Monday Motivations: It's almost challenge time!

Dear Britomart Bikram yogis,

On Sunday Feb 1st, many Britomart students along with lots of your teachers will together begin our first 30-day challenge of 2015. This is no mean feat, even for those experienced practitioners who may already have numerous challenges under their belts.

Committing to a 30-day challenge entails completing 30 classes in 30 days. It’s an excellent way to explore and go somewhere new with your practice. You can do a couple of doubles (two classes in one day) if necessary but we don’t really recommend many more than one double a week.

What we do recommend is that you think only of your challenge one day at a time. Every night simply decide what class you are going to practise the next day. Digest your challenge in bite-sized chunks so you won’t feel overwhelmed at the prospect of no ‘rest’ days because in reality, you will manage perfectly well without them. Your Bikram practice is a fuel-station: the only ‘exercise’ in the world where you are actually gaining energy! The very healing and therapeutic nature of the Bikram practice means that you can absolutely practise every single day!

Here are a couple of tips which you may find helpful:
  • Take your challenge one day at a time. Think only of tomorrow’s class each night before you go to sleep.
  • Drink plenty of water. Add some lemon for quicker absorption and some Himalayan pink salt to replace sodium lost through sweat.
  • Eat a banana after class for some potassium and prepare some snacks to have mid-afternoon if you are doing an evening class after work. This could be a handful of raw nuts and a piece of fruit for example?
  • Engage with your fellow yogis before and after class: Find out who is doing the challenge and share your experiences and insights.
  • Engage in a compassionate practice. If at any point you are struggling please kneel down, take a break, and join us again when you are ready. There will be classes which you will find harder than others. Have no expectations, and simply commit to working as hard as you can in that moment, every moment, every posture, every class.

If your compassion

And one final note… Please don’t overthink your class once you leave the room. Sure, a little reflection on your practice is helpful sometimes… but more often than not what starts out as some well-meaning advice to yourself: “You need to work on on getting your hips down lower in trikonasana”, can turn rapidly into “Your triangle pose looks so rubbish in the mirror, and it’s nowhere NEAR as good as Sandra’s!” :-)

Be kind to yourselves! Your bodies hear and absorb everything your mind says. Furthermore, these thoughts are compounded because you are often looking at yourself in the mirror when they surface. View your challenge first and foremost as an exploration. You are embarking on a beautiful adventure where the only goal is to emerge knowing, accepting, and loving yourself a little bit more.

See you on your mats!

PS: God help us all! ;-)
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Monday Motivations

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It is the last Monday of 2014! Well done to everyone for making it through another year of trying to be the best You that you can be. Despite the natural urge to look back at all the moments gone, now it is time to be in the present moment. This time of year is always challenging and full of distractions, and the pressures to meet all our physical, financial, social and personal goals can become very stressful.

The easiest way to combat holiday stress is to remain in the present moment; in the now. If you are finding this time of year particularly difficult, especially when it comes to focusing on the now, try to fit in a bikram yoga session before New Year’s. You will feel the weight of the past and the anxiety of the future lift off your shoulders leaving a pure you, ready to celebrate the New Year in harmony.

Bikram yoga helps us get into the present moment and to stay in it regardless of outer distractions. It helps strengthen the muscles in our brain that deal with focus and being completely present in the moment.

One of Bikram Yoga’s keys to bringing awareness into the present moment is breathing. Focusing on your breathing both in class and out in the big world is an immensely powerful tool to combat the worries and unnecessary weight of the past or future. After all, all we have control over is the present moment. No matter how hard we try or how much we want to travel back in time or into the future, all we have ever had and will ever have to play with is the present moment. The most successful, happy people are the most present, self-aware people.

Being in the present moment is a tension-free experience. Once fully present, the fears, anxiety, hurtful memories and chaos of life melts away, everything we hold on to from the past or future becomes redundant, and we become fully empowered to make the most of the current situation - the given moment.

So if you are looking for some relief, and a holiday from your holiday the key is to be present in the moment - be in the now – and you will have no trouble making it through this hectic time of year :)

If you need to fit in some Bikram sessions before New Year’s, see our class schedule over the next few days below.

classes

All you have to do is get here, we will help you achieve the rest!

