Advertise on podcast: Resilience & Grace

While yoga studios are often relaxing, quiet, climate-controlled Zen environments, nothing can beat warm sunshine on your face, a gentle breeze on your skin, and the smell of cut grass and its coolness under the soles of your feet.  In this episode, Mary shares 5 benefits of practicing yoga outside the studio or home.  Heightens your connection to nature.Strengthens your balance skills.Deepens your meditation practice.Enhances your ability to soak in the view.Transports your yoga practice. The magic of yoga is that it can be done anywhere at anytime. Mary and Megan Reuther met onsite to talk about the benefits of outdoor yoga for a Wellness Wednesday segment on Hello Iowa. Listen here: https://who13.com/hello-iowa/wellness-wednesday-outdoor-yoga/ Check out where Mary will be teaching outdoor yoga next on her Special Events page. 

Body scan meditation is a good way to release the physical tension you might not realize you're experiencing. It is a mindfulness-based intervention and involves paying attention to parts of the body and bodily sensations in a gradual sequence from your feet to your head.  You are invited to lie down on a comfortable surface or sit in a chair with your legs uncrossed and feet flat on the ground. Subscribe to my newsletter and stay current with upcoming special events, blog posts, and resources at www.mary-mccarthy.com

Did you know yin yoga and restorative yoga are not the same things? From the outside, the practices look similar because they both include long holds, utilize props, are slow and introverted practice, and focus on opening the body over time instead of through dynamic movement.  If you are wanting a restful yoga practice to help you decompress and relax, do you know which one to choose?  As a yoga teacher of both styles, I get asked this question often. From the outside, restorative and yin look very similar, but when you learn about where they came from and the essence of the practice, you will quickly learn they are quite different. Want to practice and try a yin or restorative yoga class? Join me online. I teach a monthly yin yoga class on the first Monday of every month from 5:30-6:30 pm CST. I teach a quarterly restorative yoga class on the Monday closest to a season change from 5:30 - 6:30 pm CST. Learn more about Mary McCarthy and all of her offerings at www.mary-mccarthy.com

Release tension from the body and mind as you turn toward clarity and inner joy. Cultivate tranquillity and bliss as you let go of your thoughts about the future and the past and lean into your innate joy.   Mary McCarthy is a Certified Health and Fitness Instructor with The American College of Sports Medicine and an E-RYT 500 yoga instructor with Yoga Alliance. You can schedule a FREE  consultation with Mary and learn more about what offerings may be best for you. Visit her website www.mary-mccarthy.com for more information.

WELCOME to season #5! I am kicking off this season with a very important topic that is near and dear to my heart, anxiety and mental health. May is National Mental Health Awareness month and I am sharing my journey with anxiety. Yoga and meditation are wonderful tools to help someone manage their stress and anxiety and in this episode, I will share with you specific practices that help me when I am not teaching on my mat. Here are a few additional resources you may find helpful: 1. Yoga Nidra for Restful Nurturance (episode #60) 2. Live Mentally Healthy 3. #Together4MH Resources 4. Generalized Anxiety Disorder Information 5. Yoga with Mary in her Online Studio Mary McCarthy is a Certified Health and Fitness Instructor with The American College of Sports Medicine and an E-RYT 500 yoga instructor with Yoga Alliance. You can schedule a FREE  consultation to learn more about her offerings.  To learn more about Mary and view all of her offerings, visit her website www.mary-mccarthy.com.  

According to the yoga tradition, the heart is the doorway to the sacred. It is the fountainhead of lasting peace and grace. This meditation is dedicated to guiding you to it. The luminosity of the light of the heart gathers in the center of the mind and this light is guided from the midbrain to the cave of the heart. As your body breathes in, you feel the light expand, and as the body breathes out, it contracts back to the heart center. In the final stage of the practice, you rest in the heart, the seat of grace. Thank you for listening and practicing these ancient yoga teachings with me. This is the final episode in season number 4. I am taking a break from publishing podcast episodes at the end of 2021 to collect and gather new content and meditations for you to enjoy.  I will return sometime in 2022 for season number 5. I welcome your feedback and suggestions. Please share with me what you would like to learn or practice. It can be a topic on healthy aging, mindfulness, wellness, or one of the ancient teachings of yoga. You can share your ideas with me at [email protected] Please sign up to receive my monthly newsletters filled with insights, resources, online class information, and special events happening in the midwest. My home page is a resource for you to return to and stay updated as well. Visit: www.mary-mccarthy.com Om Shant, Shanti, Shanti. Peace, Mary 

