exercise Archives - Seren Holistic Lifestyles

Posts Tagged ‘exercise’

Energetic Exercise

September 9, 2013 By Kat

Over the past few weeks I’ve really noticed when I haven’t exercised as much as my body needs too. Just like stale air in our home can build up if we don’t open the windows & make the place feel yucky energy in our bodies can get stale if we don’t clear it out. I’ve been feeling sluggish & heavy within my body, not a good sign. We need to be flushing out our systems & moving the energy through to prevent a build up which then can manifest into physical symptoms. Exercise is perfect for that.

We are constantly evolving and what worked for me a year ago may not be having the same effect today. This is very true for how much exercise I need. I’ve pulled back on my yoga practice to a ‘maintenance’ level as far as my physical body is concerned. I’m not practicing half as many classes a week as I used too.

Another shift for me is that exercise is no longer about keeping the kilos off. This has been my biggest “ah ha” moment of late. In the past I’d slog it out at the gym, group fitness classes & at yoga with the aim of loosing or maintaining my weight. Epic fail. My weight was constantly yo-yoing. Once my focus shifted within & I ‘gave up’ focusing purely on weight loss magic things happened.

All the work I have done spiritually has made me realize how essential it is to work all four of my bodies in unison – physical, emotional, mental & spiritual in order to be balanced. When I was just focused on the physical body and disregarded the other three of course I wasn’t going to get anywhere. Inside had to change first in order to manifest on the outside. Once I realized this & listened to what my Soul was telling me literally my physical body took on the shape it was meant to be with a lot less effort and complicatedness. Soul is simple.

Sorting out my emotional baggage, getting on my spiritual path & focusing on doing what I love has been the best diet & weight loss program ever. I no longer need a layer of padding around my solar plexus to hide behind. The self-doubt has gone & so have the kilos. It was that straight forward for me*.

For the past year easing off the hard-core exercise has been good for me. It’s been about maintenance, relaxing, nourishing and taking it easy. It’s time to ramp it up again. As I mentioned above physical exercise goes far deeper into the invisible plane. I’ve started to notice the more healing & teaching work I under take the more exercise I need to be doing.

Why? I need to clear my system of any stale energy or emotions that might attach to me from my work. No matter how much protection or spiritual hygiene one does before or after a session a physical release is also needed. Exercising is part of my spiritual hygiene now. Energy, especially emotional energy, can get stored and stuck in every cell of our body. A physical flush out helps release this.

The Bikram Yoga I practice & teach is an amazing release for me. I can literally feel the blockages being sweated out my pores & left on my mat. Yoga of any kind is beneficial. Yoga asana work deep into the body to a cellular level. It’s not muscles and joints that get worked out, the respiratory, circulatory, lymphatic & endocrine systems get a good going over. The constant compression and extension of every part of our body inside & out helps flush fresh high speed oxygenated blood through it. Within this blood the stale energy is released & pushed through as well.

For example different energies get stored in different parts of our bodies. Self-doubt is stored in the stomach and fear in our kidneys. During a deep backward bend by compressing into our kidneys that fear is released. Ever get a bit scared when backward bending? It’s totally normal as its all that fear being released.

It’s important to keep our physical body strong & healthy in order to bring in more light. Light (love) raises vibration & assists greatly in the connection with Soul. Recently I’ve started getting headaches & feeling really lethargic. Signs I have not been releasing as much energy as I need to be. This has kept me away from the yoga room. When what I needed was to get in there! My vibration was lowering, as I wasn’t keeping on top of my practice.

Further assurance came when I took a well over due yoga class. I’ve missed yoga. I need it more than ever now to keep clean & clear. Lying in the pool of sweat, with the lights dimmed after class I was so at peace. Opening my eyes who knows how long later I was alone, content & lighter in more ways than one.

I’m sure my body and Soul will tell me when it’s time for a change again. Something new in the exercise field or just dial it down again. Till then the hot room is calling me home.

Love Seren xx

*Disclaimer – this is my own personal journey/experience. I’m not endorsing what I do is a magic way to loose weight & be healthy. Please seek professional advice before taking on a new diet or exercise program.

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Fitness Focus – Xtend Barre

June 12, 2013 By Kat

The phrase “see you at the barre” may well get most people chiming ‘oh okay then mines a pint.’ Alas no pints at this barre unless you count the pints of sweat you will be expelling. I am talking about ballet barres. Over in the States barre classes are the latest new trend sweeping the fitness sector. A franchise called Xtend Barre reached Australian shores last year. At the time I was looking for some anonymity away from the yoga world & something new to try out my muscles on. My inner ballerina who never got chance to shine was screaming to be let out. Xtend Barre was the perfect solution.