Happy New Year Yogis !  :)
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Monday Motivations

gdes

 Bikram yoga and weight loss are a common phenomenon in the Yogi realm. There are numerous articles circulating the internet that explain why Bikram Yoga is such a powerful weight loss tool, health organizations have calculated calories burned during each 90 minute class and experienced yogis around the world have written testimonials and inspirational stories about their journey to a healthier, leaner self.

As the festive season swings around for another summer of fun in the sun, eating and drinking with family and friends will soon become a frequent activity and the weather will tempt us to get out, strip off and make the most of the long daytime in New Zealand’s picturesque nature.

Don’t feel trapped this summer – with food or with your body. Invest in a weekly routine of Bikram Yoga and you will be able to spend the summer months enjoying friends, food and fun in the sun whilst looking your best!

Does it sound too good to be true? With Bikram Yoga, it really is possible. That is why this week’s motivations are all about real life weight loss stories from fellow Bikram yogis around the world. If they can do it, so can you!

Joel & Julia: Less than a year later, we collectively lost over 100 pounds and have encountered many other benefits, as follows. I no longer snore due to the light asthma that I once had. I can bend over and tie my shoes without turning blue and gasping for breath. I have a new driver's license with a younger-looking picture and a weight of 185 (about the same as I was in 1985 when I was 18). My girlfriend weighs 20 pounds less now than she did when she was in high school! We receive so many compliments from family, co-workers, friends, and others that it is sometimes embarrassing – my mother stared at me in disbelief of the slimmed down son she saw for, like, 10 minutes and I had to say "Stop Staring! It’s as if you haven’t seen me in 10 years!" I certainly smile more now than I have ever smiled in my life!

Emily H: Bikram yoga was hands down the fastest results i have ever seen from yoga.  I lost 15ish pounds in about 2 months by just doing bikram 4-6 days a week and eating healthier.  Plus my skin looked AWESOME and i felt so rad and energized all the time.

Jenn B: I did yoga for just 1 month, but everyday for 2 hours.  At the end of the month, I had lost several inches in my waist and was able to go down a full dress size.  I was not watching what I ate at the time, just yoga-ing.

Ellen McCandless: I gained 35 pounds and gave birth to an 8lb 14 oz baby girl at the end of August 2006. Seven weeks after giving birth, I started doing Bikram Yoga again just twice a week, gradually working up to 3-4 times per week. When my daughter, Morgan, was 5 months old I reached my pre-pregnancy weight! Now my daughter is 11 months and I have lost 8 more pounds! In addition, after my first pregnancy with my son my blood pressure never normalized. I was always borderline high and was put on medication for my second pregnancy. At my last doctor’s appointment a few months ago, my blood pressure was 118/70! None of the running, weight lifting or other traditional gym activities that I have done in the past gave me the results that Bikram Yoga has given me!

April Doerfler: 20 Pound Weight Loss – 3 Months. I have lost over 20 pounds in less than 3 months!I am amazed by myself and the 20+ lbs lost….I have never worked out in my life and this is something that I definitely know I can maintain and keep consistent.

1) http://www.bikramyoga.com/BikramYoga/WeightLoss.php,
2) http://www.yelp.com/topic/austin-has-yoga-helped-you-lose-weight,
3) http://www.yelp.com/topic/austin-has-yoga-helped-you-lose-weight,
4) http://bikramyogatempe.com/testimonials/bikram-yoga-and-baby-weight,
5) http://bikramyogatempe.com/testimonials/20-pound-weight-loss-3-months

To Book in your Summer of looking and feeling fantastic, call us Today on 0800 hotyoga or visit our website: www.bikramyogabritomart.co.nz 
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Monday Motivations



 When it comes to thinking about gifts and presents this year, think outside the box of spending money in exchange for something which you will wrap and pass on to someone else who will either like it or need it, or won’t like it or need it at all.

Think back to the last present you bought for someone that you really wanted to have yourself. In most cases the thought is as far as it goes and you only get the one, but the action usually leaves someone without the gift they want – you!

