Glow Living

Author: Chandra Lynn

  • Master Your Emotional Health & Master Your Life

    Master Your Emotional Health & Master Your Life

    thetriad-300x258Emotional mastery is the key to living a life that you direct. The capacity to have absolute direct power over what you feel in every single moment—no matter what happens around you—is one of the most important skill sets you can have.

    There are three forces in the world that determine what you feel. These forces are called the Triad. Together, these three patterns create any—and every—emotional state.

    Whatever you feel, you’re not feeling it because you have to feel it. You’re feeling it because you’ve chosen from the Triad. In order to master your emotions and consciously choose the emotions you want to live in, you need to understand these three forces and how to use them to your advantage.

    The Triad consists of 1) Physiology, 2) Language and 3) Focus.

    Click here to read more about this on Tony Robbins’ site.

  • When You Feel Pulled to the Dark Side

    When You Feel Pulled to the Dark Side

    When You Feel Pulled to the Dark Side
    By Chandra Lynn

    I remember a time when I was having a particularly difficult time processing a breakup and I went to see a therapist. I went in telling him all the things I did to make the relationship work and all the things I was going to do to heal myself. And in the way that therapists do, he looked at me and asked “what would happen if you just stopped and did nothing?” The prospect of not doing anything didn’t feel comfortable at all and the question actually infuriated me. I was looking for answers and solutions, not to not do anything! depression

    Decades later, I became friends with my yoga teacher and she said she noticed I was fidgety in the mediation part of the class and I acknowledged that it wasn’t my favorite part. I suppose I’m a “doer”. Well I’ve come to the conclusion now that I don’t like how it feels when I just sit with myself. My thoughts aren’t always empowering and my emotions can turn dark like a storm that blows in unexpectedly. The dark side has always had a magnetic pull that I’ve tried to resist.

    Today, someone asked if its possible that I’ve been silently or unknowingly battling depression all of my life. Looking back, I suppose its possible. And its possible that I am still reckoning with it, but its been such a familiar state that I don’t know the difference. My life has been a quest for tools and strategies to manage this state as positively as possible. I have not mastered it entirely, but if you can relate, I have some very powerful tools to share with you that can certainly help without prescription drugs. Boy do I wish I could just pop a pill every day and feel like this is the most amazing life ever lived, but I’m resistant to doing that because of the chemical dependency and side effects.

    Through Glow Living, I will describe all the things that have worked for me and that I’ve learned from others about emotional mastery, managing thoughts, self-love, and being the best person you can be in relationships with others. Join me on this journey by following my posts and sharing your experiences.

  • Using Your Yoga Mat as a Microcosm for Life

    Using Your Yoga Mat as a Microcosm for Life

    Using Your Yoga Mat as a Microcosm for Life
    By Chandra Lynn

    It’s hard to begin to describe what yoga means to me but I’ll start by saying that your teacher is everything. I did yoga for years as a physical practice to learn how to stretch and stay limber. Little did I know it could be so much more! About ten years ago, I joined a fancy schmancy health club as a gift to myself after having a baby, and to give me extra motivation to get my butt down to the gym. The gift I gave to myself began to unfold in a surprising way when I walked into Kristen Dessange’s Affirmations Yoga class.

    IMG_6666 copy
    Kristen Dessange – King Dancer Pose

    I attended Kristen’s class three times per week and it was like I found my church! Who knew I could find it outside of an actual yoga studio?! Kristen is special and I wish I could share her with you (and I hope to by integrating her wisdom into some of my posts and maybe convincing her to let me interview her for you). She is unique because she eloquently delivers themes to support the unfolding of the heart (and hamstrings!) to women and men that are “householder” yogis, not the kind of practitioners you’d find oming on mountaintops. Everyone can relate to her themes because they are universally experienced, while being so personal in how they affect you in class. She is an expert at alignment and sequencing, and weaving in impactful, non-religious spiritual truths from a variety of sources including science like biology and astronomy, hindu mythology, paganism, astrology and so much more. I really could go on and on about Kristen but the point is not to give up on yoga if the classes you’ve taken haven’t been right for you. Try more teachers.

