winter detox

every so often i like to do a cleanse for the body, primarily for my liver. i'm not necessarily a heavy drinker, but i can be if i want to. i always feel great after i do a cleanse and i decided to do one this week and Trevor decided to join me.

i don't juice cleanse. some people swear by it, but i know that my body cannot sustain any energy without the proper nutrients. before i even did research about the different cleanses out there, i made my own. for 7 days, i avoid alcohol, meat, dairy and gluten. i focus most of my attention on vegetables and fruit, and still allow myself eggs for lots of good protein. basically its like being a wheat-free vegan for a week (if you drink coffee, switch to green tea!). it's definitely challenging and your body will feel tired out, but the results are worth it. trim a little off your belly while also cleansing your system of toxins.

one of my favorite websites for all things holistic, nutritious and conscience-minded is www.mindbodygreen.com. i even found a page with links to a plethora of articles about cleansing, juicing, detoxing and healthy eating here. i HIGHLY recommend doing research on any cleanse you plan to try, and seek out advice from people who have done them before. talk to your friends, family, yoga teacher, or any other mentor for guidance and you will surely find the right way to detox for yourself.

enjoy and be a healthy Betty!!

                                            

                                                                                                      

a new year

well, 2012 has ended and the world has not. we are still alive and kickin' indeed. i'm not really one for new year's resolutions, but as a practicing yogini i believe in reflecting on the year that has passed and setting intentions for the year ahead. i recommend this practice to anyone, especially those who may be at a crossroads in their life, or are searching for some clarity in this crazy world.

Betty Paige wishes you a super resourceful and
successful new year!!

for more ideas about goal-setting, clarity, intentions and general emotional health, check out this amazing website:
www.mindbodygreen.com

enjoy and be well in 2013!!!

yoga is my church

as some of you know, i am a strong advocate for the practice of yoga and its physical and emotional health benefits. i've been practicing yoga for 10 years, and i started doing it at home. i had gone to a few classes here and there, and when i was living in Chicago i began my home practice. i had a tiny little TV with the built-in VCR, and i watched Rodney Yee's videos (if you don't know about Rodney Yee, Google him. he wears awesome tiny black yoga shorts that always made me giggle.). it was a great way to start my home yoga practice, in a comfortable, non-competitive environment.

when i first moved to Minneapolis in 2006, i practiced and studied yoga with my teacher Ben Vincent, from One Yoga. as i delved deeper into my practice, i learned more and more about myself and the practice of yoga itself. it is manifested in different ways for different people, and we all have different abilities. i rarely practiced at home, since the studio was a half block from my apartment. in Truckee, i became close to my friend and teacher Ann Marie Sheridan, who now owns Namaste studio and utilizes a similar teaching style to Ben. this consistency in teaching improved my practice and my understanding of yoga. as some of you read previously, i found a great spot at my most recent house in Truckee to practice, outside in the backyard among giant pine trees. it was magnificent.

Warrior 1 pose

now i am back in Minneapolis getting ready for grad school in a few weeks and my yoga practice has become grounding for me, during a time of readjustment and new beginnings. i'm living with my parents (you can laugh but its FREE) and they have an awesome Midwestern rec-room, multi-purpose basement. with a huge space sometimes used for the grandkids' playspace, i am also able to use it as a yoga space when i want to practice at home. this week i am house and dogsitting for my sister while she and the family are in Seattle, and once again i was able to find a small space to lay my mat. she has a massive walk-in closet (filled with lawyer-y clothes, amazing vintage pieces and tons of beautiful shoes) with a small wood floor space just big enough for my mat and some standing poses.

Tree pose - a practice in balance

some of you are probably thinking, "how the heck can i practice at home if i'm not that 'good' at yoga?" well first of all, there's no such thing as being 'good' or not at yoga. it is a practice and should be viewed that way. i may be able to do advanced poses, but i don't think of myself as being 'good' at it. it may be easier to begin a home practice after you become more familiar with poses and are not fearful of injuring yourself. for beginners, i recommend attending at least a few classes to gain some ideas about what their home practice could look like, and to learn proper alignment for those poses.

you may also be wondering how you can cultivate a home practice if you are not a trained teacher. how will you know which poses to do and when? for me, this is the beauty of the home practice. i generally don't start my home practice with a specific idea for the poses i'll do, but i naturally fall into a routine that i've gotten used to through different classes and teachers. if i start to feel lost as to what to do next, i take a minute to breathe deeply and check in with how my body feels. this will usually tell me what i'd like to do. sometimes i only practice for 20-30 minutes, other times i practice for an hour or more at home. without a specific agenda in mind, the home practice allows me to be fully aware of my body's needs, and to practice without any distractions.

i encourage everyone to consider a home practice of yoga and/or meditation at either a regularly scheduled time or sporadically. everyone's needs are different. for more ideas about poses and a home practice, check out these online resources:

10 tips for practicing yoga at home
Yoga for beginners at home (video)
A home practice

big sister b-day

today i MUST post in honor of my beautiful, amazing big sister Erin, as she has been a great influence on me that i am so grateful for, in countless ways. Erin has always been a super resourceful Betty; i remember her teaching herself to make brownies from scratch while still in high school. today, Erin is a mother to my nephews Emmett and Abel and a wife to her hubby Dwight. on top of her domestic duties and resourcefulness, my sister is an attorney in Minneapolis (the good kind of attorney). i couldn't be more proud to call Erin my big sister, among other positive things: yogini, mother, wife, daughter, lawyer, writer and friend. happy birthday Erin, i love you and can't wait to be home with you again. 

Emmett and Abel, ages 2 and 2 days

Erin and I in Tahoe, 2010

a home practice

as a devout yogini, i make an effort to practice with my teacher at her studio at least twice a week. i pay about $10 for each class, which is actually a really good price for a class with Ann Marie (check out her studio website, namastetruckee.com. although the price is right, i felt the need to continue my yoga practice at home at least one more time a week. last week i discovered that our large kitchen was a great spot, though i then had some foot traffic from my roommates while i was practicing (hard to avoid). yesterday when i woke up at 9am i knew it would already be too hot to go for a run so i found a spot in our backyard where i could set up my yoga mat for a one-hour home practice. we have a spot in the yard with a few chairs and flat space, like so:

this way, i had no distractions and was able to practice yoga outside among the sequoia and pine trees. if you have the space outside or inside your home, even if a temporary setup, i highly recommend finding the time for a home practice. yoga and meditation have been invaluable to my well-being and if you have any interest in starting a home practice, i suggest checking out yogajournal.com for helpful tips and poses to practice at home. i'd like to especially thank my big sister Erin for introducing me to yoga almost a decade ago. through this shared love we have grown even closer and physically and emotionally healthier. thank you Erin, i love you!!!