Saturday, September 17, 2016

Day 6 of the Ovarian Cancer Awareness Yoga Challenge (09-17-2016)

#OvarianCancerAwarenessYogaChallenge

Day 6 – Presented by Crizia @crizia_rn_yoga - #Malasana or #YogiSquat

From a standing position with your feet a little wider than hip width and your feet angled out slightly. Slowly bend your knees until you come to a comfortable position with your hips lower than your knees. You can place a bolster or block under your sit bones to relieve pressure on your knees, if needed. Place your hands in prayer position with elbows pressing into the insides of your knees and the knees pressing against your elbows. Try keeping your spine lengthened and chest open. Remain in this position for a few breaths and work your way up gradually to a few minutes.  Please make sure to honor your body and only do what you are comfortable with. If you are under a doctor’s care, please check with them first before attempting any of the poses.

This pose helps to calm the mind. It also opens your hips & groin; stretches your ankles, lower hamstrings, back and neck; tones your abdominal muscles; helps with digestion; strengthens your metabolism; and keeps your pelvic & hip joints healthy. PLEASE note if you are pregnant and 35 weeks or more DO NOT do this pose as it may cause you to go into labor.   

#AWARENESS -

From the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund is a two-page fact sheet entitled, “The Science of Hope”, you can access it from the link in my bio. (See link below):


Outfit (Tip Top top and Pigeon leggings): @pawpawyogawear * My Mala necklace: @beadsbymelissa * and my #yogamat from @liforme IT is the #RollsRoyceofYogaMats

See @farrahbrown for Day 7’s (Sunday, 9/18) pose tomorrow night…it is our last pose of the challenge!

I cannot believe how fast this has went!! Again, although I have lost my momma to this terrible disease and quite a few friends…and even some that are still battling, I am so happy to have seen my dream come to fruition and put this challenge together.  YOU ALL have been wonderful. Please go and give our amazing and generous sponsors some LOVE, they believed in this cause and in me! Also, all of my co-hosts, who are such talented yogis in their own right, came together with me to make this happen, I am forever grateful. ~LindaLee


Day 7 of the Ovarian Cancer Awareness Yoga Challenge (09-18-2016)

#OvarianCancerAwarenessYogaChallenge

Day 7 – Presented by Farrah @farrahbrown - #Savasana or #CorpsePose

Our last and final day of the challenge! I want to thank you all so much for participating, this has exceeded everything that I thought!

For a traditional savasana, lay flat on your back with arms and legs comfortably apart, with palms up and eyes closed. If you have back problems, you may want a blanket under your knees. Allow your body to melt into the mat. I, personally, like an eye pillow over my eyes and myself wrapped in a sweater or light blanket over me. Take some nice, deep cleansing belly breaths. Imagine every part of your body relaxed, listening to instrumental music may help or just the sound of your own breathing. Stay in this position for a few minutes or longer…just try not to fall asleep! When coming out of the pose, slowly roll over to your right side and then prop yourself up into a sitting position. Allow your body to fully adjust before standing completely up.

Please make sure to honor your body and only do what you are comfortable with. If you are under a doctor’s care, please check with them first before attempting any of the poses.

This pose helps to calm the mind and relieves stress; relaxes the body; reduces headaches, fatigue, and insomnia; and can also help lower blood pressure.

#AWARENESS - The National Cancer Research Foundation (NCRF) has great information about the research they are doing, not only for ovarian cancer, but other types of cancers as well, the link can be seen here (you will have to scroll down to ovarian cancer):

Cancer Types


Some thoughts I would like to leave you with, as in yoga, honor your body and trust your instinct. If something feels off or not right about your body or symptoms you are experiencing: write everything down and call your doctor. I have said it before and it is something I feel very strongly about: we need to be our own best patient advocates. Advocate for your health, treatment, and care…whether it be something benign or serious, like ovarian cancer. Under the same umbrella as being your own advocate, find out what the laws are in your state or country concerning advance directives. 

