The Queen of Happy

I wanted to share with you some feedback from a participant of the Yogic Diet 2011 retreat in Bali. Here is what she had to say:

Changes from Retreat:
Diet:
The foods we ate during the retreat left me feeling so good that I wanted to continue that when I got home. I am much more aware of what I eat and how it makes me feel. I have had a couple cups of coffee and a little wine and some meat. The coffee I really enjoyed, the wine just made me feel like crap, and the meat was good - but left me feeling heavy. I have also had some desserts too. The best part about what has changed is that I am enjoying a treat now and then (coffee, ice cream, etc), but then I move on and don't look back. Before I would have felt bad about myself and just totally went overboard and eaten everything bad for me all the time. Now I am not in an ALL of NOTHING mentality. I am excited enough about the foods that my husband is attempting a detox like diet for 5 days like we did during the retreat. We are doing the best we can to follow the guidelines and remembering what we ate. I am excited for him!

Lifestyle: My rut was a pretty deep one and I am having to work hard to get out of it. I am better but find it easy to slip back in. I am making more time for myself and using my time more effectively. I am more aware that I waste a lot of time and I am not sure on what (hence the waste). I do know that I was not taking care of me before the retreat. Now I am concentrating on making time for me (quality time).

Yoga: So I am hooked on yoga. It makes me feel great. I gained a lot of confidence in myself during the retreat. I can do it on my own with a video or just audio. I am working on a schedule so I can do it more often.

Positive Thinking: Overall I am more positive. I am very aware of my self talk and how it has not been positive. When I catch myself with negative thoughts I shift them to a positive.

During the retreat I lost 3 pounds and I have continued to lose another 3 pounds since I got home. I am very excited about this because I have had some splurges with my eating and I have not found the right routine to do regular exercise. So going back to that All of Nothing idea..... I have gotten away from that. I am physically active (but not as much as my goal is) and happy that I have done something. I am not beating myself up over not getting it all done. This is a big one for me.

Aspects in my life that have been influenced:
Diet - I am more aware of how foods affect me.
Body image - I look good. I am not seeing all the trouble spots I used to.
Exercise - I am more active.
Yoga - I want to do more and I have more confidence in my abilities.
Relationships - I am more calm with my children; I am using my law of attraction notes and it seems to be helping.
Meditation - I enjoy it, but must make more time for it! Miss it.

Insights:
From Tomasz - Seriously would be "NO DRAMA." He also taught me that I CAN do yoga!
From Monique - I can obtain what I am wanting and the law of attraction does work. I am an awesome person!

Thank you so much for this opportunity.
The Queen of Happy

Our Retreat

Our first Yogic Diet retreat was recently held in the lush and surprisingly breezy, cool mountains of Bali, Indonesia. Our group of 14 met at dinner and then wrapped ourselves in sarongs to prepare for a blessing from a Balinese Hindu priest. Every aspect of life is ritualistically blessed in Bali and each of us, carrying our own intentions for positive change, were ready to receive. We sat on the ground on this full moon night and held incense sticks while the aged priest chanted. When he finished, we sipped three spoons of holy water from our palms to bring the blessing within. The retreat had begun auspiciously.

This auspiciousness continued as each conversation seemed blessed. Each sharing from the teachers Monique and Tomasz, from Richard our Australian Bali mountain man, and from the participants about yoga, diet, health, life, relationships, challenges, and more entered our bodies, minds, and spirits. Each yoga session took us deeper into our strong bodies and higher into our big hearts. Each coaching session was a peeling back of layers as we unwrapped the golden nugget that we really do create our own realities and all it takes is a new thought to create a new reality. Each trek through the jungle or rice paddy encouraged us to remember that abundance in nature really is our birthright if we can just be in harmony with her and strive to take better care of her.

And oh my gosh, the food! Most people on the retreat had never taken a break from caffeine, alcohol, meat, processed food, white flour, and sugar like that. Some were worried about how they would handle such a detox. But the yummy, colorful, delicious, Balinese vegetable laden dishes kept appearing to satisfy our appetites and the ginger-lime-honey teas and fruits kept appearing to quench our thirsts. The food was amazing and especially cooked for us with love. And even though I eat a similar diet at home...I feel a longing for the food we had at the retreat. It was good and it somehow fed the soul.

So, the retreat was a great success! People who wanted to lose weight did (from 2-8 lbs). People who wanted to feel happier did and seemed to feel more hope for their futures. People who wanted to have fun and do yoga did! Tomasz rocked it as always and twice a day! And each time one of the yogis walked up the steps to the open air yoga room to surrender to the ritual of practice...he/she was a hero.

Namaste,
Monique