Sometimes you just need a reset
Plus the usual mind–body science highlights
It’s incredibly easy to get stuck in a rut or a routine. We just keep doing what we’re doing because that’s how we’ve always done it or how we think we like things done. In behavioural science, we call this the ‘status quo bias’ – the preference for sticking to things as they are. And it’s sometimes combined with omission bias – the preference for inaction (ie not making a change) vs action because we deem the former to be less harmful than the latter – to make a broader preference for inertia.
If these sound familiar, don’t worry, they are incredibly common (in fact, in healthcare, where I do most of my research work) they are two of the most common biases we see among healthcare professionals (and patients). You can read more about this here if you are interested.
I’m not going to lie, I’ve felt a bit stuck in both my yoga practice and my yoga teaching; little uninspired, a little meh about the whole thing and a little worried that this is making me a bad teacher because I’m struggling to maintain a personal practice. I had started to accept that maybe this is how things were going to be from now on, including simply being terrible at maintaining a meditation practice.
Thankfully, I broke the bias – I guess the first step to change is recognising the problem, and the second step is to see an opportunity to be nudged out of your meh. So, rather impulsively, I joined Jason Crandell’s ‘Mind–Body Reset’ in February, and this felt like a complete gift – an affirmation that this feeling is normal, that it’s ok when this happens and that there are things you can try to enjoy your practice again (like, for example, not making your personal practice a replica of what you teach in a class, and more disorganised, playful and aligned with a challenged). For me, this includes making the time to go to more classes and workshops (and for the meditation, I think ideally this will also potentially mean joining a sitting group, even if online).
What routine is leaving your unsatisfied? Are you guilty of status quo and omission bias, and could you make a small change to get you out of this routine?
Also
Here are some suggestions from the Conversation on what to do to get yourself out of a funk (which is a close relative to the rut or unsatisfactory routine). I would add ‘try something new’ to this list as this can sometimes get us in a different headspace and open our minds to new possibilities.
This book has some very interesting examples of ways other people have gotten unstuck (including a really cool one of how REM wrote ‘Losing my religion’). Now, I gave this book 3.5 stars; however this was because I was familiar with most of the content already, and I do think it could be incredibly valuable for someone who isn’t.
If you want to stimulate your brain by learning about something truly random, then I definitely recommend listening to the Ologies podcast. I know I have recommended it many times before, but honestly, it is the perfect antidote to ‘meh’. A recent favourite was the ‘Witchologies’ double episode, which, yes, is all about witches and made me want to be a witch too.
Looking for a reset?
Join me for 5 days of joy, a simple daily practice of reading, pausing and (optional) writing (plus guided meditations) – absolutely free! Launching soon – you’ll need to subscribe separately from this newsletter. Details to follow.
Special events, workshops etc
International women’s day
Free class on International women’s day! Join me in this lovely new studio in Muswell Hill for either yin, yoga nidra or both. Plus there are plenty of other classes to try out, and cake of course. Spaces are limited so book now.
Yoga and the immune system workshops
Melanie and I are continuing our workshops this year, focusing (by popular demand) on the following themes:
Depression, inflammation & yoga (provisional date June 14th)
Sleep, the immune system and how yoga can help (provisional date October 18th)
The gut microbiota (provisional date 13/12)
Each workshop will include a short and accessible talk on the science around the topic, linking it back to the mind–body of course, following with tips and tricks on how to incorporate to your teaching and practice, and a lovely practice led by Melanie. Booking details to come soon, but save the dates in your diaries in the meantime.
Also – new classes!
I’ve got two new classes, so that’s two more opportunities to practice with me.
Slow flow, Tuesday 5.15pm at Moreyoga Winchmore Hill – one for beginners and for those who enjoy a more gentle and delicate flow as their practice
Yin and Yoga Nidra at L’Atelier in Muswell Hill – a beautiful intimate studio (only 12 spots) at the heart of Muswell Hill; details TBC but likely Fridays at 6.15pm)
Mind–body science highlights
An HRV extravaganza this month! HRV (or heart rate variability) is a measure of how quickly the body can recover from stress (which is indicative of resilience) – the higher the HRV, the higher the resilience. And increasing HRV seems to be a crucial way by which mind–body practices exert their beneficial effects on our health. So here are some ways that mind–body practices can make us more resilient to stress and how this can improve our wellbeing.
Chanting for mental and brain health
When I first came across this study, I thought it was about sound meditation (which is basically what everyone talks about these days). But actually, mind sound resonance technique, or MSRT, is basically chanting Om (or Aum) out loud and also then silently. Here, the scientists found that MSRT improved HRV and led to cognitive improvements too, compared to baseline and to a control group where participants took rest lying down. I don’t have access to the full paper, but it would be interesting to also see what they measured in the cognitive function tests. I also wonder if you could get the same results with Bhramari pranayama as presumably the effect comes from the vibration.
A single session of yoga nidra reduces blood pressure and increases HRV
Ok, I’m going to start with the caveat, which is that this was a small study (32 participants), there was no control to compare with and only looked at one session of yoga nidra. However, it’s a cool finding, especially given that this was a quite short yoga nidra session (just 16 minutes) – goes to show that you don’t need a lot of this practice to get the calming benefits.
Yoga increases HRV in women going through PMS
Another small (just 49 participants) and uncontrolled study, but included because it might be useful to know that a gentle yoga practice could help improve overall PMS and wellbeing.
Yoga and meditation offer improvements in Parkinson’s disease
I wish I had access to this one, as it’s actually fairly well designed and compares yoga, meditation and controls, for their effects on anxiety, depression, motor symptoms (ie relating to movement), health-related quality of life (ie the perception of how your health impacts your quality of life) and… inflammation! Both yoga and meditation offered improvements in anxiety, motor symptoms (which is quite exciting if it can be replicated), health-related quality of life and one of the measures of inflammation. Only meditation offered improvements in depression though. There are nuances also in how the interventions affected patients with different progressions of the condition.
Until next month!