This week, we have a very simple solution to all your gift giving and receiving worries this summer. Firstly, it is about You. Give, give, give the self - everything it wants, needs and desires! Everything you would love for someone you care about to have or be doing this summer – do it for yourself first.

Putting yourself first is the most important and biggest step towards giving the best gifts to your loved ones. In fact to the people who love you, looking after yourself is the best gift you could give them – and they you.

If a friend is unhealthy, unfit and unhappy, filling my Christmas stocking with the most lavish gifts would not fulfil me or make me feel like a happy friend at all. A friend making the right decisions for themselves because they care about themselves – that is a present worthy of giving and receiving, any time of year.

When it comes to being a fabulous gift giver, the first step is learning how to give to yourself and receive the gifts of the self wholeheartedly, without guilt or feeling selfish. Know that every step you make towards a healthier, more vibrant you is only going to help lift the spirits of those around you and maybe even motivate or inspire someone else to follow in your path of self-love and development.

Gifts come in many shapes, sizes and forms, but think about what You want for yourself this Summer and work towards getting there, starting from Today. Because a happy, healthy You, is surely the greatest, most unique gift to the world.

Call us today and start your journey :) 0800 hotyoga

Happy Hot Yoga!

Namaste
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Monday Motivations

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 Today marks the beginning of the last month of the year and as Christmas and New Year’s fast approaches, we brace ourselves for one of the most stressful and busy periods of the year. The wild month of December can have negative effects on our bodies and minds, and without a bit of conscious effort to look after ourselves during this period, most of the stress and worry will carry itself into the New Year making our resolutions about fixing last year’s problems.

If you want to truly start afresh this January, Today is the day to make the first move. The 1st of December can be just like any other day – or it can be the day you started the journey to a greater you and a more fulfilling life.

But why Bikram Yoga? Here are just some of the benefits you can expect to see within a few classes:

On the inside, a regular Bikram practice
  • reduces stress levels,
  • enhances our ability to cope in stressful situations,
  • brings us self-awareness and thus better decision-making and
  • strengthens the mind to focus and be positive.
On the outside, a regular Bikram practise
  • tones up muscles,
  • sheds unwanted weight,
  • improves skin’s elasticity and overall health,
  • strengthens muscles, joints, heart and lungs, and
  • makes us more flexible and supple.
Make a Bikram Wellbeing Plan or call it your Summer Yogi plan – have fun with it! This is about YOU living life to the fullest so don’t cut any corners.

The Bikram Yoga Britomart Website has regularly updated class schedules to help you organize the week and pick the times that suit you. Think about what your next few weeks will involve, and make enough room for at least 3 Bikram classes every week – consistency is Key. It is important to choose a good plan that can be realistically stuck to – and stubbornly stick to it! The self-satisfaction that comes after sticking to anything is good enough of a reward – but if you succeed in sticking to your Summer Bikram Plan, the rewards will be far greater and they will trickle over into the rest of the New Year.

Make 2015 unforgettable! Challenge yourself – your best opponent and competition is yourself so use it to drive your achievements further.

Write down your progress throughout the weeks. Motivate yourself to do more to really push the envelope and keep pushing it. You will most importantly feel but certainly also see the results within just a couple of weeks. Taking before and after photos is another great way to self-motivate. Send them in to us! We will supply you with ample amounts of motivation – all you need to do is make the right choice this Month :)

Namaste

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Monday Motivations

6reasons

 1) Improved Brain Function and Mental Clarity – Exercise increases serotonin levels in the brain which helps in regulating your mood, appetite and sleep cycle. According to livestrong.com, “the optimal amount of exercise needed to enhance serotonin synthesis in the brain is 3 hours weekly”. That’s only two Bikram classes per week!

2) Keep Stress Levels Balanced – Endorphins are those wonderful hormones that we all know and love as the ‘happy’ ones. During a 90 minute Bikram class your body releases these hormones which leads to a feeling of euphoria, balance of appetite, the release of different sex hormones and an enhancement of immune response – all of which helps combat the negative effects of stress. Visit stress.org.uk to learn more about Stress.

