Monday Motivations

December 21, 2014

Monday Motivations

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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December 7, 2014

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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November 30, 2014

Monday Motivations

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 1^st 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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November 9, 2014

Monday Motivations. The Bikram View on 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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October 19, 2014

Monday Motivations

Here comes another week full of days and hours and minutes and hopefully some more summer temperatures. As the days get longer and warmer it seems our calendars get fuller faster, regardless of the extra sunlight each day. From every which way we look there is an increase in activity in early spring and summer; from sports to dinner parties and barbecues; this time of year seems to be when outdoor gatherings are in bloom and it can become quite challenging meeting everyone’s needs, including our own. In fact by the end of summer, many of us will be feeling exhausted from all of the activities and will be gladly awaiting the darker, shorter days which allow for more time to reflect and plan.

But now that we are aware of the pattern, we can begin to develop solutions before they turn in to problems. Now is the time to be thinking about how to have a fulfilling and healthy summer that is rewarding for you, your body and your mind, so that when the colder days swing back around, you are ready to face them with zest!

Time management is one of those common, everyday phrases that only some of us are actually making the most use of. Time management is about asking yourself first thing in the morning, or at the beginning of the week – any time is a good time to ask; what is it you want to achieve? The rest is about figuring out how to achieve those things, with the given time and circumstances.

Living a fulfilling, healthy life is about listening to our own bodies’ clock and living with the word’s clock as harmoniously as possible. For morning Yogis, a 6.30 am Bikram class as opposed to an afternoon one, is a fantastic way to start the day and keep motivated to stay healthy and fit. The start of the day is an important time to set your intentions for later, so make the most of that time.

If you are a night or evening person, afternoon classes are a great way to get social and fit at the same time, and you will walk out the studio feeling full of natural energy, ready for the evening’s activities.

My challenge for you this summer is to keep doing what is good and right for you. Be the social or outdoor butterfly summer loves you to be, but do not forget to make your personal development goals a priority.

The extra sunlight we have is only as valuable as we make it; quality over quantity Yogis!

www.bikramyogabritomart.co.nz

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October 12, 2014

Monday Motivations

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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September 21, 2014

Monday Motivations

It is the end of another period of elections and regardless of the outcome - the time is now to focus the energy and attention back on to yourselves. And much like choosing weather to vote or not, nurturing a healthy and more youthful 'you' is also a choice.

Do you care enough about the physical vessel that is your body, the mental vessel that is your mind and the emotional vessel that is your heart and spirit? Do you care about it enough, to put a towel and yoga mat into your bag once a day, or once every second day and go Downtown?

A healthy and joyous life can be achieved through a collection of positive choices, aimed at giving all your 'vessels' the love and nurture they need in order to provide you with a fulfilling experience of life.

First, it is important to bring any energy that has been scattered here and there; weather it be politics or the family or work, and focus it back in to the things that mean something personally to you and your 'vessels' (heart/spirit, physical and mental).

A vessel is a vein or artery that carries blood through the body. But your body is also a vessel, that can carry you through to the achievement of your dreams, and so is your mind and heart.

So the next time you are faced with yourself, in front of the wide studio mirror, take a deep look at the wonderful vessel standing before you. Take a moment to appreciate it for getting you to where you are today, and realize that you are nurturing it and giving it the fuel it needs to become the best performing vessel for you reaching your goals.

Appreciate yourself for making the right decisions in your life; your reflection is there to support you. The studio mirror can tell you a lot about how wonderful you are - yearn to be before it, and do not miss the glow!

Happy Hot Yoga, Yogis :)

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