A strong mind is the most powerful tool you can develop towards your well-being. It's important to your health that you place a positive spin on your habitual thinking and act like a winner. Training your mind is exactly like training for a marathon. It's a muscle, and practicing mastery over your mind makes it stronger. Energy flows where the mind goes, so it is essential that you put your head in the right place. The mind rules the emotions and the emotions rule the body, so guiding your thoughts is essential to your health. Noticing where your attention goes is the first step. If you are anything like me, when you are in a pose, you will notice yourself wishing it were over or wanting to move to the next thing. This is a step in the right direction: the detachment to observe and recognize the thought patterns that are going on all day long... without your noticing. So when you practice, you have an opportunity to reframe or change them. i.e. “this is hard” becomes “this is the feeling of my body getting strong”. Retraining your mind is a practice, but you will see results.
Here are some fun exercises to help put your head in the right place:
1. Find a spiritual book you really like. Ask a question, then turn to any page and see how it applies to your problem or issue. Use it as a theme for your yoga routine.
2. Choose an Angel Card, Wisdom Card, or another positive thought card and use this as a lens through which to view your practice.
3. When all else fails, think about someone you have a crush on. This is my go-to motivator. I am always inspired by my crushes. If you don’t have a crush already... you have homework!
When you use your thinking in the right way, you will have the best cheering section in town encouraging your growth at all times. Postive thinking will not only make you feel better, but being happy will emanate from you and others will feel your energy. You will feel like a winner, if you train!