    mermaidbw
    Chandra Lynn – Mermaid Pose

    Yoga has made me more flexible in my body and in the way I approach challenges that come up in my life. Yogi’s have to be flexible on and off the mat, and Kristen has taught me to do more than that. She’s taught me to use the yoga mat as a safe place to explore how I am with myself when challenged. Your experience on your mat is a microcosm for how you experience life. For example, if the teacher puts you in a bound pose where its hard to breath and it challenges your flexibility to reach around to take the bind, what do you say to yourself? Are you kind to yourself? Do you push yourself to achieve it at any costs (even risk getting hurt)? Do you call yourself names or compare yourself to someone better than you? Have you ever experienced those same feelings in other situations in your life outside of class? This is what yoga is about. Getting to know yourself in the safety of a class with a supportive teacher will help you understand that you were born perfect and still are!

    When asked why she calls her style Affirmations Yoga, Kristen says, “For me, to affirm something first requires an awareness and acknowledgment of what is. This is the first benefit of yoga. The practice reconnects you back into yourself and your life.  Once we have tapped back into what is, we have a window of opportunity to realize that we are co-creating with our life. This awakening to the empowered self must come from our sovereign, authentic essence – our soul. When we tap into our soul, we reconnect back into the universal spirit of life. This is what I affirm- the full spectrum of living from your authentic self- as collaborative participation with Spirit while embodied. To affirm the fullness of LIFE means that you affirm your full SELF. It is not a Pollyanna approach to life, instead it is the full on embrace of all this you are and all that is as a way to co-participate with consciousness.  That is the yoga. There is no sugar-coating it. Can we fully embrace and participate with all the flavors of life as a collaborator with it? Can we dive fully into the joy, sorrow, passion and pain? This life is not something to hide from or deny. It is the very gift of embodiment and eminence that our soul longs to live. We are meant to live this live fully, as ourselves completely, with no holding back. This is the full gift of yoga.”

    I have a lot of posts planned for learning more about how certain yoga principles can transform your life. Stay tuned to learn how to root to rise and ground down into what you’re certain about to grow and handle changes that are inevitable in life. I also plan to write about how yoga helped me process grief from the loss of two best friends and my step mom. And just wait until I tell you about my Shakti Sisters, a group of the most inspiring women I’ve ever met that have turned into my chosen family, a real sisterhood!

  • Listen with Your Heart & Not Your Head – Guided Meditation

    Listen with Your Heart & Not Your Head – Guided Meditation

    I’ve learned something new from my awesome coach Iris Benrubi. She told me that I can often be very analytical when I’m trying to explore a problem. This means I’m more in my head than in my heart. She recommended that I drop down into my body and listen for messages. One of the most powerful things she advised is to ask myself when I start to well up with tears “What are the tears telling me?” It actually changes the way that I’m thinking about what’s going on with me. Instead of just feeling sad or frustrated, and justifying it with all the logical reasons, I’m now listening for messages that come from my body. 

    She guided me through a process that allowed me to connect into my body and use my heart to listen to its powerful messages. Because it was a powerful experience for me, I decided to write my own version of the meditation and record it to share with all of you here. Please allow 20 minutes of personal “me” time. Find a safe, relaxing place (maybe using headphones to drown out distractions) and press play:

    You have to be in a very relaxed open, receiving space to hear messages, but when you do, it can be very impactful and healing. Keep in mind that it can also bring up negative emotions and difficult things to process without proper support so I recommend you consult your doctor or coach if you have any concerns about this. Some people believe that meditation is a form of medication and should be done with professional support. 

    When you’re going through this guided exercise or starting to get teary-eyed, ask yourself what is your body telling you, and you may be surprised at some of the answers. It’s helpful when you actually have to articulate the message so either write it down for yourself or tell a trusted person so that you can gain clarity over exactly what it is.

    Also be on alert for visual messages. Sometimes they’ll be a voice that’s talking to you and sometimes it will be a flash of something that you see, and both can contain powerful information.

    When you get a message, take it one step further and ask why the message is important. Sometimes it’s your mind serving up a limited belief to keep you stuck as a way of keeping you safe. So although the message becomes clear it’s up to you to decide whether you wanted to except the message or dismiss it as something disempowering.

