One of the reasons I hated yoga for so long was that it forced me to be still…to let myself get lost in my thoughts. To somehow relax both mind and body.
It turns out that’s one of the hardest things I have ever tried to do — to quiet everything and focus. But I kept at it and now yoga is one of the most important pieces of my fitness puzzle.
- The Surprising Reason I Love Yoga
- Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot
- Upward Facing (Dog)
- Everybody Say Ommm…
- You Never Know What Someone’s Going Through
- Sweat Your Asana Off
Now, a new challenge…and one I find I’m embracing even more passionately than I imagined.
Bear with me, because it’s getting hippie dippie in here. I’m in love with Hypnobabies. I’m using it as part of my pregnancy preparation, and I’ll save all of that part of it for my other blog.
But it brings me to the most relaxed, in-tune state I’ve ever been. It’s basically self-hypnosis, with a series of audio tracks to listen to (and scripts to read). I was super skeptical. I didn’t think it would affect me, or that I’d be able to let go enough to find success.
(If you want to try a free track, this one is designed for everyone, not just for pregnant peeps. It’s meant to help ease stress.)
In the end, the messages resonate, pregnant or not. Things like:
“You deserve to get the outcome you desire.”
“You can’t move forward when negative thoughts are weighing you down.”
“You will get what you commit to. If you want to be relaxed, you will be. If you want to be open to new experiences, you will be. If you want to be free of fear, you will be.”
It’s a challenge, no doubt. I have to give myself the time and space (literally) to complete the tracks. I have to be OK with lying quietly and not multitasking. I have to suspend disbelief and fight back the nagging “seriously, Katy, you’re doing this???” voice.
Mantras rock, and the harder you fight them, the more effective they’ll be when you finally give in. That’s what I’m finding, anyway.
About Katy
I love my hippie dippie daughter…yoga for all!
Totally thought this was going to be about PG yoga! I’ve heard great things about hypnobabies, so I can’t wait to follow your adventures with it.
Have you read Elena’s blog The Art of Making a Baby? She talks about her experience of hypnobabies there. Might be worth a read!
Oooh, I do read her blog but I must have missed that part — thanks!
Ooo… I’m very interested in your experience with hypobabies! I am not a patient person so I don’t know if I could handle it. Hopefully we’ll have to talk at some point
Having to sit still with my own thoughts is one of the hardest things I’ve ever tried to do. My brain has a complete inability to focus on just one thing at a time. But I’m trying to incorporate more quiet times into my day because I’m sure it would help my crazy stress!
Thank you so much for this post, Katy! On my weight loss journey, I’ve really been lacking that quiet focus time. I loved the mantras you listed from the download. I can’t wait to use them!
Also, I had never heard of this when I was pregnant with my daughter… and wish I had! Thanks for sharing with all of us
I love mantras
And all that other crap the instructors say at the end of class. I plan on going to yoga tonight (my legs feel like lead from all this running!)
I was lucky enough to be asked by a friend to attend the birth of her second child at a birthing center. She used hypnobirthing and had a water birth. It was an amazing experience and she did awesome. That is the only birth I have been able to witness (where I wasn’t a participant, ha) and I will forever be grateful to my friend for asking me to be there.
Yes I am a biggie on positive messages while working out. For me it totally shifted my relationship with movement and even my headspace. Yoga is not my primary movement- I have a love and hate relationship with it. However, here in NYC one of my coaches teaches this workout call Shrink Sessions where you shout out affirmations while doing the movement. That was a game changer.
Yes mantra works especially the ones that you resist saying, thinking or believing outloud.