I blogged three days in a row and then…crickets. My thousands of followers have probably been waiting on the edge of their seats wondering “Where is Nancy?!?” Stop worrying all of you. I’m right here. (Is anyone even reading this?)

So my last post was on a Friday. I knew I would probably not post on the weekend. And now it’s Wednesday. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving so it’s been an abnormal week. I left town Monday and came back Tuesday. I visited a friend in prison. Someday I may tell you about that, but not today. I wanted to jump on here quickly and make a brief post even though kids are home, no school today, husband is off work… it’s your typical get-up-to-a-quiet-house and post kind of day. But here I am, trying to stick to the plan.

I’m going to try and get to the store early. I haven’t purchased one item for Thanksgiving tomorrow… well except for cream for my mom’s coffee, cuz I always forget that. I’m going traditional this year…turkey, potatoes, stuffing, cranberries… nothing weird. My mom’s OG… is that how I’m supposed to use that in a sentence?

When I woke up to blog this morning, I realized that none of my blogs/posts were publishing to the Blog page. So an hour later and a click of a button, I fixed it. But I wasted an hour… so I have to get going. I still blogged though! So good for me. Happy Thanksgiving every buddy!

I’m trying to create this habit of writing every day, and so far so good. Three whole days! I’m trying to get to 21 days and then keep going. I taught vinyasa yoga last night and asked everyone if there’s a habit they’d like to START… like I’m doing here. Is there a habit YOU would like to start? What could you start doing today that you could keep doing every day… or every week that would be good for you? Make it a routine first. I think we’ll start doing this at the studio for the New Year. Instead of giving up something, START something.

I’m wondering if I should do this on the weekends or just the week days. I don’t think I’ll do it on Sundays. I spend Sunday mornings planning my Sunday morning class at the studio. It takes a while. I plan that class Sunday and tweak it all week for my other classes at the studio during the week. I usually make a playlist and do the same with that all week long. And I go through ideas in my head of some sort of message I can bring to the class. Usually, it’s something I need to hear for myself… and I just say it out loud. So I may skip writing on Sundays, but I’m going to try and keep this up all week, every week. The hardest part is thinking of something to write about. I’m sure that will start getting easier. Right now this is a bit like Seinfeld. A blog about nothing. I wanna keep it like that in a way.

Thanksgiving is less that a week away. It seems like a very busy week this year. I have my great nieces baptism and my son’s birthday on Sunday, going to visit a friend out of town Monday and Tuesday, I’m forgetting something about Wednesday, a Thanksgiving class Thursday morning that Tahara is teaching, a small Thanksgiving dinner here at my house on Thursday, a big Friendsgiving on Saturday for my son and all his college buddies who are finally back together this week! Four days later is my daughter’s birthday. Fun…but I prefer the quieter weeks. I think I’ll decorate the house for Christmas on Sunday.

So today’s blog was a bore… but that’s not the point. Not yet at least. It’s day three. I’m just trying to keep my word to myself. Whether it was boring or riveting makes no difference. I’m sticking to it. So what can YOU do? What can you START today… “day one”… and make it three days through. And then four… and then…. It doesn’t have to be Earth shattering or mind blowing. If it’s exercise… just walk around the block. By day three, just walk around the block again. Be realistic and start slow or you’ll hate it and quit. Like me…. a boring post, but I’m doing it! Just start the habit… just say it out loud. That’s your first step… and then start. One day? Or day one!

I did it. Here I am again! Day two of my new habit of writing each day. Is there a habit you’d like to start? Habits are usually hard to stop… but maybe even harder to start! You know how you stop working out for a little bit, and then it’s so hard to get back going again? Well at least for some of us. “Me, hi, I’m the problem it’s me.” I need to get back to my own personal yoga practice. I used to do yoga every day… sometimes twice a day. When you become a teacher it changes your practice. In a lot of ways… that’s a post for another day. But if there’s a habit you want to get into, why not start today? I started yesterday. And I’m bringing you along to hold myself accountable. Of course there’s a chance I won’t keep it up. But there’s a good chance I will, because I said it out loud. So here I am, day two.

I saw Neil Diamond’s A Beautiful Noise last night in Chicago. It was great. I got us tickets for my stepson, for his birthday. He loves doing musicals at school and he’s a really good singer. He’s 17 years old and it’s hard to think of a gift for a 17 year old boy. Well, except my son… he wants anything that costs over $500. Whatever that is… that’s what he wants. Bobby likes music and plays and musicals, so we took him last night, and my mother-in-law too. We all loved it… it was great. I’ve always loved Neil Diamond. I’ve seen him a few times in concert. I didn’t know he was so plagued with anxiety. I think some yin yoga would have been good for him. If you have a chance to see it, I recommend it! I can picture Bobby living in the city one day, doing musicals and living his best life! I hope he follows his passion.

So, before I start my day… back to yin yoga. It really does help with anxiety and depression. I think the whole world should practice yin yoga. Anyone can do it. It’s a very relaxing and slow moving class. Last night when I was sleeping I woke up with a cramp in my calf, and again this morning, a cramp in my chest. I have neck issues and ever since, I’ve gotten cramps in my pectoral muscles. Usually when I cross my arm in front of my chest… it’s weird. I need to drink more water… yes, I know. Another habit I need to start. Anyway, I immediately thought “I need to do some yin yoga”… it would open up that muscle, the fascia, all the tissue in my chest. So I opened up into a twist until it loosened up. If you get really tight it’s a great practice to add to your day. If you’re a weight lifter, a body builder, a couch potato, a truck driver, a golfer, swimmer, pickle baller… anyone, anywhere… it’s great for you! And it will teach you to quiet your mind. I hear a lot “I can’t just lay there and do nothing.” Yes you can… and you should. Yin yoga will teach you how, and you might (once you learn…and practice) just enjoy slowing down a little bit. “Day One” or one day? Give it a try. At Happy Hour we call our yin classes Let Go. Check it out on the schedule and try it. Or look up “yin yoga near me” wherever you are and find a place near you. You’re welcome.

