Self Care with Andrea
Self Care is more than a buzzword. It means different things to different people. It is revolutionising the way we understand health and healing. Over time, we have understood that you can only really help another when you have helped yourself.
For this particular piece, we reached out to Andrea from Samadi Bali to share her journey and her self-care practices with us.
Ever since I was 2, my mother made sure I had sports activities to keep me busy and fit. Since I was born and raised bred in Sweden, ice skating was a natural choice for us, so mum made sure I had the smallest ice skating boots the shop could offer and I would go regularly. From there it went to dancing swimming, soccer, basketball, and anything I would be up for trying. I was a very active kid and movement (of any kind) has always played a big role in my life.
My daily rituals.
I wake up at 4 am, drink a big glass of water and a small coffee or a tea to kick start. Every morning I collect Frangipani flowers fallen from the trees, to take to the altar, where I give gratitude for this beautiful gift called life.
My yoga practice is vigorous most of the times unless I feel my female cycle calls for more of a shanti approach, then I slow it all down.The practice takes between 1,5-2 hours.
After I finish I spend another 15 minutes chanting, which is not only a means for me to meditate but also to use my breath appropriately, my teacher would say its a form of pranayama.
Food: After yoga, I have breakfast which usually consists of a fruit salad with granola, nuts and seeds and some yoghurt and I drink 2 litres of coconut water a day in addition to my regular water consumption.
I only eat twice a day- most days consist of breakfast and a late lunch. My digestive system is slow and I feel sluggish in the morning if I have dinner. Though if I feel hungry, naturally I do eat, again. I find it is very important to listen to the body and to eat intuitively.
My daily diet consists of mainly vegetarian food, but sometimes I do eat fish. I do not eat meat, as I simply do not trust the meat industry, the hormones, antibiotics and keeping animals in confined unhealthy spaces, putting any of that in my mouth feels unethical and unhealthy altogether.
Positive thinking is a great contributor to my healthy lifestyle, I fully believe a healthy mind is a healthy body. That is not to say that I suppress emotions of sadness and negativity, but rather try to look at it and find the source of these emotions, and more importantly let it out, either by talking about it to dear friends, or simply cry it out. However always taking responsibility for my emotions, and knowing that I can change the way I look at things in order to feel positive.
Connections with people are very important to me. Valuable conversations, and exchanges to learn and grow, as I only have this life I do not want to waste my time with superficial interactions.
Keeping a creative flow, I design yoga clothes, jewellery and love taking photos. it is my creative outlet.
I am curious by nature, I like to explore, travel, this I feel keeps me young and excited about life along with everything else I add to my lifestyle.
About Andrea:
Andréa began her Ashtanga yoga journey in 2006 in Barcelona, Spain. She makes bi-yearly trips to study under Sharath Jois at the Sri. K. Pattabhi Jois Ashtanga Yoga Institute (KPJAYI) in Mysore, India. When not in the shala practising asanas, Andrea is researching philosophy and partaking in chanting practice. She has since been blessed to teach as an authorised level 2 Ashtanga teacher through KPJAYI in Mysore, India. Andrea completed her certification in Life Coaching with the Noble Manhattan in the UK in 2009 and often uses the combination of yoga, travel, coaching and of course natural maturity as a tool to support her Yoga Students off the mat. Today, she shares her own experiences from her personal and professional life while learning from people, languages and cultures from all corners of the world. She also believes in a power switch inside everyone and when you can switch that on, life flows in a new way.
