark Photography

CHINSTAND

This is a new one for me! After some coaching from Jamie to remove the blocks under my shoulders, adding some padding under my chin, and a few kick-up attempts... Voila! I still see a lot I need to work on, but it's now a regular part of my vinyasa practice. 

HEADSTAND

Playing with variations of and transitions into and out of tripod headstand is definitely fun. But classic supported headstand will always be a favorite...

SHOULDERSTAND 

The closest I have to a shoulderstand picture. I don't practice this nearly enough!

LEGS UP AGAINST THE WALL

FUNKINESS

Gotta love weird hybrid postures! 

Join in on the fun! How do you love to invert?! #sweatpink #flexandflow #poseoftheday #yogaeverydamnday #stopdropandyoga @FitApproach

Hump Day Camel Pose

Today for the #sweatpink #poseofthday challenge, camel pose (ustrasana) and pigeon pose (kapotasana) are being featured. Yay!

Now I say, "yay." I used to hate camel pose. I always have had a tight lower back. I accept that I'll never have a bendy, accordion back. A lot of that is just plain anatomy. But by focusing on backbends lately, and making sure my alignment is safe, I've come to love them! Let's break these poses down (definitely make sure you warm up for these!):

Camel Pose (Ustrasana)

Maybe you get a little funky with it... ;)

Start kneeling, maybe with your mat rolled up under your knees for some padding. Bring your hips up so they are in line over your knees and your hands to your low back (I prefer my fingers pointing down). Press down with your hands to guide your tailbone to tuck towards the floor. This encourages your low back to lengthen. Lift your heart up towards the ceiling, lengthening your upper back. Keep all of your newfound space as you start to extend your heart toward the wall behind you. Your head can dip back, just make sure your neck is happy. A sign that your neck is ok is if you can swallow. If you're low back is doing ok (aka, not feeling any twinging, sharp, or shooting pain), you can lower your hands to your heels. Toes can be tucked under to help you out with a few inches, or untucked to challenge the depth of the pose more.

Pigeon Pose (Kapotasana)

Every time I saw this pose, I wrote it off immediately saying that my back wasn't flexible enough for it. A year ago I finally read some instructions and realized that it's not about having an accordion back, but having quad strength! Start the same way as with camel: kneeling, hands on your hips, find length in your lower and upper back, and start to reach your heart behind you. Now bring your hands together at heart center or extend then to your heels or knees. Start to lean your hips back. Your quads will fire BIG TIME, and will limit how far back you'll be able to lean. It feels so different, right?!

Backbends are awesome because they're energizing! So they're great poses to do earlier in the day. You'll also realize they tie in with so many other poses, like I did when shifting some of my practice focus to handstand. (Read more about how this happened here.) You might feel extra tight or closed off in these types of poses when feeling emotional, sad, or stressed. Mind-body connection is a beautiful and complicated thing. By working to open our physical heart space, we work to open our emotional heart space as well: #openheartopenmind.

Question for you: What's your favorite backbend and why?

Join in on our #poseoftheday fun! Check details on the Fit Approach challenge page, watch for the daily posts announcing the surprise pose on @fitapproach on Instagram, and check out my Insta to see what, where, and how I busted my move!

Disclaimer: This pose was sponsored by Fit Approach. Any and all opinions are my own.

Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional, nor am I your personal yoga instructor or trainer. Please listen to your body and it's limitations. 

5 ways to get back to routine

I love the holidays! Fresh snow, pine trees, twinkle lights. hot chocolate, everyone feeling generous and festive... what's not to love?! For three out of the last four years, I got to spend Christmas time in a bonafide snow globe. And the last two I got to spend with my family. Perfection. This year was a little different. I had to stay in Portland this year, but was awesome! Yeah, I was apart from my family, but I've been here for 8 months, so I have a community around me (versus my first Christmas away in Breckenridge when I'd only been in town for 3 months). Caitlin and I just moved into a new apartment, so a lot of our time was spent organizing, cleaning, decorating, and enjoying our new digs. Also, Mt Hood has been getting dumped on with snow! So I got to ski 7 times within 10 days! Yeah, perfection...

