Each day, we get to choose. We choose how to engage with life. We choose how to engage with ourselves. We choose how to use our energy. Where is your energy going? Are you depleting your resources by using your energy to nourish the standard, to feed the status quo, to keep in place the structures that dictate how a woman should look, act, think and feel? Or are you using your energy to nourish your soul, to enliven your being, so that you are meeting life from a place of love, joy and freedom?
What sets Love Body apart from other methods of weight loss is that we focus on nourishing the soul, not the standard. We want women, all women, to enjoy the experience of living in a body. In order to do that, we must speak to what you desire most. What is it that your soul is crying out for? Love. Freedom. Joy. Purpose. Connection. Belonging. Creativity. We start by bringing that experience into the body. Start where you are. Be with yourself and with your body as your are right now. Feel the weight of your seat on the chair or the sensation of your feet on the ground. Feel your breath wash through you. Effortless breath. The burning of your soul's desire always exists within you. It may feel like a raging fire yearning to shine forth or it may feel like a quiet, forgotten flame waiting to be sparked. Awaken your soul's desire through your breath. Send it through your physical being via the breath. Start to illuminate your inner self with your deepest longing. That's it. Start there. No diet. No deprivation. No calorie counting. We definitely speak to food and nutrition and movement, but start with your soul. Start with your breath. Go inside. Find and nourish what is most in need of your attention. This will yield the most powerful and lasting results. There is so much more to the Love Body Method. This is just a starting point. Start by directing your energy inward, to nourishing the soul, not the standard. And let us know what your soul says. You can share it in the comments. We'll be back next week with more. Like what you see? Subscribe to Free Weekly Wisdom Wednesdays below.
0 Comments
photo: Sep, Unsplash
Without even realizing it, most of us participate in some level of morphing, adjusting, shifting, severing, ignoring, depriving, or altering in order to fit into the container labeled "This is what a woman should be". There are very specific cultural norms that dictate how a woman should look, feel and behave, as well as what she should want from life. When the light of awareness shines through the cracks of the box we have been keeping ourselves in, we can ask ourselves, "Do I actually want this? Is this me? Is this how I want to continue living my life or is my soul crying out for something else?"
We at Love Body engage in soul-centered practices, meaning, our practices are rooted in feeding your soul's desire, not the cultural norms. At every turn, we give you the opportunity to ask yourself, "Is this thought/action/behavior in service of my core purpose or is it in service of some arbitrary standard that I had no part in creating? Am I nourishing my soul or am I trying to fit myself into a box?" So, are you keeping yourself small? Are you trying to change your body, beliefs, thought patterns, life trajectory or desires to fit someone else's standard, to fit in someone else's box? If so, in what way? Feel free to share something you noticed about yourself, whether subtle or blatantly obvious, some way that you are participating in keeping yourself or others in boxes. Let us know in the comments. Then, stay connected to Love Body as we explore a variety of ways to nourish the soul, not the standard. Like what you see? Subscribe to free Weekly Wisdom Wednesdays below. 
magnet on my sister's fridge
Flooded with emotion and sensation? Feel like you're gonna scream? Dance it out, bitch.
Trouble focusing, concentrating, completing tasks or even forming complete sentences? Dance it out, bitch. Experiencing stress, discomfort, numbness, paralysis, confusion, doubt, uncertainty, pain, overwhelm? Not sure where it's coming from or what to do about it? Dance it out, bitch. When in doubt, move your body. You'll feel better. It's one of the three things we do really well here at Love Body: 1) Eat real food 2) Move your body 3) Connect with source And we wrap them in the loving support of a community dedicated to awakening. We're here. 
Two weeks ago, my friend lent me her copy of You Were Born For This: Astrology for radical self-acceptance. The author, Chani Nicholas, says, "Astrology is a relentless reminder that we are the way we are on purpose." This statement took me back about 6 years to an Ayurveda workshop in which the teacher mentioned that everyone has a different makeup, a different constitution, and "it's not a problem."
Who you are is not a problem that needs to be fixed. Yes, we all have things we are working on. If we are paying attention and engaging with life, we are growing. If we are listening, we are learning and evolving. Your eccentricities, assymetries, and idiosyncrasies are not things that need to be solved, changed or eradicated. You are you. Embrace you. And do the work to be the most loving you. Eat real food. Move your body. Connect with source. Engage with others. Be of service. Listen. Learn. And most of all, have compassion, both for yourself and for others. You cannot love if you don't love yourself. You cannot love yourself if you don't accept yourself. You cannot accept yourself if you think that who you are is a problem. And if you think you are a problem, try a little self-compassion. Restate negative self-talk with kindness and appreciation, the way you would speak to a child or friend who is struggling. Acknowledge that you are human and that struggling, mistakes and suffering are part of that experience. You're doing ok. And even if you're not doing ok, you can be ok with not being ok. You can have compassion for yourself in your not-okay moments. Looking for more self-compassion tools and techniques? That's what this whole weekend retreat is about. Hope you can join us! Like what you see? Subscribe to free Weekly Wisdom Updates below. 