Practicing grace creates a balance between masculine and feminine energies. It is the yin to the yang. I chose "Grace" to be a part of my brand to remind myself and others that grace is something offered unconditionally. We do not have to earn it. Grace helps us remember we are love. We belong. In this episode, I share five tips on how you can open your heart and discover grace. See your to-do list and "deadlines" as fluid.Take breaks.Become mindful of your mindset and beliefs.Ask for help and collaborate with others.Practice forgiveness and say I'm sorry.As we move into winter and the holiday season, invite grace to be integrated with resilience. Experience the flow between both energies. Grace is amazing!

In episode #60, Mary shares one of her favorite yoga nidra practices called "Restful Nurturance." You will move through the different stages of this practice drawing yourself deeper into a state of rest.  Yoga nidra offers many benefits including time to rest and recharge, detach from negative emotions, move into transformation and expansion, and enhance sensitivity to prana or energy. You can read a short blog post about yoga nidra benefits. Read more.  Next month I will share the importance of practicing Grace. Tune in on December 6th when I release episode #61. Please join me on the cushion or yoga mat for additional opportunities to practice with me.  Check out the classes I teach online at studio.mary-mccarthy.com Learn more about me and my other wellness services at www.mary-mccarthy.com Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti. Peace.

In episode #59, Mary shares her experience of how resilience has been a part of her journey, helping her continue to show up and persevere. She explains why cultivating resilience may be more beneficial than searching for happiness. Resilience is your ability to withstand or recover quickly from setbacks or difficult conditions. Resilience is a skill. Benefits of Resilience: Increases your chances of successGives a sense of independence, self-efficacy, and self-worthPositively correlates with physical health, morale, and life satisfactionOffers you a more positive outlook on lifeMakes you less prone to anxiety and depressionPromotes successful agingHow can you cultivate Resilience? ConnectRemember Your WhyListen and FeelRebalanceRechargeIf you are interested in learning more about Cultivating Personal Resilience and would like to include this topic in your next training or add it to your next conference or convention lineup, please contact me. I speak and educate groups and individuals on the importance of resilience and how it helps combat stress, burnout, and compassion fatigue. Learn more at www.mary-mccarthy.com

 In episode #58, Mary shares a meditation from Kristen Neff's book, Fierce Self-Compassion. The meditation is titled, Breathing Yin & Yang. In Ancient Chinese philosophy, yin and yang is a concept of dualism, describing how opposite forces may actually be complementary, interconnected, and interdependent in the natural world. Yin represents grounded Earth energy: It is receptive, cool, dark, and tied to the moon, the oceans, and the shade. It is usually associated with feminine energy. Yang represents the sun: It is light, expansive, and usually associated with masculine energy. When we balance the opposing but complementary forces of yin and yang in our modern lives, we can achieve more vibrant and sustainable health. Connect with Mary and practice yoga or meditation online. You can also work with Mary one-on-one. Mary is a wellness coach inviting individuals to experience how clarity of purpose transforms and enhances your personal journey and creates a pathway to living the best version of your life possible. Schedule a complimentary discovery session and learn more about all of Mary's offerings on her website: www.mary-mccarthy.com

Yoga is a journey. It invites us to explore our heart's desire while connecting our mind, body, and spirit. It inspires us to be present with where we are in life right now. Your yoga practice can last a lifetime. Mary shares the many benefits of yoga in this podcast episode. Listen to the variety of physical, mental, and spiritual benefits experienced once you roll out your yoga mat or sit down to meditate and breathe. You can practice yoga online with Mary. She offers weekly mixed-level, gentle, and chair yoga classes. She also teaches a weekly yin class. You can take a look at all of her offerings on her online studio website: studio.mary-mccarthy.com You can learn more about Mary on her website www.mary-mccarthy.com Please subscribe and leave a review. The next episode is a meditation balancing the yin and yang energy within. 

There are many ways to meditate. Bringing your awareness to the center of the mind, also known as the 3rd eye center, can help bring stillness to the mind and break the distractions or thoughts racing through your consciousness. Take a moment to pause and feel light radiate from the center of the mind. You will leave this meditation feeling a deeper sense of peace and ease. To learn more about my offerings, please go to my website www.mary-mccarthy.com or follow me on social media @mmresilienceandgrace Be sure to check out my updated website launching Wednesday, October 6, 2021.  Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti (peace)