A Little, Often: Align + Review

A pair of (90 second) restorative audio practices to bookend your days

A Little, Often is a monthly feature on Balance Practice, offering a (practical) yoga-inspired practice to support you to come into balance off the mat, where it matters most.

I opened this year by seeding the possibility of using rest to frame your year. How’s that going for you?

Rest, yes. The notion of rest guiding your days might seem radical — it is, and it’s not. 

Too often we feel we must wait until all the things are done to allow ourselves respite, or we prolong the rest we so urgently need until we’re ill, injured, or fully burned out. But we don’t have to. Recovery needn’t be relegated to the weekend or rare instance when your to do list is fully ticked off. A few moments in the morning, a few in the evening — and dare I suggest a brief midday pause as well? — hold the power to support you to find a more easeful rhythm as you move through your days.

Align + review

Chances are that you already spend a bit of time scheduling and reflecting. Perhaps that looks like puzzling your calendar together the night before, or quickly skimming your lineup or outstanding tasks while downing your morning coffee? And maybe your work day ends with a brief recap of what you’ve accomplished and what still needs your attention?

What if instead of approaching the acts of planning and reviewing as tasks in themselves, you embraced them as grounding, restorative practices? You can.

Breathe into your day by centering yourself — using your breathing to steady yourself and to more consciously set your state in context of what you have coming up. Later, let go of your day by slowing down significantly — using your breathing to create more space around the buildup of the recent happenings.

Call it meditation if you like, this is really about the deep calming of all your systems that accompanies slowing down, breathing deeply, and paying attention…

Use this brief pair of practices — only 90 seconds each — to align yourself and set the tone for your day ahead, and to wind down and review what has happened. Be guided by the audio practices below (join now if you’re not a a paying member to gain access) or use Daily Anchors, a gentle guide from my new book Move, Rest, Recover that I created to help you use rest to frame your days and year. Free download for Balance Practice members below, including insights, practices, and prompts to support you to move through each day more rested and with more ease.

Let me know how it goes!