    I am really interested to read any comments about your experience with this exercise. Please fill in a comment or email me at chandra@glowliving.com.

  • Defining Your Road Map To Success

    Defining Your Road Map To Success

    Defining Your Road Map To Success
    By Chandra Lynn as Published in I Am Entertainment Magazine mic

    Imagine singing in front of an arena full of adoring, screaming fans, and feeling the high that comes from being center stage. Then, imagine going from the stage to your own luxury tour bus and hearing nothing but the hum of wheels on the road and feeling severely lonely and unsatisfied with life. This happened to a friend of mine who called me after a sold-out show.

    Despite achieving “legendary rock star” status, he was still not satisfied with his life, even though others perceived it as the kind of success that dreams are made of. Why? For one thing, people define success differently. We may think he has it all, but those things didn’t fulfill his true inner desires and human needs. For many, success is achieving fame and fortune, but for some it’s simply getting through a single day without a drop of alcohol, while others may see success as contributing on a global level by headlining a benefit concert. The truth is that most people really don’t know what would make them deeply satisfied…even when they’ve achieved levels of success that they thought would be enough. little-boy-playing-electric-guitar

    As children, we define what we do and don’t want for our lives based on our role models and experiences while growing up. Every situation gets filed under “Yes, I want that” or “No, I don’t want that”, which creates a subconscious road map for our lives. However, it is full of conflict because we can file multiple things that don’t work together in the same place. For example: my friend determined he wanted to be a touring musician and also wanted a wife and kids, placing him in a double-bind. While on the road, it was hard for him to find a suitable wife, but once he found a wife and had children he was challenged by the amount of touring that was required to be successful because it took him away from his family.

    By the time we are adults, its common to feel frustrated by all of the challenges in life, which often leads us to feeling unfulfilled and unhappy. If you feel this way now, it may seem like external circumstances are to blame, but consider the possibility that your conflicts are coming from your own “map”. This is good news because it means that although your current life conditions don’t sync with your map, you can change it. How? Change your life conditions or change your roadmap.guitar-player-on-road-v2

    My friend was able to do this successfully by deciding that creating a family and being present with them was more important than touring so he began composing and recording new material in a home studio. If you feel stuck with your current life conditions, change your roadmap with these steps (ideally after doing some physical activity that puts you in an energized, positive state):

    1. Think back to yourself as a child and recall any visions you had for your life. Write them out in as much detail as you can. What did you want to be when you grew up? Where did you want to live and in what kind of place? Did you want a romantic partnership and to become a parent?

    2. Ask yourself, does your childhood vision match what you want from your adult view of life? If so, why? How does it serve your current needs?

    3. If you determine the childhood vision does not serve you anymore, recognize that you need to replace it with a new adult vision based on how much you have grown.

    4. To create a new vision, take some time to visualize how you can spend the rest of your life happy with what you have achieved. What do you need to be deeply fulfilled and utterly satisfied?

    5. Connect this vision to a higher purpose. Why does this direction make you happy? Who does it serve? What does it tell you about who you are and what you’ve contributed? What do you want to be remembered for?

    6. Consider any conflicts that may exist with your current life conditions, and determine which direction will give you a healthier and more successful end result.

    7. Write out your new vision based on this new understanding, and be as specific as possible. AmericaRoute(bl)After this, you will have a fairly clear vision, but you still need a clear roadmap.

    When you live by a subconscious road map, it’s like driving from California to New York with only a vague sense of how to get there and why you even wanted to go there in the first place. An effective roadmap involves an integrated plan that is broken down into seven core areas of your life: spirituality, physical body, emotions & meaning, relationships, time, work & career, and finances.

    To begin this process, expand your vision to include what you want to achieve in each of these areas; list out the actions you can take in each of the areas to realize your visions; set reasonable expectations for when to achieve them; and start taking action. You don’t have to live your life by default. There are a lot of things you can control to create the level of success that truly meets your needs. Aligning with your higher purpose (why you were created) and creating a healthy life vision and roadmap will send you down the path of living out your highest potential.

