“When it comes to living a happy, healthy, and peaceful life, never underestimate the power of great style -
your LIFESTYLE.”
- Blueberry Bliss
Everyone can choose what to wear and what fits best. Some people prefer a slightly looser style with more imperfections, while others prefer a tighter and more correct style. It is perfectly normal for our garment to get a few stains and tears over a short or long period of time. And it always comes down to the question:
How do you feel about it?
Sometimes we keep the pants despite their flaws, we don't like them but feel way too comfortable with them to change anything. And sometimes we keep the pants because they make us feel better and more confident because some cracks in our style make us look way cooler. But mostly we want to change something when our pants are too dirty or torn. Sometimes we manage to sew and wash our robe ourselves and the stains and tears go away, and sometimes we need the help of others to clean and repair them. And in some cases it is necessary to create a completely new style. It can be difficult because it may have been your favorite dress or pair of jeans for a long time, but don't be discouraged, sometimes you exit the dressing room in the best style imaginable. But enough of talking about clothes here, now it's time to show my philosophy of a great lifestyle.
(Please note that I am not a doctor or dietician. That's just my take on a great lifestyle. It's a mix of my own experiences and various trainings, many different books and podcasts that have inspired me and this is my personal conclusion that I have come to at this point in my life and hopefully you may find value in that too.)
My hands (and arms ;)) are open for you!!
Yoga means union "union of the individual soul with the universal soul". The hands are therefore a symbol of connectedness and community. We want to get in touch with people in the most authentic, friendly and loving way possible.
When we connect with compassion and equality, we can understand that we are all one big human family living in the same home called Earth. We celebrate our differences and know that they are an important part of creating symbiosis. It also means the connection within ourselves. Unite body, mind and spirit. When we neglect a part we don't feel like ourselves, we feel lost and often we can see that directly in our bodies. Physical activities and self- care habits that we enjoy are so important for our physical and mental well-being. And especially Asana, breathing exercises and meditation can be great tools to help us master our mind and find our inner voice that gives us the power to care for ourselves, other beings and this beautiful earth.
We are better together!!
There is no good where there is no bad,
we need some darkness for the candle to shine,
and there is no rainbow if it only rains
or only the sun shines.
The only way to get hold of our pot of gold is to strike a balance between these opposites.
The hands with the platforms on them are said to resemble a pair of scales. It stands for balance in our life. So let's first define the balance so that we know how to deal with it . Balance in this case means a state in which different elements are equal or in the right proportion to each other.
It is the constant balancing of two opposites within us, without judging one as good or bad, they are always there and both different energies have their own qualities, so the goal is to create the perfect amount of each, without going to extremes to expire. These energies could be something physical we do in our lives or emotions we feel. So the more we do or don't do something and the more we shift our focus to a feeling, the more weight shifts to a hand.
As Jana Kingsford once said, "Balance is not something you find, it's something you create."
So we have to learn to recognize when there is too much weight on one side. To illustrate, I will give you a few examples from everyday life.
Sometimes we feel overwhelmed by an emotion. For example, when we have a fearful time in our life, it can happen that this hand takes on too much weight. The hand becomes too heavy and falls into extremes. That's when we stop feeling good and only focus on the fear side. But just when that happens, we need to know that there's courage on the other side, waiting to put on a few extra pounds. How? We need to remember that we always have both energies within us and that we are able to shift our focus so that we can get out of the extreme. I know that there is often a weight coming at us from the outside that we cannot control, but when we are in control of ourselves we are able to react to that and decide which hand to put the next weight on to regain balance. ( For example, when it rains we cannot control the weather, but we can react to those circumstances and choose to take the umbrella with us). It's like a next level arm (hand) wrestling game within us. We understand that this is a lifetime game and there is no winner. Just recognizing and balancing to feel our best without going to extremes.
And we can apply this visualization to many aspects of our lives.
We need to see the negative side of life so we know what we can change in the future. That's the only way we can grow. Positive thinking is our motivator, it helps us not to stop even when the process is difficult and it takes us further towards what we want to achieve.
Basically, I'm all about nutritious food to stay as healthy as possible, but sometimes we get cravings and not indulging in soulful food can put us in a stressful state of mind, especially when we're out with friends. By enjoying cake on birthdays or some cookies when we feel like it, we can stay balanced without using too much strength on one side.
To put it in terms of sport, sometimes we need to push harder and sometimes we need to rest, and both are equally important for our body's growth and recovery, but as always, you have to find your own balance between the two.
Good sleep is one of the most important aspects of good health, but what would life be without the crazy nights and experiences of laughter and joy we had with our friends?