This year it began to feel a lot (or little) like Christmas on... Christmas Eve. I'd been so busy with opening the studio, starting a new job, and moving, that there wasn't much time to create a festive vibe. I'd been surviving on coffee, takeout, and adrenaline. Until I could start skinning, I still wasn't able to partake in my normal workout regimen that uplifts me and my mood. Everything I was doing was awesome, it was just very busy! Christmas Eve and Day, New Year's Eve and Day were amazing! Skiing in the morning followed by movies and vegging with wine and chocolate in the evening was the perfect recharge! (Can you say, "snow day Netflix marathon?") So how does one cope with returning to the "real world" after the holidays haven?

1. Get outside

Getting outside in the snow on my skis (or on the trail in my trail runners) has become my normal! Y'all know how I love skinning... It gives me distance from my phone and notification feed, from expectations, from, well, everything. I can turn my overanalytical brain off for a time and decompress. So the fact that I could get out 7 times within 10 days (and most of those were powder days!) made my heart oh-so-happy! 

2. Hydrate

After weeks of too much coffee, wine, and champagne, my body is craving hydration! As much as my ex-boyfriend tried to convince me drinking coffee counted as hydrating, I know better... I attempt to constantly drink water, and always have my Nalgene with me. Sometimes time just slips away from me and I realize it's been way too long and I've been sweating way too much since the last time I had water. A girl sometimes needs a little SOS! I've always been a Gatorade girl. So when my yogi and ultra-runner friend Jamie gave me some SOS Rehydrate packets to try, I was a little skeptical. I remember those Crystal Light packets (shudder)... However, I became hooked on SOS over the summer when I was out running and sweating in the incredible heat we had up here in Portland! It's significantly less sugary than Gatorade and Powerade, and quenches even the direst thirst. SOS just released their new mango flavor! (Side bar: I love anything and everything mango!) Not only does it taste amazing, but it's the perfect level of "lifestyle hydration" to help recover from a night of cheers-ing champagne!

3. Curb Cravings

Having the sweet tooth that I do, I like to treat myself a little extra during the holidays. That does make it a little more difficult to get back to routine after the holidays, though. As much as I'd love to be able to have sugar cookies as a side to my eggnog every day, that's just not possible. So it is the perfect time to discover MealEnders! They are flavored lozenges designed to help prevent overeating. Read more about how they work and help me stop mindlessly nibbling here.

4. Yoga with Friends

My favorite way to get back into my activities is to make workout dates with friends! There's no better way to stay accountable while also having a blast than to have a buddy right alongside of you! 

As of Monday January 4th, we the Sweat Pink team have opened our very first physical space: Flex & Flow! It's a yoga studio geared toward athletic conditioning. So high energy flow classes, inversion and arm balance classes, Jamie's very own Flex & Flow HIIT workout (our signature style), bootcamps, a trail running club, and active stretching for athletes. (Read more details about the classes here.) We've been busting our asses for weeks DIY-ing the buildout, finding an awesome tribe of teachers, and getting all the nitpicky details covered. And voila! We did it, and are up and running! As I'm getting closer and closer back to 100% physcially, I'm so so so excited to get my yoga on with my new tribe!

5. Sweat Pink Pose of the Day Challenge

Another way to make sure I get my yoga on every damn day is the #poseoftheday challenge we're hosting with Sweat Pink. I've taken part in many a daily yoga pose challenge (hello, #handstand365), so I'm stoked to be heading up my own with the Sweat Pink community! Read more about the challenge here and check the Fit Approach Instagram account daily to see the pose and some different variations. 

Those are 5 ways I'm trying to kick my post-holiday blues and get back into my beloved routine. What does it for you?!

Disclaimer: This post was sponsored by SOS and MealEnders, and any opinions expressed are my own. I truly appreciate all of the brands that support the Sweat Pink community!