  • Getting Unstuck

    Getting Unstuck

    Why We Get Stuck and How to Get Unstuck

    I recently attended Gabby Bernstein’s book launch event at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. At the end, people lined up to ask her questions. It was fascinating to hear what they needed. Most wanted to share a life problem and ask for advice on how to get unstuck.

    Listening to them made me think about where I feel stuck in my own life—and how I might help others move forward.

    Common Reasons We Get Stuck

    We get stuck for many reasons, but three stand out the most:

    1. We can’t see the forest through the trees. Sometimes we need an outside perspective to help us see our situation more clearly.

    2. It’s scary to change. Even if our current situation isn’t ideal, it may serve us in some way. In addition, we fear the unknown. What if change makes things worse?

    3. We’re in a double bind. This means we feel “damned if we do, damned if we don’t,” which can make any decision feel impossible.

    Techniques to Get Unstuck

    Here are six strategies you can try to break free:

    1. Face the Fear of Change

    Play out the fear all the way to the worst-case scenario. Then ask yourself—Is it really that bad? Can anything good come from it? If you find some positives, move toward them. Even a small step forward can boost your courage and create momentum.

    2. Look at the Cost of Staying Stuck

    Consider what happens if nothing changes. Who might get hurt? How bad could it get? Sometimes we can tolerate our own dissatisfaction, but what if staying stuck impacts someone you love? As a result, recognizing the ripple effect may give you the push to act.

    3. Listen to Someone Who Loves You

    Imagine what a person who truly wants the best for you would say. Often, we treat ourselves less kindly than we treat others. Therefore, hearing that supportive voice—whether real or imagined—can guide you toward a healthier choice.

    4. Examine How Your Situation Meets Your Needs

    Even difficult situations can meet emotional needs—just at low levels. Because of that, we often settle for “good enough” instead of going after what truly fulfills us. However, raising your standards almost always leads to growth, for yourself and others.

    5. Commit to Growth

    If you believe that “if you’re not growing, you’re dying (inside),” then challenge yourself to try something new. You may feel afraid, yet you can always adjust later. In addition, taking action builds confidence, regardless of the outcome.

    6. Look for the Life Lesson

    Ask yourself if this situation holds a lesson you’re ready to learn. If you delay making a choice, the Universe often makes it for you—and that can be much harder. Problems tend to repeat until we face them head-on. As a result, choosing your own path often gives you more control and peace of mind.

    Final Thoughts on Getting Unstuck

    Being stuck can feel heavy, frustrating, and lonely. However, you have more tools and choices than you may realize. By exploring these strategies, you can move toward a life that feels authentic and aligned.

    About the Author:
    Chandra Lynn is a certified transformation coach, speaker, and founder of Glow Living. She’s the author of Root-to-Rise: How to Love Life, a soulful personal growth guide to help people navigate emotional hurdles, life transitions, and personal reinvention. Through her coaching programs and writing, she empowers women to reconnect with their authentic selves and rise with purpose.

    Learn more about Root-to-Rise and get your copy here.

  • When was your last “happy dance”?

    When was your last “happy dance”?

    When was the last time you did a “happy dance”?

    If it’s been a while, you may be limiting your joy. There are a lot of reasons why we place limits on expressing our joy, and most of the time, we don’t even know we are doing it.

    If you can relate to this and crave the feeling that comes from dancing like no one is watching, it may be worth looking at it more closely. Here are two big areas that may be holding you back…

    1. Who are you spending the majority of your time with, and is there any reason why being happy around them feels uncomfortable? For example, if you are partnered with someone going through a hard time or illness, it may seem insensitive to express happiness about things in your life.

    In this case, talk to them about it because it could be feeding into a cycle of them, in turn, not wanting to show happiness around you for the same reasons. See if there is a possibility that you can make a pact to consciously show more joy and happiness to raise each other’s vibrations.

    2. Do you take time to stop and celebrate the successes in your life? We can place a lot of demands on ourselves and feel like our To Do lists are as long as Santa’s scroll. When overwhelmed, checking one box doesn’t seem like enough to stop and celebrate. However, many things on that list deserve to be acknowledged or celebrated when accomplished.