3) Increased Energy – Physical exercise increases blood flow which helps pump oxygen through your body. Slow blood flow carries less oxygen to your body making it harder to be active and support healthy organs and mental function. During exercise, endorphins are released into the bloodstream which also help boost energy levels. You may experience initial tiredness while your body adjusts to the new physical routine, but once the body adjusts you will have more energy than ever!

4) Strengthened Muscles and Joints – Regular bikram yoga increases joint and muscle strength as well as their longevity. With regular stretching (through the object of pulling) and working of specific muscle groups in a heated room allowing for that extra stretch, you will have less chance of aches, pains and joint injury, especially in later years of life.

5) Strong Heart – The more you exercise the stronger your heart gets because it actually gets bigger, allowing it to pump more efficiently. According to dnaindia.com, exercise helps lower high blood pressure by improving the ability of your blood vessels to dilate, making the pressure on those vessels less. Postures like the Standing Bow, the Balancing Stick and the Triangle are particularly good for opening and strengthening the heart.

6) Weight Loss – During each 90 minute Bikram class, you can expect to burn approximately 1000 calories. Regular exercise also improves blood-sugar levels which helps in staying lean. Within a couple of weeks of regular Bikram yoga, you will notice muscle tone, increased flexibility of your joints and a longer, leaner physique.

These are just some of the positive physical effects a regular Bikram Yoga routine can have on your body. The practice itself is a physical and a mental exercise leaving no parts out – every organ including the brain gets a workout and becomes stronger, healthier and more balanced. Try it out for yourself! 30 days of unlimited Bikram Yoga for only $49.00 – go as often as you want. You will notice the difference :)

Book Now @ www.bikramyogabritomart.co.nz
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Monday Motivations

jfc

 For us beginners the world of yoga seems appealing enough – we get to tone up, become more flexible, learn about better nutrition for our bodies, gain self-awareness, mental strength and peace of mind, as well as meeting like-minded people along the way. But for the more experienced yogis - the ones who have made it through years of personal and physical challenge and thus rewards, the world of yoga is much more colorful and lighthearted than we perhaps thought. It seems that things only get better and better.

Inside the studio the pace and noise of the outer world is only a view from the large windows. Nobody seems to care about anything beyond their control. There are sleeping bags and yoga mats scattered as though each sleeping bag is incomplete without its nearby yoga mat. The sounds of giggles and laughter are a consistent soundtrack to the bare-footed yogis who have come, some from as far as Argentina, to stay with us for the JFC Training and Weekend with Esak Garcia.

In the yoga world there are always events, or rather, there are always events to go to where yogis have the most fun. Years of Bikram Yoga take years off a person’s heart and mind and the bright, youthful air of experienced yogis is contagious. After all, what do they have to worry about? Years of consistent yoga practice has taught them to consider life less seriously. The weight of the world is not carried on the yogis shoulder because their yoga mats and towels get in the way :)

Life is a beautiful event but only if each person makes a decision with themselves to be the best that they can be – inside and out. Make this the focus, and soon the pace and sound of the world outside will not be able to penetrate your bubble. Some of us don’t even have a bubble!

It is inside this bubble that experienced yogis find all the amusement in the world - and it is a full time bubble for them. It only takes spending a few hours at a week-long event in the Studio, where everything and everyone are everywhere yet in the most organized, relaxed and humerus fashion, to understand how lighthearted, welcoming and truly enjoyable a yogi’s company and their overall life experience is.

Veteran yogis are pro’s at having a good laugh and fooling around – after years of self-discovery why wouldn't you laugh? How could you possibly keep a straight face? In order to discover one-self truly, it is imperative to be able to laugh because none of us are perfect. Once we start digging deep we find that we are utterly strange, bent out of balance and surprisingly awkward. And that is ok! Humans are complex beings living in a complex world. With a consistent yoga routine the inner child in us starts to let go, eventually not wanting to get caught up in all of life’s little or big complexities. The inner child wants to celebrate and share its new found energy with other youthful spirits.