Take a moment to think about your biggest fears...
Whatever words you used to describe them, for most of us, our biggest fears boil down to fear of death and fear of not being loved. The fear of not being loved is so profound that we will do almost anything to avoid it. We put up walls to avoid vulnerability, we sabotage our relationships, we avoid saying what we really mean or revealing who we really are, we escape into our addictions, we people please, we avoid risks because if we f*ck up, then people won't love us. Even fear of public speaking is a fear of not being loved; we're afraid of looking silly, being ostracized, not being part of the loving group anymore. So how can we begin to counter this tremendous fear? I don't think the answer will surprise you. By cultivating a deep and sincere love for ourselves, we are bolstered against the onslaught of, "What if they don't like me?! What if they don't love me?!" It starts with self-compassion, loving yourself even if you mess up, even if you're struggling. By meeting yourself with kindness and appreciating who you are, flaws and all, you begin to lay an unshakable foundation of self-love. You bolster your ability to meet the challenges of life with grace and ease. You go out into the world with an open heart, knowing that you will mess up, knowing that you will be hurt, and knowing that you will still be ok. You will still be loved. By being compassionate with yourself, you expand your courage. You expand your joy. You expand your life. Begin with the simple practice of speaking to yourself with kindness. Speak to yourself the way that you would speak to Eliot, the baby bunny (pictured above. My sister and niece got her last week). Kind, gentle, nurturing, understanding, encouraging, appreciative of your own cute fluffiness that you bring to the world, forgiving of your unavoidable bunny flaws and mistakes, empathy for your suffering, love for your essence. And if you want to dive deeper into the practice of self-compassion and self-love, we wholeheartedly welcome you to join us for our virtual weekend retreat September 26-27. Like what you see? Subscribe to free weekly wisdom updates below. 
This is my friend Michelle just prior to our beach adventure yesterday. She's holding a jar of delicious jackfruit/tulsi/ashwagandha tea that she made for all of us. Her mere existence makes me happy. Her sheer presence is her worth. She doesn't have to do anything to earn it. No delicious tea, fun hats, or impressive accomplishments required. Just being.
I was talking to Michelle and Tara the other day and Tara and I both admitted that we used to draw our worth from academic achievement. We both did well in school and were always considered to be "smart". Our good grades and praise for those grades made our sense of worthiness soar. The problem with that, and with any external source of worth, is that, as soon as the external source is gone, the sense of worth goes with it. As soon as I left academia, I had an identity crises. If I'm not the smart girl, who am I? What is my value? It took a long time to re-establish my sense of worthiness from an internal place. It took a long time to realize that all of my external feedback sources of worth (career achievements, praise from friends or co-workers, compliments on my appearance, etc.) were actually hindering the expansion of my own self-love. So how do we establish that sense of unwavering and inherent worth, regardless of positive or negative external feedback? It starts by being with yourself in a compassionate and nonjudgmental way. Last week we shared a simple self-compassion practice that you can do at any time. You can read or re-read that here. And you can learn even more practical techniques for fostering self-compassion, self-love and self-worth in our upcoming virtual retreat. This is basic, how-to-be-a-person stuff that we just don't learn in a traditional education. And it is absolutely essential. I'm so excited to share it with you. 
photo: Khadeeja Yasser, Unsplash
Do you treat yourself the way that you would treat a dear friend? Do you speak to yourself with kindness and compassion? Do you appreciate the fullness of who you are, flaws and all?
Self-compassion is at the foundation of self-love. Accepting ourselves as we are, in the present, even though we make mistakes, even though we're not perfect, actually allows us to move forward and to do the work we need to do on ourselves. Otherwise, we are living in a place of resistance, constantly berating ourselves for being who and how we are. When we are in a place of shame and judgment, our brain's ability to learn and change shuts down. We literally can't move forward. So how can you begin to practice self-compassion? Start by noticing when you speak to yourself harshly. Notice the sensations in your body when you say these things. Reformulate those statements into statements you would say to a dear friend if they were struggling. Remind yourself that you are human and imperfect and that you make mistakes, just like everyone else. Allow your body to soften the grip of resistance. Feel your breath move through you. Feel a wave of love wash through you with your breath. Remind yourself that you are ok. We engage in the act of loving ourselves so that we can experience more joy, ease and freedom. We engage in the act of loving ourselves so that we can be more loving and uplifting to the people around us. We engage in the act of loving ourselves so that we can live in a more loving world. Self-compassion will be the focus of our upcoming virtual retreat. You will learn practical, everyday tools for cultivating a greater sense of compassion and self-love, so that you can live how you want to live, be who you want to be, and love fearlessly with your whole heart. 
