The Summer Solstice shines a light literally into our days, the days are longer, the energy is brighter and more energetic. Have you noticed the boost in your mindset and mood when the sun is shining? I don't you about you but I am a complete sun worshipper! Anything I can be doing in the sunshine (and heat) I am there! I feel like it literally powers my body and mind.
If you feel the sunshine brings you into a place of clarity and motivation this may be the element of fire influencing your energy. The sun is fire, your inner power and drive is connected to fire, your Solar Plexus (core) energy is fire. Fire gives us that burning drive to get stuff done, to be proactive and productive, we suddenly feel that passion for life and all the things we CAN achieve.
As with all of the energy centres within the body, TO MUCH fire within our bodies can be expressed as anger, frustration, mental rigidity and over controlling behaviours. You can visualise how powerful and unruly a wild fire in nature can be. But the good thing is, with more awareness we can balance our bodies and minds and use this knowledge in a positive way.
So how do we boost our motivation for life and move beyond habitual comfort zones? It sounds easier than it is, we have to make the choice to move beyond our comfort zones.
The Solar Plexus Chakra - The burning fire is what projects us forward in life. If our fire is dwindling, slow burning or possibly just smouldering embers, our motivation will lack, we withdraw, we are tired, we are fatigued and sometimes feel over worked by just that small extra task. By strengthening our core physically we not only strengthen the WHOLE body, but it stimulates the brain, it releases the happy hormone, it boosts our metabolism and we start to ignite that journey of progress and confidence.
When we feel our body is strong, we feel better put together, or posture is more refined, our heads are held high and an inner confidence and authenticity shine through. We can make decisions easier, we create healthy boundaries, we feel more comfortable with stepping out of our comfort zone, we have a bigger drive to get things done.
Tips for boosting your motivation:
+ Belly Breathing.
+ Wearing the colour yellow.
+ Saying YES to things instead of talking yourself out of it.
+ Put your name on a list to do something you have always wanted to do.
+ Eat foods that agree with your digestive system!
+ Belly massage.
+ Core strength within your exercise regime.
+ When you are working on something... it may just be a conversation with someone, give them/it your FULL attention instead of doing to many things at once.
+ Give yourself 10 minutes a day to check in with your emotions.
+ Write and organise your day, week ahead.
+ Be selfless, kind, compliment someone, help someone without wanting anything in return.
+ Trust your gut instinct with things, it's never normally wrong.
+ Don't be afraid to express your values, morals and virtues in life.
+ Manage your time efficiently.
Yoga poses for core stimulation:
Explore poses that ignite your inner sunshine, play with challenging poses, balances and heat building postures. As well as strengthening the core we can manipulate our centre with twists, compression and full body movements. Even passive Yin postures like Sphinx Pose, Reclined Twist and Seated Side bend.
+ Boat pose
+ Reclined twist
+ Wind reliving pose (hugging the knees to the chest).
+ Internal and external twists.
+ Standing poses like Warrior 1, 2, 3 held for longer than 10 breaths - 1 minute.
+ Bow pose
+ Locust pose
+ Childs pose
+ Table top twist
+ Balances
+ Plank, Supported plank on the knees.
+ Breath of fire
+ Cobra Pose
+ Seated Forward Fold.
Honour Imbalance:
It's important to be honest when we are on our journey in life, especially within our yoga practice, as mentioned above its ALL about balance. The fire centre within the body can already be in a state of higher functioning.. this can be from stress, taking to much on, always saying to yourself 'there aren't enough hours in the day' but never actually doing anything about it, rushing around, not managing your time efficiently, eating sporadically, exercising to much out of guilt and also doing exercises that push you to your limits (fast paced, cardio, exhaustion, heavy weights). If your body is already experiencing this you will push yourself into BURN OUT very quickly.
Before creating balance really tune into your body and mind, recognise where you are at physically, how does your body truly feel. Take 5 minutes to feel into your emotional state, and allow your answers to be completely honest, only you can create change, no one else.