    Consider whether some of the things on your list are worthy of a reward and determine it in advance. Make sure to give yourself the reward when you accomplish it, and tell your partner or a friend to help celebrate it with you or make sure you do.

    You deserve to celebrate how awesome you are! Figure out what you deem worthy of placing special emphasis on and make it happen. Don’t wait around for someone to reward you. Reward yourself and be your own best friend!

  • Podcast: Break It Down Show Interviews Chandra Lynn

    Podcast: Break It Down Show Interviews Chandra Lynn

    After booking several clients on The Break It Down Show including Guitarist Andy Summers (The Police) and Record Producers Dave Aude, Joe Solo and Tim Kelley, I got my own slot!

    Producer Pete A. Turner and I talk about the music industry, coaching, life balance, charitable giving, and a few other interesting topics, and give a ton of tips about how to balance your life, grow and rise!

    Check it out here: https://www.breakitdownshow.com/episodes/chandra-lynn-glow-living-music-marketing-and-coaching-life

  • The #1 Google Search for New Years Is…

    The #1 Google Search for New Years Is…

    Guess what New Year’s resolution was the most searched on Google (per data company Quanti)? “Get Healthy” with over 62 million searches. 

    Whether it’s New Years or not, its always a good time to decide to “get healthy”. But what does that really mean? Most people think of it as losing weight. I invite you to consider that its much more.

    Here is a video that I recorded on how I define a healthy lifestyle in an integrated way that positively effects your body, mind and spirit through every day choices. If you want more, watch and then read on.

    To me, getting healthy is really about choosing to make health — mind, body and spirit — a priority in your lifestyle. I run two companies, have a young child, and am challenged with many of the same demands that people put in front of achieving their healthy lifestyle goals. The only difference between me and someone who isn’t healthy and wants to “get healthy” as a resolution is that I started my journey a long time ago with a simple decision to “just do it”…not with a diet or exercise program, but as the center to my entire lifestyle.

    I believe that I can not accomplish all that I do (and want to do) without the energy that can only be cultivated through daily behaviors that support my health. Its at the core of every decision I make…what I put in my mouth, how I exercise that day, what I buy for my home, what products I use on my body, what books I read, what people I hang around, what career goals I make, etc. If its not healthy for me in that moment or for my future self, the answer is likely NO (with the exception of some bubbles with friends to celebrate special life events).

    I want to live a long, happy fulfilled life, and age gracefully. I don’t want to be live with pain. And pain is exactly what I’ve seen in people that have not taken care of themselves. Pain comes in the form of cancer and other diseases or medical issues. It also comes in the form of mental and emotional anguish and suffering. One of my friends who is a hospice nurse told me that not living a healthy life is one of the leading regrets that people have in their final days.

    When I think back to times when I was a bit overweight or feeling sick, it scares me to think of going through that again. There have been times when I’ve beat myself up over being overweight and its damaged my self-esteem. It’s attracted the wrong people and held me back from reaching my full potential. Now, I focus on health and cultivating energy. My body is in balance so I can tackle difficult challenges and I’m less likely to feel depressed or suffer from body image problems. 

    No one wants to suffer, and having suffered in the past, I know it can be a big motivator for making changes. If you have the goal of getting healthy, I invite you to consider what life-long choices you can make for a healthier lifestyle…not just to look better, but to create balance; cultivate energy for tackling your bucket list;  contribute beyond yourself; and focus on other New Year’s Resolution search terms such as:

    • “Get Organized” – over 33 million searches
    • “Live Life to the Fullest” – nearly 19 million searches
    • “Learn New Hobbies” – over 17 million searches
    • “Spend Less/Save More” – nearly 16 million searches
    • “Travel” – nearly 6 million searches
    • “Read More” – over 4 million searches

    These resolutions sound so much better to me than going on some stupid diet! So, if you’re with me but not sure what to do, I can offer you some ideas based on what works for me. There are also a ton of coaches, trainers and pros in this field that you can hire to develop a starting point (I have a few I can recommend). I think there is probably more information on the internet and in the library on this topic than just about anything else. So the info is out there. The next step is trying something and then course correcting. I’ve tried all kinds of things and am constantly dialing in what works for me. Make a commitment to try new things and see what works, even if some things fail. Failure is just an opportunity to learn, so its okay to fail as long as you course correct and focus on perseverance and grit. You’re choosing this for the rest of your life, not just a 12-week “transformation challenge” so be patient and compassionate with yourself.