I’m off to the coffee pot again. Time to start the day… gunna plan a Black Friday discount for the studio, clean my desk, make some fliers for the big yoga fest coming up, do payroll, and do a little shopping. My son’s birthday is Sunday… now where did I put that $500?

So the other day I told my son “This is it… I’m done eating like a slob” and he said “I feel like you say that a lot Mom.” I laughed way too hard, and he said “‘One day’… or ‘day one’ mom?” Ok ok. Well, I’ve been thinking about that, while eating my ice cream, and I’m going to do it! Maybe I’ll start eating a little healthier, yes… but I’m going to start writing! I’ve been wanting to write a book forever. I have written some children’s books…I even had one published. (The Dinkadunk Tree and Me… you should read it. It’s a book about peer pressure.) But I want to write a big book… I’ve always wanted to. And I’ve had a lot of ideas, but never really started. After the past two years of my life, I really, REALLY want to write. The only problem is, I don’t think a lot of people would even believe most of it. They’d throw the book over their should and be like “nope… did not happen” – but it DID happen and I need to write it down.

So I’m starting to write, today! Not a book… but a blog. It’s a place to start… a new habit. My daughter gets her drivers license in two weeks, so no more driving her to school! Or anywhere. No more Driving Miss Lyla. I will miss it, cuz we talk mostly in the car. But I won’t miss it. She’s the busiest person I know. I also like to get up and read my vedanta book or use my mala beads. I can still do that too. But I’m going to start writing.

So I have a problem in my life – Every day (no matter what time I go to bed) I wake up early and can’t fall back to sleep. I’m talking REALLY early. Usually somewhere around 4 am. I peek at the clock, which shines up on my ceiling, and it’s always way to early. always. I roll over, and try to fall back to sleep. If hard things are happening in my life, I for sure won’t fall back to sleep. I’ll make up crazy scenarios and have fake conversations in my head for an hour and a half. I can use some yoga breathing exercise and it really does help, as long as I can keep my mind there… that’s the tricky part. It works much better than my DTAI technique… when I just squish my eyes shut and frantically think “Don’t Think About It Don’t Think About It Don’t Think About It Don’t Think About It.” That one never works. Don’t try it. You will.

So today I thought to myself, “Self? (thank you Mrs. Mendro, my algebra teacher at Dundee Crown High School)… Self? You should just start getting up and writing. You have a website and you’re supposed to blog. You should start doing that when you can’t sleep!” So I said “Yes Nancy, you should! You don’t have to write about the benefits of Ashtanga or the effects of yin yoga on your golf game! Be yourself… you’re good at that.”

I will blog about yoga and owning a yoga studio and breathing techniques, blah blah blah. But mostly it’ll just be my thoughts. A journal. I share a lot about my personal life in my classes… more than most teachers do I think. It helps me, and sometimes I think it helps the people in my class when I’m “real” and share too much. I’m sure I’ve lost a few people by doing that too “That old man is nuts… I just wanted to get some exercise.” But I’ve always liked writing, and it has always been helpful to me to write… So I’ll blog. You just have to do something 21 times to make it a habit, right? Something like that?

So here I go. Day one.

Written by Sarah on February 22nd…

On January 27, I had surgery on my lower back (a minimally invasive discectomy to remove part of a herniated disc that was pressing on my sciatic nerve).  It’s been almost a month now and I’m feeling better than I’ve felt in over 2 years.  I am not in constant pain!  I am currently in physical therapy and I am not yet allowed to do any exercise except for walking.  I am hoping to be back doing yoga & pilates in April.  My next follow up with the surgeon is in early April so we’ll see what he says.  I can’t believe I endured such terrible back and leg pain for so long.  Doing yoga and stretching really did help with pain management but I am looking forward to enjoying doing yoga without having to ice my back afterwards.  I am also excited that I will have a greater range of motion going forward so I may be able to get deeper in to poses and stretches.  

Living with back pain is awful.  It just hurt to do much of anything and I felt sad constantly.    If you combine that with the pandemic, my eating habits were awful.  I didn’t just fall off the wagon, the wagon backed up and ran me over twice.  It was bad.  I knew I needed to change my habits. I knew I needed to lose weight, but I was lacking the motivation to take action.  

So, I joined in the 21 day cleanse in February and it’s been awesome.  I am a week behind everyone else (to allow an extra week of healing from surgery) so I still have 6 days to go as of today.  If you didn’t sign up for this in February, you should definitely join in March.  In the first week, I lost just under 5 lbs.  I haven’t been eating sugar, haven’t been drinking soda, haven’t been eating cheese, butter or any of the junk I have been eating for so long.  I don’t drink coffee in the morning, so I was drinking Crystal Light with caffeine every day (which is probably horrible for me).  I have replaced that with a cup of green tea every morning. 

Everyone in the group is very supportive and shares recipes.  There is something about being in a group of people that makes it more fun and more encouraging. Don’t let the word “cleanse” scare you!  It is amazing.  You get to eat plenty of food and you will have so much energy.   When the 21 days ends, I may just turn around and do it again!  

Stay well!   Sarah