Empower Yourself This Lent

Lent is traditionally a time of fasting and in popular culture has become a time of giving something up like chocolate, alcohol, or swearing for 40 days and nights. It's become so wide-spread that it not only reaches the religious communities, but has become a popular yearly tradition for pretty much everybody in the western world.

This tradition has evolved so much from it's pagan roots through religions and cultures and I like take it a step further. Instead of giving up something, I like to adopt something into my routine. This can be anything you like... perhaps something you've had on the back burner for a while; drink those 2 litres of water every day, run for 20 minutes each morning, read a chapter of that book you've been meaning to get through, take 30 minutes of 'me-time' in the evenings... It's a great time to really focus on what's important to you in your life and have something to look forward to achieving each day.

I like this tradition because, unlike new years resolutions, there is an end in sight... we know that come Easter we will be off the hook with no guilt attached. However, it's still long enough for us to form a routine and by the end of the 40 days we are more likely to keep up our resolution (after all, it only takes 28 days to form a habit for life). But the pressure is off.

So this year I am resolving that I will adopt yoga and meditation into my daily routine. These are both practices I love to dip into when my mind and body is tired, sore, foggy, or lacking motivation, but I feel it's important to keep up these practices to prevent rather than treat those symptoms. Adding a minimum of 20 minutes of yoga and 10 minutes of meditation to my every day is something I feel happy and excited about... not cheated or burdened by... and I cant wait to give myself this gift and reap the benefits.