    In a nutshell, I’m currently following the IIFYM macros calculator by tracking my food on MyFitnessPal, not eating flour or sugar (including alcohol), and working out 5x/week by combining weights, yoga and HIIT training. That can sound severe to some people but I’ve worked up to doing this after years of training. Start with something you can succeed with.

    To learn more about the tools that work for me, check out these articles:

    Health & Fitness Tools – Part 1: Bodybuilding.com & BodySpace
    Health & Fitness Tools – Part 2: Calories & Macros

    Another piece of advice is to NEVER apologize for self-care and prioritizing health over other things. I’ve had friends who have been given a hard time by their partners for “working out too much” or “always being on a diet”. This is unacceptable to me in a partnership because taking care of yourself is like putting your life mask on before putting i on someone else. You have to be in good health to have the energy to help others. Its that simple. If your partner wants more of your time and energy, that’s important to look at and prioritize them by giving them more quality time, but don’t cut off your lifeline to the very thing that makes you attractive…your vitality! You deserve to prioritize yourself first, and that means managing stress and other physical and emotional challenges in a productive and healthy way. 

    Can you see I’m passionate about this subject? I am and that’s why more and more of the content I develop is going to be around defining and living a healthy lifestyle. If you have questions, ideas or topics you’d like me to explore, please let me know. What works works for you? Please share any tips.

    I want the best for you and to see you grow old in a healthy, happy way with me, and for the ones you love!!

  • Grow and Deepen Your Inner Circle of Friends

    Grow and Deepen Your Inner Circle of Friends

    Grow and Deepen Your Inner Circle of Friends
    By Chandra Lynn

    Having worked in music marketing my entire career, my friendships have been with people who largely live outside of my area. Because other aspects of my life were so busy, I didn’t have much time to nourish my local relationships, and honestly, I didn’t know whether I could meet people nearby that I resonated with. After I had a baby 10 years ago, and decided to work from home, I started to feel the need for local friends. I could see the appeal of having somewhere to go, like on the TV show Cheers (but not at a bar), to connect with people. But I needed a like-minded tribe.

    Once I started feeling the need for close personal relationships with local friends, I opened up to the possibility of meeting people through yoga and the gym, and also reconnecting with friends that I met in past jobs, school, and in my younger years. The amazing thing was how many quality souls were also open to connecting and forming new friendships.

    After years of going to the gym and not meeting anyone, I met a small group of women in my yoga class that changed my life dramatically. We not only did yoga, we found ways to connect and get to know each other. We connected about health and fitness, intimate relationships, and helped each other find our passions in our careers and in the artistic world. We supported each other through divorces, career changes, child-rearing issues and much more. We also learned how to have fun together with trips to hot springs, yoga workshops, frivolous photo shoots, and girl’s nights out. Some of us gather to create women’s circles where we explore topics such as spirituality, personal growth, rituals and other things that support our lives in reaching our goals and potential.

    Now, instead of going to bars to party, we look forward to our circles and our fun times together, and we don’t need alcohol to have fun. Don’t get me wrong, we’re known to throw back bottles of champagne, but we don’t need it to feel high on anything but the connection that we have in the deep love and support that we bring to each other’s lives.

    shaktiI call this close circle of friends my Shakti Sisters. They know who they are and how much they mean to me because we don’t live in the land of the unspoken. We tell each other what we mean to our lives and actively plan time to spend together because we desire the connection and how much we can learn from each other’s differences and core competencies.

    If you would like to cultivate a close circle of friends like this, I recommend the following:

    Open yourself up to the possibility that the woman standing next to you in yoga class, at the supermarket, or picking kids up from school could be your new bestie. Obviously not everyone is going to connect at that high of a frequency. However, it starts with you being open to the possibility and attracting new friends.