Yogis take each day as it comes because they have spent years treating their bodies with the same respect; taking each posture as it comes, day by day. With each gathering, big or small, Yogis from around the world rejoice and let a little loose, between the focused class-time, taking themselves ever closer to the ultimate reward of them all; full-bellied Laughter :)

Become a part of this colorful, reward-ridden world, where the noise and pace is what you make it – not what you can see outside the window.

Namaste
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Monday Motivations. The Bikram View on Nutrition

nutrition

 Nutrition is one of those words we all know are very important, but only a few of us really know what it means and how to incorporate it into our lives so that our bodies and minds are performing at their best.

Practicing Bikram Yoga enables you to develop a greater perspective on nutrition through building a close relationship with your body and therefore the nutritional choices you make are more aligned with your body’s needs.

The self-awareness that comes with each person’s Bikram Yoga journey is highly rewarding for the body.

Self-awareness is a powerful tool. For beginner Yogis, the transition into better nutrition is almost effortless. How? When you start your Bikram Yoga journey, you also start the journey towards finding your true self, and a big part of that discovery is the realisation that what you fuel yourself with is directly linked to your whole body’s experience and output (including the mind).

Another physical change beginner Yogis are often rewarded with is weight loss; not by changing their diet but simply by practising Bikram Yoga. Around 1000 calories are burned in each 90 minute Bikram Yoga session; multiply that by a few times a week and you are well on your way to healthy weight-loss this summer - or any time of year!

But along with the extra calories burned each week, the body starts to crave foods which will actually repair it and give it nutrition to maintain healthy skin, hair, bones, blood and organs. The body’s cravings will start to become healthier!

Experienced Yogis are well aware of the positive domino-effect practising Bikram has had on their nutrition and therefore overall health. The more you practise the stronger you are on the inside and outside, and you start to make the right food choices based on what is right for your body. Naturally, you will choose nutritious, fresh foods, full of goodness, leaving you feeling alive and energized.

What you might notice: Highly fatty foods will no longer satisfy your evolving body’s needs. You may notice how dehydrating alcohol is when consumed regularly, and putting too much salt on food will have a similar 'dehydrating'effect. Drinking plenty of natural fluids like water will become second nature – so you will start flushing out all the built up toxins and chemicals without even noticing or forcing yourself.

What we recommend: Fruits and vegetables are light and valuable for your body, and can be eaten an hour before class or almost immediately after. Whole grains and seeds are high in fiber and slow-burning carbohydrates which will leave you feeling energized for longer and keep your metabolism nice and steady. Bananas are high in potassium and are particularly good for restoring electrolytes. Nuts contain healthy fats and will keep you feeling full for longer, and their protein is goof for repairing muscles.

The Green power Smoothie

This smoothie is packed full of vitamins, antioxidants and many essential nutrients for weight loss and detoxification – perfect for our Bikram Yogis! Thanks to www.body+soul.co.au

Ingredients
1 cup oat milk
1 cup coconut water 
1 tsp spirulina
2 tsp flaxseed meal
1 tbsp organic coconut oil
¼ cup frozen berries
1 tsp probiotics
2 tbsp organic natural yoghurt
A pinch if cinnamon
2 drops stevia for sweetness

Preparation: Throw all ingredients into a mixer and blend until smooth. Enjoy!

The more you practice the healthier you will become so why wait? Start your Bikram Yoga Journey Today!

Call us on 0800 hotyoga or visit www.bikramyogabritomart.co.nz
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Monday Motivations

bikram-yoga

 The importance of looking after yourself with injuries is perhaps one of the most useful tools we can have in this lifetime because let’s face it – we all get injured sometimes and yet we all have to keep going to work or being parents or friends, and it is not always easy to do the right thing for our bodies, no matter how much the desire or willpower is.

Having an injury doesn't always have to be as obvious as a cast on the leg or visible inflammation of the tendons. Our bodies store things; they have a memory just like our mind does, and they can easily get out of alignment from years of wrong posture and abuse to the body – just like the mind can get out of balance from years of unbalanced thinking.

One does not have to be an athlete or body-builder to be in danger of working the body out of its alignment and physical balance. Things like sitting forward for long periods at your desk, carrying kids and handbags; these can all have negative effects on the body and without consistent Yoga, the body starts to remember and believe everything ‘bad’ it is being told. It is only natural!