I hope you understand what I'm trying to say with this hand/- pair of scales visualization. It's the art of imperfection that makes it perfect. :-)
Balance looks completely different for everyone. So we have to listen to the signals of our own body and to our inner voice, which helps us to find this balance.
Let's get in tune with the planet and our own bodies!! When we know our natural rhythms, we can live healthier, happier, and more balanced lives.
The circadian rhythm:
(Book from which I extracted some information to write this section: Der Zirkadian - Code : Satchin Panda)
Latin words: circa(around) diem (day)
The solar energy that gives our body alertness and activity during the day and the lunar energy that gives us sleep and rest at night. Our body thrives on these energies, it is the beautiful interaction between our body and nature. Every living thing like plants, animals and even microbes has this internal clock, the so-called circadian rhythm. It is a 24-hour clock that affects our daily bodily functions such as digestion, body temperature, elimination, metabolism, sleep and the production of specific hormones. The circadian rhythm thus leads to physical, mental and behavioral changes in our body over the course of the day. Before technology came into use, people woke up when the sun rose and fell asleep when the moon appeared. Years ago we spent a lot more time in nature, which helped our bodies produce certain hormones at the right time. In this modern world we live differently, we spend much more time indoors during the day and at night we send wrong signals to our body due to the artificial light. Our body just didn't have time to adjust. This creates confusion in our body, leading to disruption of important bodily functions. Timing has a huge impact on our health. When we see the first light of morning, eat our food, exercise and go to sleep can either support or weaken our body's health. By being aware of our 24 hour clock and its effects, we can use these great technological inventions more consciously and use the power of nature or in other words the power of sunlight and darkness to bring out the healthiest versions of ourselves.
The infradian rhythm:
(Book from which I extracted some information to write this section: In the Flow - Alisa Vitti)
Women of reproductive age have two biological clocks, the circadian rhythm and the menstrual cycle, also called the infradian rhythm because it is a cycle longer than one day. The menstrual cycle is divided into four distinct phases caused by the rise and fall of various hormones: the follicular, ovulatory, luteal and menstrual phases. Like the circadian rhythm, this infradian rhythm also affects our bodily functions. It affects brain chemistry as well as our physiology. In other words, these four phases affect our mood, energy levels, stress response, body temperature, sleep, and digestion. Knowing what phase of the cycle we are in not only tells us about our fertility but also helps us understand why we feel the way we do. For example, it is normal to feel more energy in the follicular and ovulatory phases than in the luteal and menstrual phases. Also in the luteal phase, it is typical that we feel more hungry as the body temperature rises at this time of the month. When we understand why, we are more likely to give ourselves the opportunity to rest and nourish our bodies. So, by knowing what is happening in our body during these stages, we can support our body in compassionate ways, which helps us to live in harmony with our body and not against it. Furthermore, the circadian rhythm and the infradian rhythm are closely related. If we neglect the circadian rhythm, it has a direct impact on our infradian rhythm, and the same is true vice versa. By knowing what a healthy menstrual cycle looks like, we can see if something isn't working right after each month, before more symptoms appear. Thus, the early detection of deviations could help to prevent diseases.
But even if we don't know how our menstrual cycle works, we can still listen to our bodies and hear what they are telling us. When we feel genuine hunger, don't limit food intake. When energy levels are low, rest, work in harmony with your body, not against it, and appreciate the state you are in. Our own body does so much for which we can be thankful.
Eat the rainbow every day. I'll tell you why!
(Book from which I extracted some information to write this section:
Fibre Fuelled - Dr. Will Bulsiewicz)
You are the boss of a very large community that lives within you. In fact, you have several trillions of employees. They usually work for you with one big goal: to keep you as healthy as possible, so you can live your life in the most energetic and powerful way imaginable. I am talking about your individual gut microbiome. Your employees are a variety of microorganisms that have their workplace in the intestine.
If we give our employees the right nutrition, they can work in a balanced and harmonious way. Not only do they take care of the colon barrier, but they also provide us with compounds that serve our body, these are the good bacteria/employees. And like most companies, there are employees whose work ethic is not so good, in this case they feast on unhealthy foods (like highly processed foods that have been stripped of all good compounds and it's hard to tell what's really in them.) and thereby produce compounds that inflame our bodies. In good or bad ways, our microbes have a huge impact on our immunity, digestion, metabolism, hormone balance, mood and brain health. Because of this, a damaged gut microbiota can be considered the main contributor to many health causes.
But how do we balance our microbes?
Remember my wrestling hands again, no matter how healthy you live, we always have good and bad bacteria in our gut. But the bad bacteria are not so harmful as long as we have enough of the good bacteria. Therefore, we must take care to feed the good bacteria so that they can protect us.
And what should one eat to nourish the good?