Yesterday, I went for a walk with my friend Wendi. When I look at the picture above, I see faces alight in the sweet glow of the sun, the same sun that burns with a fiery intensity so powerful that it can melt and transform and destroy. It reminds me of two fundamental aspects of love: nectar and fire. Real love contains both. Sweetness and intensity. Compassion and accountability. Support and contradiction. It is both nurturing and challenging. And it is a practice.
On our walk, Wendi and I were chatting about the challenging aspects of relationships and how those challenges allow us to transform and grow as humans. In the absence of challenge and discomfort and difference, there is no forward movement, only stagnation. When we choose a vibrant and healthy partner, we are automatically welcoming both their nectar and their fire, their sweetness and their intensity, their support and the challenges they offer us. When we choose a partner who does not challenge us in any way, we are saying no to change. And the same applies to the practice of self-love. We welcome the sweetness of self-compassion, acceptance and nonjudgment and the discomfort of recognizing and transforming our suffering, our limitations and our boundedness. We understand that we are lovable as we are AND that there is work to do. Stand courageously in the fire of your own transformation. Feel yourself bathed in the nectar of nurturance. Enjoy both the sweetness and the intensity of what life is offering, and feel your heart expand. Like what you see? Subscribe to free Weekly Wisdom Updates below. 
pc: Michelle Rodriguez
Lately I have been asking myself, what does it mean to be an agent of change? How can I be in service of awakening without imposing my will on others? How can I facilitate growth on an individual, community and even planetary level without being forceful or aggressive in any way? I don't think the answer will surprise you. I can only provide effective and meaningful service to others if I am meeting them from a place of being deeply rooted in my own sense of love and worth.
Being an agent of change is a natural outgrowth of a self-love practice. I practice to not only feel love for myself, but to be available to others in a sincere and unadulterated way. It's a different way of saying, "Be the change you want to see in the world." -Gandhi. If I want to see and spread compassion, I must meet myself with compassion first. If I want to see and spread awakening, I must first be awake. I must recognize and transform my limitations and life-damaging patterns. I must do the work to heal myself. And I must also recognize that not everyone is interested in or ready for the kind of change that I am interested in or ready for. Radical transformation is not an easy breezy thing. It is a great deal of work and can be extremely challenging, but the rewards are profound. So I rededicate myself to my own self-love practice so that I can offer meaningful service to others, so that I can be an agent of change, so that I can see a world that is full of compassion and love. I invite you to step into your own practice at whatever level you are ready to step in. Maybe just dipping your toe. Maybe just a simple grounding and breathing practice for a few minutes each day. Maybe something more. You decide. We'll be here to support you. You'll find our most current offerings below to serve you in your process. Weekly yoga classes with Erin: in person or virtual More Love: A virtual self-love retreat Like what you see? Subscribe to free Weekly Wisdom Updates below. 
pc: Jude Beck, Unsplash
This past Sunday, I had the opportunity to have a very honest conversation with a woman in class. We were discussing our emotional and spiritual well-being during this crazy time. Inspired by her willingness to be vulnerable, I found myself freely sharing with this woman that I have been experiencing a deep sense of loneliness lately. What suprised me most was not that I had shared something that I normally keep to myself out of shame, it was that I wasn't really bothered by the loneliness.
Later that day, as I was thinking about what I had shared, I realized that I was experiencing an unexpected side effect of a self-love practice. It's not that all the difficult emotions and sensations have disappeared, it's that they don't feel as all-encompassing anymore. They're not as scary. They don't take over. I can relate to them with more grace and ease. And I don't have to try to make them go away or pretend like they're not there. I don't have to be ashamed of feeling less than ok sometimes. Loving myself allows me to have a full human experience without shame, without hiding, without embarassment. This felt like such a huge breakthrough to me. And such a relief. I can feel deeply lonely and still be ok. I hope you find that, more and more, as you engage with the Love Body Method of practicing self-love, that you are able to be with the not okayness and still feel ok. We're here to support you in that and we're here to offer practical tools to move you in that direction. Not sure where to start? Try a yoga class (click for schedule). Or check out some of our other blog posts, many of which contain simple practices that you can do today. Start small. Stay engaged. Stay with yourself. Like what you see? Subscribe to free Weekly Wisdom Updates below. |
RSS Feed