Cheryl Thomas, RYT
www.cherylthomas.com yoga@cherylthomas.com 415-308-3377 |
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Maybe it was Psych 101 or Intro to Early Child Education. Many of us are familiar with the Marshmallow Test. Generally, researchers they put kids alone in a room with one marshmallow. They're asked to wait 15 minutes without eating the marshmallow. If they're successful, researchers would give them a second one. This video says it all as the squirming and grimacing and face-making these tortured kids do. It's all they can (or not) to avoid eating the white, powdery, all-sugar treat staring at them from the white paper plate. Look at these kids struggling like crazy, digging deep to conjure up every bit of self-control all the while wanting/needing that white ball of sweetness.
In 1970 two researchers from Stanford wanted to understand more about deferred gratification or the ability to wait to obtain something one wants. The used children ages four to six as subjects. In over 600 children who took part in the original experiment, a minority ate the marshmallow immediately. Of those who attempted to delay, one third deferred gratification long enough to get the second marshmallow.
[1] Age was a major determinant of deferred gratification.
Does any of this behavior as a child show up as adults? Not surprisingly, yes. Preschoolers who waited the longest have higher SAT scores than the ones who couldn't wait. There's more. They're thinner, earned more
advanced degrees and used less cocaine and coped better with stress.
But all is not grim for those who felt that one marshamllow in the mouth is better than two two. The upside is that Self Control Can Be Taught and we can learn something from the kids. The children who were most successful took similar tactics. According to a recent NYT article, they "turn their back on the cookie, push it away, pretend it's something non-edible like a piece of wood, or invent a song. Instead of staring down at the cookie, they transfer it into something with less a throbbing pull on them."
Does this translate into our lives somehow? Of course. Picture yourself staring at the ubiquitous basket of bread that quickly arrives on your table, "before" the meal when we're at our hungriest? Can you feel yourself going through the mental and maybe physical gyrations of the kids. Again, the NYT serves up with a few suggestions, "Don't eye the basket of bread; just take it off the table. . . When a waiter offers a chocolate mousse, imagine that a cockroach has just crawled across it."
We have two parts of our brain, the limbic system that wants immediate gratification and the prefrontal cortex that's goal oriented. We can train the prefrontal cortex to kick in first, thus avoiding the debilitating hangover or the always tempting chocolate banana bread pudding. The article suggests that we don't have to be victims of our emotions. We have a prefrontal cortex that can evaluate that's good for us. This is harder for children, of course, but we're not children.
The NYT article gives some suggestions on how to play with our minds to use the prefrontal cortex to make good decisions:
"To do this, use specific if-then plans, like "If it's before noon, I won't check email" or "If I feel angry, I will count backward from 10." Done repeatedly, this buys a few seconds to at least consider your options. The point isn't to be robotic and never eat chocolate mousse again. It's to summon self-control when you want it, and be able to carry out long-term plans."
What's your marshmallow? Is it Three Twins Sea Salted Caramel Ice Cream or your ever so precious new iPhone 6?
Here's another video. It's TedTalk with video of the original study are about half way.
Want to read some of my past articles?. They're archived right here. Enjoy.
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Did you know we have an awesome yoga program in the Town of Graton. Just go to www.yogaingraton.com and see the classes and teachers. I'm there with a bunch of fabulous yogis every Thursday morning at 8:45. And, in Graton, Corina Stoicescu is offering her popular Moving Into Stillness - Yoga for Meditation series, 10/13 and 11/10. Also, Workshops 10/19 on Upper Back and Shoulder Care and 11/16 on Balance and Core Strengthening. More at YogaWithCorina.com. Be there. New to Alive Yoga is Anusara-inspired teacher, Shyama. Teacher for over 15 years, Shyama has studied with John Friend and Mark Whitwell, Iyengar Yoga, Sivananda (Advanced) and Integral Yoga. She also has a Prenatal Certification. Glad to have you back teaching, Shyama! Westside Yoga Studio in Sebastopol has some new classes and teachers. In addition to ever-popular Anne Austin on Thursday and Saturdays, Erica Magill offers Intro to Ashtanga, Sunday and Wednesday, Cindy Sims delivers Ashtanga Levels 1/2 on Fridays and Tessa Manning brings more Iyengar Yoga. Johnny Smith Ashtangis: Sunday morning Led Primary will be the First Sunday of the Month at Westside Yoga. The remainder will be Mysore practice from 8-10. Thanks, Johnny, for your dedication to the practice and your students. Aerial Yoga.....you know you want to try it. The lovely Amy Charnay offers classes at Devi Yoga Center and beyond. Find her schedule here. YOGA TEACHERS!!! I pinch myself when I think about the selection of fine yoga teachers right here in the North Bay. Tony Briggs is offering series of gatherings for yoga teachers who want to further and define their teaching skills. This is not to be missed. See below for more or Mr. Brigg's website. MORE yoga in Santa Rosa. In addition to OneTree, and 2UpYoga, a new, new studio opens at Yulupa and Bethards, Soul Yoga. Flow and Power is on the menu. Check it out. October 18 is the date for Anne O'Brien's next offering at YogaOne in Petaluma. It happens from 3-5. Get it on your calendar.