When you go to Yoga your body starts to re-align and re-format itself; it starts to learn again how to be at its strongest, most supple, most balanced and most effortlessly functioning. This is why it can often freak out a little bit. It takes time and persistence to change the memory of your body. You’re almost literally starting from scratch again – and it’s not always easy! But what is ever truly worth-while that is easy?

People can experience a transition in their body, a transition that many Yogi’s understand and feel as the awakening of their true potential. However sometimes this transition can put people off; they feel disheartened and confused. When people’s bodies start rewriting themselves it sometimes causes them to stop their practice because their body is changing and they don’t know how or why.

If you have ever doubted yourself and your Yoga practice know that when you feel your body changing or feeling something different -  it is changing to a new, better functioning body, with a memory that is healthy and strong. It’s not always easy, but easy is not the way to achieving anything worthwhile. So do not be put off before your body gets its chance to improve.

The body is the most valuable thing we have and it is never too late or too difficult to transform it into its rightful place of well-being, regardless of its tumultuous history. We have to look at the whole picture to really understand the intimacies that make it up to be a whole. This is why it is so important to keep coming to Yoga - focus on one part of your body and you won't be looking after the rest of yourself, nor will the rest of yourself be looking after you!

The importance of the rest of your body being strong and functioning properly is that it will better support your healing process. Having an injury in one place shouldn’t mean neglecting the rest of your body.

Rather than giving up because of a single thing and allowing the rest of your whole body and mind to cave in and resign – give yourself another shot. Keep trying, keep pushing through the transformation stage of your body and its memory. As soon as you make it through, you will have a better relationship with your body and mind than ever before. You will have learned how to keep the whole picture in constant view, and what a wonderful picture it is <3

Book your next class here: www.bikramyogabritomart.co.nz

Namaste
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Monday Motivations

benefits-of-hot-yoga2

 The human body is a truly amazing organism. If we could each have a copy of our body’s ‘To-Do’ list every day, our own ‘To-Do’ lists would seem much less frightening. Our bodies are very complex and powerful tools that can either help us get to where aim to go, or stop us. Along with a consistent fitness plan, balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle, we, endowed with the gift of such competent physical vessels, often tend to forget about or perhaps are struggling with the most important activity of them all – Sleep.

Without efficient sleep, a body is not going to perform very well and it will inhibit you from making the most of almost anything. In fact, often the case is; the more sleep we ‘need’ the more we struggle to get. For some more energetic people, the activity of sleep can become a game of tug and war. Then, there are those sleepers who think they are sleeping, but they don’t often enter Rem – a deep state of sleep where the restoration of your body and cells during ‘sleepy-time’ actually happens, typically when dreaming. Rem is the body’s daily 'dream' destination, excuse the pun.

If it for whatever reason doesn't get to Rem, in only a few days, the body will render you feeling very irritable, moody and obviously lacking in both physical and mental energy. Weight gain is often associated with poor sleep cycles as the body’s compensation for the lack of energy is found in food; more food than it actually needs. It is probably just wanting Rem.

There are good news to all this. Yogis around the world already know about the wonderful benefits Bikram Yoga has had on their sleep, but now, studies have also shown that Yoga can help improve your sleeping pattern.

The parasympathetic nervous system is accountable for rest and digestion activities of the body in rest state, and studies have found that sleep onset and Yoga are both associated with an increase in parasympathetic activity. Meditation is also linked to the increase in parasympathetic presence.

Bikram Yoga is a combination of physical exercise, release of tension, breathing development, meditation, self-awareness, strengthening of the muscles, heart and lungs, as well as detoxifying your body and mind. All these Bikram Yoga benefits can be related to a good night’s sleep and all the techniques learned and developed in class with yourself in from of the mirror, can effortlessly be transferred to bed.

Give it a go. If you are always tired, always lacking that extra deep sleep or dreading the time of day when you have to and close your eyes and thoughts – go to a Bikram Class in the afternoon and tell us how you slept :)

Happy Sleeping, Hot Yogis!

www.bikramyogabritomart.co.nz
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