Rest

"Do you rest?" my new favourite massage therapist asked. What kind of question is that? I'm about to get a massage after all...

"Of course! I practice yin yoga twice a week. Very relaxing" I said. He laughed, pressing into my calves and digging into my glutes. Melting into the massage table, I let out a sigh of relief and pain. Mostly pain.

My hips are out of alignment which is straining my adductor muscles. My hamstrings are tight and overworked, which has led to a rather tight and restricted upper back. Oh, and apparently my ass crack is crooked. He ordered to me "rest" for a full 24 hours. As someone who refuses to follow recipes and simple GPS directions, this seemed unreasonable. But I did it anyway. I took a rest day. This happened three weeks ago, but the notion was re-engrained when an episode of food poisoning struck over the weekend. Barf. Literally. I went to bed Saturday night feeling off followed by a painful four hours of non-stop vomiting. 

Come Sunday I felt drained and dehydrated, as if I lost five pounds and couldn't lift my arms. After a warm shower I attempted to dress and make my way to the market, but then my flatmate came home, called me crazy, and ordered me to rest. Ooo rest, how we meet again.

To bounce back and rehydrate, I rested and nursed the following three remedies:

1. Coconut water
   My appetite was absolutely nil, but I knew I had to rehydrate and gain my energy back. Cool and high in potassium, coconut water was my go-to fix.
2. Magnesium
   In addition to heaps of water, I mixed in my powered magnesium.
3. Peppermint, fennel, and chamomile tea
   I mixed a simple tummy mixture of loose peppermint leaves, fennel seeds, and chamomile flowers. This combination is incredibly cooling and soothing, which went down nice and easy. 

I didn't do anything a part from sip tea, guzzle coconut water, and drift in and out of sleep. So I missed my double whammy of Sunday yoga, didn't get my groceries, failed to prepare a powerpoint presentation, and could't be bothered to do laundry. Food poisoning is a bitch. And so, what? I rested and recovered.

A friend and yogi teacher of mine shared this on Facebook, which I couldn't help but share.

This is it. And it's absolutely perfect. 

Birthday Love

Last week I turned 24 years-old. 

I was spoiled with flowers, cupcakes, long-distance phone calls, hugs, and warm wishes. I celebrated with my dear friend, Adrianna, with yin yoga followed by a delicious brunch at Chez Dre. 

I've realized that with every year, my life gets better and better. 

I'm surrounded by amazing people. I'm healthy and vibrant. And I live a life I absolutely love and adore. It was a very happy birthday indeed!

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary - Steve Jobs