12 Days of Self-Regulation...

as opposed to the 12 Days of Christmas! I will be giving you the gift of 12 short practice videos to try out tools and take mindful mini-breaks during the holiday season, which I hope will be more helpful to you than some random birds and such in the song. This article's picture is of a partridge, in what I can only assume must be a pear tree 🤣

I will be sharing the videos from this 12 Days of Self-Regulation Challenge on both YouTube and Instagram- you can find me in both places with the handle Military Yogini. I even figured out how to turn on my YouTube community so people can post and comment about their experiences ☺️

The intention of the challenge

I previously wrote about the importance of frequency over duration when you are setting up your mindfulness, or self-regulation, or yoga, or any other kind of regular habit or practice. Little moments add up over time, and especially in the hustle and bustle of the holidays, little moments may be all that we can get! So what a great way to try out new tools, or shorter practices of tools you are already using from my previous shares. The intention is to help you build up your practice by practicing a little bit every day while trying out different tools. And give you the opportunity to take a beat during the hustle and bustle of the holiday season.😅

If you do one practice every day (we are talking three minutes or less a day, folks) that will be 12 days of 12 reps 💪of practicing being mindfully in the moment. That repetition goes a long way in rewiring the brain to actually think to do those practices when you need them in the moment. And honestly its more mindfulness and self-regulation than most people will practice in their lifetimes! If you don't like the practice for the day, just do another one for a second time for that day's rep.

EXTRA CREDIT: For my over-achievers out there, you get extra credit if you try just three additional practice sessions over the 12 days. That might look like doing a challenge practice an extra time- especially if you liked it, your brain is gonna be like "FUN LETS DO THAT AGAIN" which is a powerful tag for the future, taking advantage of the brain's innate neuroplasticity and orientation to "feels good = do again." It also might look like you finding a longer version of a practice you liked anywhere on the internets or apps, or- shameless self-promotion alert- poking around on my YouTube channel for a practice you'd like to try (or try again!) 😇

My rough map for practices for the challenge

I thought it might be fun to share with y'all the little map I made for the challenge. What do you see that you are excited to try? Is there anything not on there you would like to add? Just reply to this email with your thoughts to share your feedback! Or comment on the post in my YouTube community 😉

Day 1 Practice Video

So here it is for y'all, the first day of the challenge!! I will check back in with next week's newsletter to see how its going for you. Hope your holiday season is more merry than mayhem til then! Happy practicing everyone 🌞

In deepest gratitude,

💖Carly

Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter!! If you know anyone who would benefit, I would be delighted if you shared the love and passed it along 🙏

You can find me on YouTube and Instagram with my Military Yogini handle, I'd love to connect with you there!

I greatly appreciate any feedback, comments, or requests for practices/info. I've got a lot of knowledge and skills to share with people, so tell me what ya need and we'll see what I can do!! Simply respond to this email to send me your thoughts 😊