Being the hot new thing in town getting into a class was a tad challenging. Classes are available at three locations in my city and all offered online booking. That meant they pretty much sold out & you were wait listed. Classes have strict numbers as there is only so many bodies you can fit on the barres & equipment to go round. This varies from studio to studio. If you went as a walk in chances are you wouldn’t get in. Desperate to give it a go I managed to get into a Saturday morning class. I loved it & it just what I was looking for. There was even a studio nearer to where I live which was great. With my crazy schedule I only manage a couple of classes a month but it’s worth it for a blast of something different.

The class is open to anyone, no dance or ballet experience necessary. I for one am the ‘un-co’ queen of the century so don’t worry it usually takes me a few rep’s to get my arms and legs moving in unison. The concept is simple Xtend is a 55 minute ballet inspired class using the French ballet terms & positions. Think plies, tendu, turn-out & releve. Don’t worry if are not familiar with this lingo just follow the instructors lead. A warm up sequences of plies, stretches and leg lifts leads into an upper body-work out with light hand weights. Then its time to hit the barre. More plies, squats, releves and pulsing till your legs are shaking like jelly. You have the option of lower impact variation if it all gets too much. Subtle cues like ‘light finger touch on the barre’ helps remind me I’m not a monkey clinging on for dear life!

It is a solid work out though if you put in the effort. Even in winter I am sweating my socks off. You will be rewarded with toned, lean, sculptured muscles, a firm core & improved cardiovascular function. All the instructors are accredited pilates teachers and some I have taken class with are physio’s. They know their alignment & those eagle eyes will put you back in the safe, correct position if you are unsure. You are in safe hands, especially when you hit the floor for the ab exercises at the end.

You don’t need any special equipment for barre, just a pair of socks. I have invested in the branded Xtend socks that are just like any pilates socks with the grippy, sticky ball things on the soles. Normal light exercise clothing is recommended as I said above you will sweat. The choreography incorporates hand weights, resistance balls, straps and the new Xtend Stick. These are all provided by the studios as are the mats for the floor work. Water and a small sweat towel are also useful to take.

If you looking for a fun & challenging work out with upbeat music & a killer ab track give Xtend Barre a try. The new Xtend Stick classes are launched this week in Perth so watch this space how I get on with that one.

See you at the barre!

Love Seren xx

Image Credit: https://www.facebook.com/XtendBarre

Fitness Focus – Ballet Conditioning Class

April 29, 2013 By Kat

It’s good to get out of your comfort zone in the exercise realm from time to time. Mix it up, use new muscles and try new things. That is exactly why I signed up for a Ballet Conditioning class.

I went through a phase at the end of 2012 to try a new form of exercise each month. It went very well. I did a beginners course in pole dancing & had a go at a few classes of Xtend Barre. Both as you can see involved dance moves. Both challenged me mentally & physically. It was great to mix with new people & try new things. Christmas and New Year crept in and I fell back into my usual routine of yoga, yoga & more yoga.

I am a closet ballet fan ‘Bunheads’ & ‘Breaking Pointe’ all commands my attention. I loved ‘Black Swan’ & I’m keen to see the ‘First Position’ movie. Swan Lake is coming to town soon too! There is something so powerful and elegant about ballet, I find it fascinating. When the invite to join a Ballet Conditioning class appeared in my inbox I just knew it was time to give it a go. Added bonus I knew the instructor taking the class from yoga so decided it would be a good roll reversal.

I didn’t know what to except when I turned up at the ballet studio in North Fremantle for the 90-minute class. I was dressed in yoga wear and had brought my socks as recommended. Our instructor (who is also a physiotherapist) ran use through the different ballet positions to start with, first to fifth. There was a real focus on the muscles and how to rotate from the hip correctly when doing a turn out which we learned by sitting on the floor.

The class was great fun. We ran through sequences of port de bras to different tempos and then to music. Getting my arms and feet to coordinate was certainly a challenge when plies were introduced. The best part came when we galloped down the studio performing these jump hop moves (Temps leve in arabesque I think?) I was pretty hopeless. It took at least three goes to get it down then it was onto pirouettes. Then I felt like a ballerina. A rather clumsy one yes!

We covered a lot of moves during the class. Our teacher was so helpful with tips and tricks to help our balance as well as a big focus on correct alignment from the start. Every move was explained thoroughly even using the French ballet terms. It certainly was a great workout too. My calves were feeling it from all the relevés & my hamstrings from wrapping them around my femur bone.

I’d definitely go along again, the challenge was great for both my body & my mind. Ballet is a good compliment to my yoga practice too; learning from a physio gave me an added bonus of an anatomy lesson!

For anyone in Perth who’s interested the next Ballet Conditioning class hosted by Yoga Grooves will be held on Saturday 17^th July. Check out the info on Facebook or contact Jo for more info and to book: jo@yogagrooves.com

Love Seren xx

Images courtesy of http://www.yogagrooves.com