    Ask them a question about themselves to show your interest. How they answer will tell you a lot about them. Through a dialogue with them, you can sense their energy and whether they are somebody that you would like to learn more about.

    pyramidIf this new acquaintance seems interesting, invite them to coffee or happy hour to discuss something you have in common, like yoga, your kids, your careers, or other hobbies.

    Follow up quickly to set a time and have a relaxed approach to the experience. They may or may not be somebody that you’ll want to keep in touch with after the initial meeting. But if they are, you can connect through social media and invite them to events or other things that you think they may be interested in.

    Friendships take time to build and some people are more open than others. And if they can’t make a meeting, it may be that they are super busy even though they do want to get to know you. So try again. But if they seem like they’re too busy for you after a couple offers then they are not in the same place with welcoming new friends and allocating time for them as a priority.

    One of the most amazing experiences with this has been the women that I’ve met through other women. Many times when you really connect with someone, they have friends that are also like-minded and may even connect with you on a deeper level than the person that you met through. So check out their friend groups by participating in things that they invite you to as well.

    friendsI always suggest new friends discuss some things that are normally a bit unspoken, like how often they are available to stay connected. Sometimes they want to text all the time and sometimes they only can meet with you a couple times a week and use texting just to confirm logistics. Everyone has personal preferences for how they’d like to communicate and how much time they have to spend. It’s important to honor that and also be clear in your communication about your own preferences. This safeguards the relationship from communication problems down the road because each person knows what to expect and the best ways to communicate with each other.

    Romantic relationships and jobs come and go, but true friends will stand by you as witnesses and supporters for your entire life. If you do the work of communicating properly, nurturing a relationship, staying connected, and keeping the give and take balance in check, your friendships can offer the most fun, supportive and enlightening experiences of your life.

  • Life Lessons

    Life Lessons

    The universe is ever expanding, and on this New Years morning I took stock in all of the ways that I expanded in 2018. It was way more than I realized, and here are a few of my lessons learned so that you can hopefully grow from them too:

    1. I went on a trip to Iceland with three besties. It was a destination that they wanted to check off their bucket list, and in all honesty, I hadn’t given it much thought before they brought it up. It ended up being one of the best trips of my life, and it added adventure, beauty, connection to nature and friends, and amazing memories to my life. This experience taught me to OPEN MYSELF UP to other people’s ideas and ALLOW for new experiences that push beyond my boundaries. 

    2. I had the goal of finishing my Root-to-Rise course in 2018 and I’d say its about 95% done. It was a WAY bigger effort than I ever thought. When people asked about its readiness, I’d feel a bit embarrassed that it was taking so long to complete. Then I realized that, for the second time in my life, I was in a birthing process that couldn’t be rushed. The first time what when I had my son Kai. There was no way around the 9 months it took for him to be born. Root-to-Rise started as one course that grew to a two-part course for training individuals, and now has an additional version for corporate wellness. It was like thinking you had one baby and finding out its twins! I learned a lot from this process:

    • Its difficult for force patience, so instead I focus on Abayasa…persistent effort. Making some progress every day helped me feel like I was in the flow, and allowed me to get excited about what I was creating instead of frustrated by how long it was taking.
    • I have to do things I’m not good at or comfortable with in order to achieve my goals. For example, to finish the courses, I had to spend a whole day shooting direct-to-camera teaching videos. I had to get over how I came across on camera and being perfect at my delivery. I just focused on my intention to help people love life, and that the videos would be part of the legacy I’d leave behind.
    • I have wisdom that is worthy of sharing. Some creators face imposter syndrome, and there were times when I felt insecure about the value of what I was offering. Its now been validated by students and I feel sure of myself and what I’ve created.

    Watch the new 5-minute Root-to-Rise video!

    3. With my increased focus and dedication to Glow Living, my client work for Glow Marketing started to dry up which left me at a deficit every month. I experienced more financial insecurity than I’ve felt in a long time, and its been scary. What I learned is that there is an abundance out there, even when we see scarcity on the news and all around us. Its up to us to be resourceful, apply ourselves, and stay true to what we really want in life even when it means investing through lean times.