If you do feel like you're on the edge of burn out, self control (which resides in this Chakra) needs to be addressed, take a step back, take a day off, limit your tasks and learn to say no. If you burn out you're no good for nothing! Your body has an amazingly intuitive way of literally stopping life in its tracks, ever noticed when the holidays appear... the 6 weeks, the Christmas holiday you suddenly get ill? Your body has already scheduled its time to truly rest, reset and give you full blown illness because it has time to. When you're feeling over whelmed and stressed out, take careful steps to take time out, breathe, take a walk and honour creating balance.
Create Balance:
The element fire ignites the light of consciousness that motivates us to strive towards success and good health. Spending too much time in the third chakra can cause burn out. However, not developing it can leave a person feeling weak, fearful, and inert.
How can we give ourself that little nudge into feeling more motivated?
Make your motivation easier to achieve.
Sounds simple, is quite simple, here are a few examples...
Not a morning person? ME NEITHER!! BUT there are a few helpful ways of getting you up easier in the morning:
+ Set your alarm 10 minutes earlier, and enjoy the snooze.
+ Put your alarm the other side of the room, or even better in another room, that way you HAVE to get up to turn it off.
+ Sleep with the curtains half open.
+ Do a bedtime routine of seriously winding down.
+ Meditate before you do anything in the morning.
+ Organise the day ahead by being prepared, whether this means laying out clothes, making packed lunch. Organised time gives you more time to enjoy spaciousness.
Connect with like minded people.
Connecting with like minded people can be so uplifting and inspiring, find a friend that would love to share a yoga class with you, find people that share common interests, this will give you something to share, talk about and we essentially push you forward into the things you enjoy the most! Don't be afraid of reaching out, even this helps us move out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot when we are there. Sharing an experience with a friend can give you a little comfort bubble but in turn gives you a little more confidence to try something new! Be mindful we also need to create healthy boundaries with people that sap our energy, don't make us feel very nice and are quite negative towards our personal goals and dreams.
Leave your yoga mat out.
You may or may not have space to leave your yoga mat rolled out in a particular space but leave it somewhere you can see it! Its a visual reminder to get on it, move your body, meditate or lie down, just enjoy being with yourself! This also goes for drinking more water, buy a large drinking bottle, fill it up, drink the water, fill it up again and carry it in your bag to remind you.
Prioritise your diet.
The centre of the body as well as the core is a sensitive spot. If we have a weak core it can cause lower back discomfort and even stomach related discomfort. Sensitive tummy? Did you know the muscles of your core (your abs, waist and lower back muscles) literally act as a corset to support your internal organs? Keep your core strong and feed your body that will help your digestive system thrive. Vegetables, pickles, fruit, pulses, nuts etc. Simplicity sometimes is always better.
Make a list.
Making lists can seem quite daunting, the list my be a continuous adding onto at the end of the day but it does give you chance to get stuff done. Even the small things, write it down and get it ticked off! Always praise yourself for noticing how much you have done, rather than being overwhelmed by having to do more.
De-clutter.
Time to pull out the wardrobe, kitchen cupboards and even invade the loft space. Are you holding onto things that may literally be weighing you down? Less stuff = less mess + less cleaning! Enjoy taking time to value what you really need, it can be really rewarding to sell and recycle things to someone who will enjoy them more.
Honour what you want.
Life can sometimes feel very messy and busy and its okay to find yourself caught up with it all. Take time each day to check in with yourself, if you're feeling uninspired can you ask yourself why? Do you feel as though something is holding you back? Has an unrelated event thrown you off track? Many things in life are out of our control and can throw a spanner in the works, buts its okay! Notice if you are making the decision to make progress or if you're blaming something else. Each day you have the chance to make healthy decisions, let them radiate from your inner gut feelings, listen to what you want. Only you can live your life!
To explore the Solar Plexus Chakra deeper you're more than welcome to read this blog post:
All my love,
V x
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