10 Day Meditation Challenge

10 Day Meditation Challenge

I decided I wanted to start a 10 day meditation challenge for myself simply because it needed to happen!  I have started and stopped multiple times in the past with no success.  So this I sought out for some accountability.  I shared my challenge on Instagram and I recruited friends and family to join in if they were around.  I took videos or pictures of each day and posted to IG for my very own check in.  I am happy to say as of today, April 22, 2018 I have completed my total of 10 days. 

I can’t say that I am completely enlightened at the end of my 10-day challenge lol but I will say that I learned a bit about myself across these 10 days.  I learned I have a really hard time getting out of my head and concentrating on being in the moment.  I also learned that when I had other people around meditating with me I was so focused on their enjoyment that I forgot about my own self at times.  I also learned that I like to meditate in the morning because it sets me up for success the rest of the day, similar to how I feel when I get my workouts done in the early morning. 

The App I used for most of the meditations was Insight Timer.  I really enjoyed this one and will continue to use for my continued meditation journey.  I mainly stuck to guided breath meditations that ranged from 8-13 minutes.  The nice thing about this app is that you can search specific topics and multiple meditations will pop up pertaining to that topic.  Examples included self-esteem guided meditations, letting go of fear, confidence builders, positive mantras, morning meditations, relaxation and more.  I am eager to try a sleep meditation, which ranges from 25-35 minutes.   

So my journey continues and I am happy to be on it.  I am super grateful for my husband Blake who supported me the whole 10 days.  His presence is always a positive one and I can’t thank him enough for that.   If you got to see some of my time-lapse videos you also saw Grizz the Big Bear meditating too.  He is super enlightened :) 

My Journey with Pilates

About a year ago I finally hit my tipping point with back pain.  I had been ignoring a deep pain on the right side of my low back above my butt for a long time until it started to radiate down my back into my right foot.  It was constant.  I couldn’t sit for longer then a few minutes and couldn’t stand still because I was so uncomfortable.  I found out from my amazing team of physical therapists that I had SI (sacroiliac) instability along with a compressed disc in my lumbar spine.  As I worked with some great manual care therapists I was give the green light to start some Pilates to help strengthen my deep spine stabilizers and find my pelvic floor.

When I stated Pilates with Laurie I didn’t realize how weak I was.  I always thought of myself as an athlete, but I was hit with a big dose of reality when I started to work with her.  I never really knew how to use my pelvic floor and how to engage it with movement.  Even as a physical therapist myself I struggled with these movements and had to work so hard for the smallest movements to happen.  Each deep spine movement she gave me I was shaking and sweating!  I would leave her sessions so baffled at how hard it was for me to find my middle and a neutral spine as well as try and maintain it while adding in leg or arm movements.  It was always a shaky walk to the car !

After a lot of basic sessions I was finally able to stabilize my SI joint and back and get into more complex movements on the Reformer, Wunda Chair, and Cadillac.  Laurie is an amazing physical therapist and Pilates instructor.  She finds all my compensations and teaches and educates me about them so that I can keep reeducating my body about functional movement.  Learning how to engage my pelvic floor and deep spine stabilizers has not only got me out of back pain but also has changed my life and the way I treat patients in the outpatient clinic. 

If you are looking into Pilates as a way of exercise, therapy, or breath work I urge you to try it!  It is such an amazing workout that challenges the mind, body and breathe all at the same time.  If you are super unfamiliar with Pilates like I was and are dealing with some orthopedic issues I suggest finding a physical therapist who is certified in Pilates who can give you some extra care around your injury before you go into a class format. 

Leave any comments you have below and I will be happy to answer!