    These are just a few of my many life lessons this year. I’d love to hear yours so that we can learn from each other to grow and expand. 

    Get ready for a lot of messages about Root-to-Rise this year. My hope is that each of you take the course, either in person or online, so that we can all RISE together in 2019 and beyond. 

    Love Life. Love you!

    Chandra
     
     #roottorise #lovelife

  • Is it time to rethink weight loss?

    Is it time to rethink weight loss?

    We have this one precious, miraculous body to fuel us each day to do the things we deem are important and vital to our personal life. I know it can be complicated, and may at times seem impossible to create a body and life you love. I am not here to talk you into believing that achieving your ideal weight is simple. However, this is no reason to give up or continue to be frustrated with the situation, as I believe that success and getting there is more than feasible.

    Believe it or not, I get it. I have struggled with low self-esteem, binge eating, and depression. No matter how well I ate, exercised, and enjoyed the process,  I was never able to feel “happy” or “good enough” in my own skin.  I had no reason to feel negative but being fit, and lean in my mind was not “good enough”.

    My ideal self-image was never “good enough” – Comparison drowned me

    I constantly was comparing myself to others. My unhappiness and feeling of lack had nothing to do with my physical body, I created a sense of self-loathing by always trying to look better, and the moment I decided to act more from a place of self-care and nurturing, I stopped the comparison game and focused on being healthy and happy.

    I have worked with many clients who go through the same struggles with their bodies, who have “tried” everything from giving up sugar, to changing their exercise routine, to drinking plenty of water and they still can’t seem to make any lasting or significant changes they are pleased with. Why? With the demands of family, work, friends, volunteer activities, events and more the overwhelm and pressure which equals stress place an impact on the physical body and our weight.

    Let’s look at things a bit differently.

    Here a few simple strategies you can implement, and rethink how you look at weight loss and a healthy body.

    What’s healthiest and best for one person doesn’t mean it is for you.

    We all know there is no “magic pill”, and that the latest and greatest trend in “diets” is not the perfect fit for everyone. There is no one thing in nutrition and fitness that works for everyone. It is wise to educate yourself on healthy living and I recommend you see what feels right for you, and encourage you to “try” out different ideas for you own health. Be open minded about seeing what will work for you outside the walls of what is the most popular weight-loss and fitness advice.

    Your body has innate wisdom, can you hear it?

    This is really one of my favorite anecdotes for getting in tune with what is best for our own body. Think about how miraculous your body is, how it manages and handles thousand of intricate process by the milliseconds.  For almost 10 years I had horrific stomach problems, and anemia most of my life, my digestive system was trying to tell me something. Then in early 2002, I was diagnosed with Celiac Sprue. Of course, not everyone will have an autoimmune disorder, but it took me almost 10 years to get diagnosed. Had I been a bit more in tune I could have saved myself years of agony. Listen to your body and how it responds to certain foods, drinks, your breath, and your thoughts, I can almost guarantee it will give you clues.

    Your relationship with food and your body impacts your health and body more powerfully than the food you eat.

    This is a powerful concept to grasp. When someone truly understands this all of a sudden their entire struggle with their weight and body changes, the stress and anxiety are released and they are able to seek what they desire for their health with much more ease.

    When we feel anger, resentment and/or stress our physical body is “fighting” to do its job. This stress can affect our ability to digest food and it’s nutrients properly, decrease nutrient absorption, increase cortisol production (therefore belly fat), decrease gut flora, which leads to immune problems, decrease nutrient absorption, decreased gut flora which can lead to immune problems, decrease in thyroid hormone which can lead to a slower metabolism, and a decrease in thermic efficiency (calorie burn is diminished).  When the relationship with food and body shifts to positive and empowering beliefs the body can work to the greatest potential.

    What these few strategies offer is a unique way to stress less, eat healthily, and quit the constant battle of trying to lose weight. These may be part of the perfect solution to achieve those physical, emotional, mental and lifestyle goals you have had for years.

    Believe in your innate ability and strength. What if you could trust yourself to make the best choices for your body, mind, and soul? Imagine you are living and feeling the way you desire. I believe in you.

    Written by Deb Gutierrez
    Follow her blog Solful Life