The bacteria thrive when you give them plenty of fiber, resistant starches and phytochemicals. And these components are only found in plant foods. Since not every microbe can break down the same food, the diversity of species in our intestines is very important. Every plant-based food we eat contains a unique variety of fiber, phytochemicals and microbes. That's why we also need a unique team of microbes in our bodies working together to metabolize healing compounds from that food. In addition, our employees love their work. However, if we don't give them the food they specialize in, they give up (they disappear from starvation). This is another reason why diversity is so important. All in all, the more plant variety you eat, the more diverse the microbes are in your gut and the more healing compounds are extracted from your food. Also, phytochemicals make our food colorful and fun, so I recommend eating a rainbow of whole foods from all food groups, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
With that in mind, I wish you the most colourful, crispy, juicy, tastiest, most nutritious and delicious food that nature has to offer for you to stay healthy, energetic and happy for as long as possible!!
Dan Buettner discovered the "Bluezones", the places in the world where people live the longest and above all the healthiest. So why not turn Innsbruck and many other places into a blue(berry) zone?
The blueberry is a symbol of the bliss point /sweet spot that we all crave.
If we google "bliss point definition" we get this definitions:
- "the amount of an ingredient or combination of ingredients (especially sugar, salt and fat) in a food that makes it most enjoyable to eat and difficult to resist."
- "the level of something at which people derive the greatest pleasure or satisfaction."
Wholy stands for wholeness - that's the point where all of the lifestyle components that make us healthy come together in the most enjoyable way to make us feel our best. In this case our basic ingredients are sleep, nutrition, exercise, stress management, nature and connection/community. But to turn it into a real taste bomb, we need more than the basics. This is where different spices come into play. Not everyone likes the same spices and has the same preferences, so not everyone has the same interests. Therefore we would also like to take a look at our talents, our purpose and/or interests. Something that makes our hearts beat faster when we hear it or think about it. We want to do something that we enjoy or where we can serve other people in a way that we believe gives us meaning in life, something to live for.
In order to have an amazing taste experience, we need all the basic ingredients and spices, but how much of it is up to you. This is where balance comes into play again. You have to find your individual balance of what works for you now and in this moment. Your taste buds change with age and life circumstances, so we need to adjust our bliss point from time to time.
(Fun fact:
My nickname in nursing school was "Holy Mother Blueberry" because I always brought a breakfast of blueberries to school. Also, I often sat in class and unconsciously assumed a prayer posture. My friends said I looked like I was praying class would be over soon, and I guess there must have been a grain of truth in that. That's why I thought it would be fun to incorporate it into the logo, and that's why there's a blueberry in the middle of the logo, not an orange or watermelon, and it has the word “wholy” instead of “whole”.)
Spread love, not war!!
As you can see I've put every single component I mentioned above into one big picture and what we can see now is:
In my opinion we always have peace within us, we are born with it. It's always there, but we have to make an effort to see it, recognize it, and choose it. It doesn't matter what situation we find ourselves in, even in the darkest times of our lives when everything seems hopeless, we can still find peace within ourselves and send it out into this world, but it is a choice we make . Our past and our upbringing have a big impact on it. And it can be very difficult to find inner peace and bring it into the world if you haven't seen or experienced it yourself in the past. I mean everything in life is difficult to master without experience, training and the right knowledge, right? That's why I see peace as a muscle that everyone has, you can call it "the peace muscle". And this muscle (like any other muscle) needs to be exercised to get bigger.
Peace is a daily practice. It's about learning about love, self worth, acceptance, gratitude, kindness, letting go, connection, freedom, forgiveness, self-reflection, feeling save, empathy and the ego. And we can practice it every day in every moment. It starts with the way we think: are we being kind to ourselves with our words? And in everyday situations, we can choose to act in peace, we can choose to smile at a stranger, open the door for someone, or text someone we haven't heard from in a while. Since it's a form of practice and we're human, it's okay to fail as long as you learn and grow from it. Instead of revolve, we want to evolve. If you are being mean to someone and you are aware of it, you can practice self-refelction and ask yourself why you reacted the way you did. In this case, the next step is to forgive yourself first, and then ask the other person for forgiveness. And then show gratitude for what you have learned about yourself and this situation.
Peace doesn't mean suppressing our feelings or not speaking our minds, rather we want to find ways to express our feelings in a way that doesn't harm other people and keeps us from acting impulsively. We want to react to situations in a controlled and non-reactive manner. In order to find peace and bring it into the world, it is very helpful if we work on our basic and individual needs. For this reason, the logo was created as a visual guide to get back on track if we get lost. It is designed to help us identify what we need to work on to bring ourselves back into balance so that we can achieve greater health, happiness, and peace.
PEACE