Sonoma Yoga Fest! in Sonoma is happening late October 31 - Nov 2. http://www.sonomayogafest.com/. Lots of yoga and music. Check it out.
My weekly schedule is below (scroll down or click here!). Or, you can always go to my website and click on the always up-to-date calendar to find where I might be.
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  Yoga Teachers Consultation Group with Tony Briggs
Teaching yoga is a lonely profession for some. We show up, teach and leave. Beyond our trainings and workshops, we don't often share time with other teachers. "We're pretty much on our own with whatever frustrations or perplexities come up in our classes," offers Tony Briggs.
Mr. Briggs is offering an 8-week series beginning Oct 27 at Westside Yoga Studio in Sebastopol at the accessible hour of 1:30 - 3:30 on Mondays. Together we will improve our eye-sight and insight, review giving clear and compelling instructions, learn to support our students with touch and adjustments, and share sequencing and linking poses. This is rich stuff, especially studied together with the experience and knowledge of peers. There's more info on Mr. Brigg's site. I'll be there for sure. |
 Overhauling End of Life Care
More end-of-life talk. I think it's a needed conversation, as a record number of folks enter old age. Here's an excerpt from the recommendation of a panel urging overhauling our health care at the end of life.
Palliative care skills should be extensively taught in medical, nursing and social work schools, the panel recommended, something that Dr. Meier said would "require a revolution in health care education." Many doctors are uncomfortable or ill equipped when it comes to broaching the subject. To ensure consistency and quality of palliative care, there should be "pretty dramatic change in all the certifying boards, accrediting boards and regulatory entities," Dr. Pizzo said.
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 Like a Corpse
Savasana, the final rest in yoga, is the most anticipated pose. The Sanskrit translation is "corpse pose" because we are practicing letting go, surrendering, or being like a corpse. Here's a good article in YogiTimes:
We are the only creatures on Earth that know we are going to die. Every moment of every day we are one day closer to death. And how we normally deal with death is by avoiding it in ourselves and in others. The true yogi takes the opposite path. To be a yogi is to stare death in the face and let the layers of fear and desire that binds us to our ego dissolve or be routed out through discipline. That takes a lot of courage. -
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 The Larger Your Friends, The More You Eat
Science Daily arrives periodically in my inbox with wonderful snippets about the latest research on Stress and Living Well. Here's the article and the summary about the influence of those around you during mealtime. "Have you ever ordered more food at a restaurant than you intended? There are elements of dining rooms that actually prime you to eat more food. One such element is the weight of those dining with or near you. A new study found that the body type of your dining partner, or that of those dining nearby, may actually influence how much you serve yourself and how much you eat."
Interesting, I'm find I do the opposite. If I'm with some salad eaters, I have a tendency to order the fried calamari and top it off with bread pudding for dessert. With hefty eaters, maybe just a soup. Hum, I don't know why.
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Daily Dharma - Tricycle Magazine
October 3, 2014
Too Busy Talking to Ourselves
Most of us are too busy talking to ourselves to even contemplate what might be vivid and apparent should we ever learn to shut up.
- Bonnie Myotai Treace, Sensei, "The Sword Disappears in the Water"
Read it here.
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Schedule of Upcoming Classes
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Week of October 12, 2014
Monday
9:30 - 10:30
Glen Ellen, Private
Tuesday
4:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Healdsburg, Private
Wednesday
4:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Windsor, Private
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Thursday
8:45 - 9:45,
Graton Community Club, Graton
Gentle Flow - All Levels
4:00 - 5:00
Healdsburg, Private Friday
4:30 - 5:30 Glen Ellen, Private
Saturday
9:00 - 10:30
YogaOne, Petaluma
All Levels Flow
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Week of October 19, 2014
Tuesday
4:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Healdsburg, Private
Wednesday
4:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Windsor, Private
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Thursday
8:45 - 9:45
Graton Community Club, Graton
Gentle Flow - All Levels
4:00 - 5:00
Healdsburg, Private
Saturday **To be Subbed**
9:00 - 10:30
YogaOne, Petaluma
All Levels Flow
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Graton Yogis Info:
Did you know your class pass (get these from your instructor) are accepted by all yoga teachers at Yoga in Graton?
We Gratonite Yogis have a place to call our own. It's www.
yogaingraton.com. There is information about current and new yoga classes offered in Graton.
Don't live in Graton? No problem. We want you to come anyway.
You cannot be lost if you don't care where you are.
Judith Lasater
When people ask me what equipment I use, I tell them my eyes.
Ansel Adams
"Not to have what we want is stressful; to have what we do not want is stressful." Buddha
Dalai Lama: "If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion."
"Everything will be alright in the end. And if it is not alright, it's not yet the end!" The Magnolia Hotel movie
If your Food can go bad, it's good for you. If it can't go bad, it's bad for you. Originally pinned by Michael Leaming, Ed.D. onto Fitness, Nutrition & Wellness
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