Do NOT wait until a crisis happens to figure out what you want or don’t want for your care OR worse yet, be unable to state what your wishes are and have someone else make them for you. Cancer and other life threatening illnesses will certainly make you think about these things, but sadly in a second any of our lives could change for a multitude of reasons. My wish for all of you is a long, happy, and healthy life…should life throw a curve ball, I would like it if you were prepared. It is a conversation that no one ever really wants to have, although it is a very important one. 

Thank you for being part of this awareness journey, I have heard from women that never knew the symptoms, so YES, WE made a difference! A HUGE thank you to all of my co-hosts and the generous sponsors who helped to make this dream of mine a reality.

With a humbled, full heart and lots of love,
LindaLee




The hosts and sponsors can be found on Instagram and their corresponding websites, if they have them. Here are the IG names along with the websites for the sponsors:

Hosts:
@lljerseygirl
@yogasloth
@mmaneevese
@teri_yaki
@nicole_rn
@crizia_rn_yoga
@farrahbrown

Sponsors:

@lljerseygirl (Just a yogi trying to make a difference.)

@yogasloth (Home of the Duddhara Strap -- it is a yoga prop that allows you do to so much more in your practice! This wonderful prop was the genius creation of the company owner, Anna, who lives in Canada.)


@pawpawyogawear (Amazingly soft and comfortable organic cotton yoga wear company based in Sweden. "Swedish design sewn in India by people who receive fair wages for their work.")

@fourseeapparel (A fun and great yoga, athletic, and casual wear company for both men and women, created by a family based in Colorado.)

@beadsbymelissa (Beautiful handcrafted mala necklaces, bracelets, and accessories based in Canada)

@liforme (Wonderful eco-friendly yoga mat company with the AlignForMe system and special gripping that took 5 years of research & development to come up with the perfect yoga mat!)

@kulaforkarma (A non-profit that provides training for “yoga, meditation and stress reduction…at no cost to communities in need”; based in the New Jeresy, New York, and Connecticut tri-state area.)

@youromlife (A yoga teacher for classes and retreats with an OM gear line of yoga tanks, based in Massachusetts.)

Day 5 of the Ovarian Cancer Awareness Yoga Challenge (09-16-2016)



#OvarianCancerAwarenessYogaChallenge
Day 5 – Presented by Nicole @nicole_rn - #Virahadrasana1 or #WarriorI

From high lunge with the right knee bent, engage both legs. Inhale and place the hands on the bent knee, keep the knee over the ankle. Hands move to hips, keeping the hips and shoulders square. Bring the shoulders back and open the chest. On inhale, reach the arms overhead with palms facing each other. If you don’t have neck or back issues you can look up, otherwise keep your gaze forward.  Inhale into the chest and abdomen; on exhale continue to press your feet, fingers, and top of the head; continue breathing and try to do this for 3 to 6 breaths.

Please make sure to honor your body and only do what you are comfortable with. If you are under a doctor’s care, please check with them first before attempting any of the poses.

This pose helps strengthens the legs, opens the hips and chest and stretches the arms and legs. It develops concentration, balance and being grounded, along with improving circulation and respiration and energizes the entire body.

Remember, we are all warriors and need to be strong whether it is for our own battle or someone we love. Together we can do this, together we can do anything!!  I am in awe of the response we have gotten for this challenge and have honestly loved seeing all of yours poses! Keep up the great work and spreading awareness!

#AWARENESS - There is a free webinar hosted by OCRFA, presented by Dr. Elizabeth Swisher, on research efforts. It will be on Thursday, 9/22/2016 at 6 PM/ET and it will last one hour. If interested, you can register at the OCRFA website and see the info about at the link in my bio. (See the link below, although it is time sensitive and the webinar may not be posted by the time you are reading this.)


#Hamsa yoga top from @fourseeapparel * My Mala necklace and bracelet are from @beadsbymelissa * and my #yogamat is from @liforme and it is the #RollsRoyceofYogaMats

See @crizia_rn_yoga for Day 6’s (Saturday, 9/17) pose tomorrow night.