Yoga, Becoming Complacent, and prAna Clothing
prAna provided this outfit for me, through Dallas Fitness Ambassadors. All opinions are my own.
prAna Dreaming Bra * (c/o) | prAna Liana Sweater * (c/o) | prAna Juniper Pant * (c/o) | Yoga Mat
*Get 15% off of all prAna product with code MHMS17LM
If you have been following me for a while and/or know my fitness story, you know how I got into yoga. If you don't know, listen up, er, read up? Anyway, I had done yoga (def wouldn't called it "practiced") on and off, but my yoga journey didn't begin until September 2015. Earlier that year, I had trained for a half marathon. I ended up injuring myself literally 3 weeks before the race, but was mentally still race trained, so I just relaxed as the race neared, then gave it all I had, come race day. Bad move. I ended up getting diagnosed with Runner's Knee, so I impatiently waited 3 ish months, then tried to run again. My knee was fine, but my hips were off. (this was around July). Come December, Nick proposed and I was like "this wedding body isn't going to make itself", so I sucked it up and went to a sports physician. He told me that I had strained my adductor and when it healed, it tightened, which was the pain I was feeling in my hips, lower back, and knees. I entered physical therapy and am now able to run. Granted, I haven't run 11 miles or anything recently, it's now about getting my mental and physical stamina up to par again. Unfortunately, with the business of having a 9-5 job, blogging basically for full time as well and at the time planning a wedding, which has now turned into running a wine bar, let's just say I am a serial snoozer. OOPS.
Let's back it up a bit, shall we? I remember when I first read about runner's knee (circa April 2015) - I cried and cried because I couldn't imagine myself without running. Look to September 2015...enter CorePower Yoga. I began attending their C1 (beginner level) class once a week. It made me feel strong and beautiful, and gave me another way to work out, without my knees taking a beating. Fast forward to February 2017, almost a year a half later, I was still taking C1 classes. I knew the routine by heart, I knew if the teacher missed something and could essentially lead the class if I needed to. Yes, I was still getting the exercise I needed, but I wasn't pushing myself, and really hadn't pushed myself since the half marathon 2 years prior... It wasn't until my friend Lauren of Lauren Kay Sims, told me she loved the C2 class, that she was surprised I hadn't tried it, that I toyed with the thought of trying it. Annnnd yes my beloved Lkay is way more fit than me, but that statement kind of surprised me. The next day I tried a C1.5 class and didn't die, soooo the next week I went ahead and tried C2. It was AMAZING. I was actually pushing myself and it felt good.
Yoga is a beautiful thing. I love to explain it to people in relation to golf...it has a handicap system, in the sense that you can take any kind of yoga class, with any level person, and still be able to do your best - yoga allows you can modify moves to fit your practice! There's not a lot of sports like that. I'm naturally flexible, so a lot of people assume I'm just good at it, but I gently inform them that no...that's not what makes you good at yoga. It's all in your breathing. Yoga is about connecting with yourself, listening to your body, and getting stronger while doing all of the above. If anything flexibility serves as a crutch to mask pushing yourself. It did for me at least. Last week I attempted a headstand out of my crow pose and ended up falling out of it, but WHO CARES? I tried and left the class proud.
It's super easy to skip yoga and work-outs in general, but I always feel better when I do them. I mean, who doesn't? A major part in me getting work-outs done is my apparel - that's why I'm super excited to introduce prAna clothing to y'all! prAna goes past athleisure - they design and make clothes that you can not only wear to yoga, climb, and travel...just live everyday life. As if that didn't make you feel good already, much like yoga, prAna is all about mindfulness. For example, at their HQ in Carlsbad, it was specifically designed to keep energy bills low. They purchase RECs to offset any energy used there, stores, and their employee's homes. In addition to that, they are avid recyclers and even cooler than that, they have their own onsite compost piles! It surely comes at no surprise that if they operate their office that way, that their clothing must follow suit, and that it does. They offer sustainable, recycled, fair trade certified, as well as hemp items. If you have every wondered why sustainable clothing matters, check out this video on organic cotton! prAna's main goal is to give back to the world, more than we take. I'd type a wrap-up sentence, for y'all, but that one pretty much takes the cake. I'm giving y'all my peace fingers and am outta here!
Don't forget to check out prAna's great collection of apparel for the everyday adventurer. I'm wearing stretchy pants made from hemp and organic cotton here (the Juniper pant), but they also have items that mimic "real" clothes, like shorts and tees - just like my Liana Sweater! I could easily see myself wearing it with a bralette this summer or layering it in the fall...if not wearing it to yoga on the regular ;) Oh and you can never go wrong with a good sports bra! This Dreaming bra is soft and cute - the back detail is out of this world! Shop the prAna website with code MHMS17LM for 15% off!
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