By Malissa Schwamm, Yoga Manager
Connect with Nature:
Studies have shown the vast benefits of spending time outdoors connecting with nature. Being outside for just 30 minutes a day helps decrease stress, relieve anxiety and depression, and changes your overall attitude towards everyday circumstances. Breathing fresh air helps improve creativity and productivity, while running, walking, hiking and biking are just a few ways to increase your heart rate and strengthen your lungs. Gardening, sitting quietly to journal or watching a sunset can also have calming effects on the mind. Becoming one with nature by experiencing, absorbing and appreciating all that it has to offer will lead to a happier, healthier existence.
Start a daily journal, diary or notebook:
Jotting down your thoughts, emotions and feelings has shown to drastically improve emotional well-being and mood. Additionally, writing out your thoughts regularly improves memory function, reduces stress and serves as form of meditation, ultimately calming and clearing the mind. There are many ways to express yourself on paper, whether you unleash your creativity through written words or show your imagination through drawings and sketches, enjoy the process and reap its rewards.
Establish a self-care routine:
Self-care is critical to your wellness, longevity, overall positive attitude and happiness, so drop the bad habits and patterns from your life and consider a few of these tips to kick start your new routine. Schedule a massage, indulge in a relaxing bath, lace up your sneakers and take a walk at sunrise or sunset, drop into a nourishing child’s pose to help soothe your body’s nervous system, drink more water to stay hydrated, fresh and alert. These are all simple, easy acts of self-love and kindness that will help you deepen your relationship with self. Enjoy!
Create space for quiet time each day:
Within the space of your day, find time to be still with your thoughts. Forms of meditation, prayer, contemplation or reflection are all ways to get in touch with yourself. In these spaces, you will find clarity to redefine what matters most, you will discover the peace that comes with letting go of things that no longer serve you and you will discover passion, purpose and potential for a life well lived.
Develop a habit of gratitude:
Being able to always see the silver lining in the midst of chaos and confusion is one way to cultivate a sense of gratitude. It’s been said that an attitude of gratitude occurs when you live from a space of abundance, appreciation and thankfulness rather than from a place of fear. “Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, and confusion into clarity,” Melody Beattie, beloved author.
Malissa Schwaam
Malissa found yoga to be the intelligent choice for someone who desperately needed to strike a balance between strength and flexibility. Initially drawn to the challenging physical aspects of yoga, she became intrigued by the deeper benefits of this lifelong journey. Malissa has nearly two decades of teaching experience, holds 200-hour certifications from YogaWorks® and YogaFit®, and is a certified master trainer through Yoga Alliance®. In addition to her role as Yoga Manager, she also leads Club Greenwood’s 200-hour yoga teacher training and teaches various forms of yoga. Malissa unplugs by spending time outdoors with family and friends, gardening, trail running, hiking, biking, skiing and traveling.
Malissa’s Schedule:
Tuesdays, 9:15am-10:15pm | Hatha
Tuesdays, 7:00am-8:00pm | Yin/Meditation
Thursdays, 10:30-11:30am | Yin Yang
Wednesdays, 11:00am-12:00pm | Alignment Vinyasa II