Embodied Intentions

Happy New Years Yogis!   I hope your 2026 is off to a Happy and Healthy - if chilly- start.

I am sitting in my kitchen sipping some coffee and planning for the week - trying not to be gripped by the ultimate of "Sunday Scaries."  Is there any greater looming "To Do"  list than the first Monday, post long break, of a brand new year?  

At some point in one of my grad school psychology classes I learned that all people tend to either be future or past oriented and it really stuck with me, as I am someone who has always been more future-oriented.  I generally don't worry too much about what has already happened, but I can tend towards pre-occupation with the future, and I thoroughly enjoy planning.   (My sister still makes fun of me for the "to do" lists I made as a kid that included such important items as "wake up" and "brush teeth" just so I could cross them off )

And yet - looking towards the future in a new year fills me with a bit of dread. It's one thing to plan for my week (and as my mug says "Get Sh*t Done" ) and another to look at the expanse of a new year and think about my "Resolutions" or goals.  

This is where the Yoga  - And Embodied Intentions come in. 

Yoga has been so life changing for me in large part because it has taught me to focus on the present moment. While I still like to plan, through Yoga I have been able to appreciate, and embody, what is happening in the present moment. Now, when looking at the expanse of a new year, I no longer think in terms of "Resolutions".  I still want to set goals for myself and my year, but instead of a To-do list on Steroids, I try to think about how I want to feel - in my heart, and in my body, in each present moment. Rather than for example, " In 2026 I want to Earn More" or, I want to work out 5 times a week, I think about it in terms of a desired feeling: "I want to feel abundant", and "I want to feel strong and energized." It is perhaps a subtle change but, for me at least, it is less overwhelming, and far more embodied.  Where I might not be able to map out a plan for earning more money, or realistically make space for working out 5 days a week, each day I can do something towards feeling abundant, and feeling strong and energized. 

As we kick off this new year, perhaps ask yourself how you want to feel? In your heart, and in your body.  What are the things you can do,  in each present moment, to help attain those feelings?