Listening, Reading, Watching

Happy new week – I hope it’s off to a great start! I don’t have much to report from the weekend. Finn was with his dad so I did a lot of land lording, working and yoga.

I also squeezed in some long walks with these two cuties.

A friend moved into my rental house while she goes through a renovation on her home. There’s always quite the punch list of things to do when tenants change.

I got a significant amount of work done for the app launch. There is sooooooooo much to load in for the initial launch because I am offering multiple running programs + weekly strength programming in addition to all of the previously filmed classes that I did for Fit Revolution. I don’t want to jinx it but I think we’re looking at a go live date around the first week of June!!!!!

I also did a whole lot of yoga – and it was amazing! I met Virginia for a yoga date to take class on Friday, taught slow flow and took power flow on Saturday and took on Sunday morning. I have been feeling my yoga so deeply lately. Not just taking and teaching but also meditating, studying mantras, journaling, etc. I am taking a teacher training this summer and leading a teacher training this fall so I’m really looking forward to continuing this period of diving deeper into the practice. One of the things that continually humbles and excites me about yoga is that the learning is never ending.

On the subject of the physical practice, I haven’t felt so strong in mine since pre-baby. There was absolutely nothing wrong with my practice over the last few years but I’ve had a lot to work through with pregnancy, postpartum, my hip injury diagnosis and herniating a disc in my back. It’s a huge blessing to be moving so well, and feeling so good in my body.

As I was driving to the studio to teach this morning, I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude. I felt grateful for what I’ve learned through yoga and that I get to share it with others. I felt grateful that I’m 12 years into teaching and still SO excited every time I show up at the studio to lead a class. I felt grateful for the community that I’ve found through yoga.

I was listening to a talk by Tara Brach as I was tidying my house this morning before heading to the studio and I paused it to write down this line that she said. A great reminder as we start the week that tending to ourselves with kindness, acceptance and compassion is so much more productive than criticism, negativity and shame/blame.

And that brings me to the second part of what I’m sharing in this post…things I’ve been listening to, reading and watching!

LISTENING TO: PODCAST EPISODES

• Releasing the Habits That Imprison Your Spirit (Part 2) on Tara Brach- this is the talk where the above sticky note quote came from. This series of two talks (here’s the link to part 1) explore how we get hooked on behaviors that we know cause harm, and how mindfulness and self-compassion can serve us in finding freedom.
• Radical Acceptance – Gateway to Love, Wisdom and Peace on Tara Brach – I am such a fan of Tara and her work and listen to her talks and do her meditations weekly. This talk was so, so, so good. I’m still thinking about it. It explores how our resistance to reality creates so much pain/suffering and that acceptance is the key to liberation. She offered two questions to ask yourself – “What is going on inside of me right now?” and “Can I be with this.” She also shared this poem from Dorothy Hunt and it’s so lovely.

• On letting go of the ones who can’t give you all you need on I Think I Like You (also check out part one) – I’ve known Clara for nearly 10 years now and the work she is doing around supporting women who navigating modern dating in their 30s and 40s is so powerful. Her approach is very grounded and intuitive. In addition to the podcast, Clara also does one-on-one coaching work and just launched a new online course.
• Behind the Scenes of a Set Up on U Up – highly entertaining with some good advice.
• MICHELLE OBAMA! on We Can Do Hard Things – maybe one of my favorite podcast episodes of all time. I was literally laughing out loud as I was walking the dogs but I also got a great takeaway on “going deep and not broad” when it comes to making your work matter. I LOVE MICHELLE OBAMA! I need to listen to her new book!
• Cheryl Strayed Tells Us What the Hell to Do Next on We Can Do Hard Things – alllll of my favorites here in this podcast round up – Tara Brach, Michelle Obama, Glennon Doyle and Cheryl Strayed. All of these women have inspired me and taught me a lot. I have actually been listening to Cheryl Strayed’s book “Tiny Beautiful Things” for a THIRD time on Audible in bits and pieces over the last few weeks. I adore her.
• Imposter Syndrome, Narcissism + Adult Friendships with Mel Robins on Almost 30 – this was such a great motivator for not letting your fears stop you for going after big things. Also, good stuff on procrastination and social media.

READING: KINDLE + AUDIBLE

• The Lies I Tell by Julie Clark – this was an excellent listen for dog walking! The storyline kept me super engaged but it wasn’t too stressful or crazy. Both women’s side of the story were interesting and it all came together in meaningful way.
• The Housemaid by Freida McFadden – another Audible listen that kept me listening nonstop. This was a great thriller!
• 8 Rules of Love by Jay Shetty – what I appreciated most about this book is that it was based Vedic principles. The Vedas are ancient Hindu sacred texts and I loved how Jay tied the teachings into the 8 Rules. I absolutely love the emphasis on the importance of supporting your partner’s dharma.
• The Villa by Rachel Hawkins – my grandmother added this to our shared Kindle and I really enjoyed it!
• Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score (DNF at 68%) – this book has great Amazon and Good Reads reviews but I just couldn’t. After I got about a quarter of the way into the book it started to feel redundant and I really, really didn’t care for the dynamic (or dialogue) between Knox and Naomi.

WATCHING

• Firefly Lane – I just finished season two of Firefly Lane and it was EVERYTHING. I think it was even better than season one. I read this book back in 2009 when it first was released and it was one of my favorite books ever. The series did not let me down.
• Daisy Jones & The Six – well, I DNF’d the book years ago and so far I’m a DNF for the series too. I’m a couple of episodes in and not sure if I’m going to pick it back up. I did have several people tell me it gets good after episode 3 so we’ll see!
• A Tourists Guide to Love – a Netflix movie that is cute and easy to watch but also very forgettable.
• Hustle – I enjoyed this Adam Sandler movie way more than I thought I would! There’s something about underdog sports stories that just uplift and inspire!
• Tiny Beautiful Things – ugh after how much I adore Cheryl Strayed and her book Tiny Beautiful Things, I haven’t loved this adaptation on Hulu.
• Ticket to Paradise – can’t go wrong with George and Julia romcom for a relaxing night on the couch!
• Closer – I went WAY back in the archives recently and watched Closer on Netflix. I am a huge Natalie Portman fan and this has always been one of my favorite movies of all time. Did not disappoint on this viewing.

That’s all for me but I would LOVE for you guys to share!

QUESTIONS

What have you been listening to lately? Any favorite podcasts to share?

What have you been reading lately? Any book recommendations? 

What have you been watching? Any show suggestions!?