Come to Cosmo's Fun Fearless Life Weekend to hear more tips for health and happiness. Buy your tickets at FunFearlessLife.com.
Tara Stiles has a few straightforward ideas about yoga: Linger where it feels good to linger. Move with ease and calm. Don't force it. Those basic principles evolved into Strala — a movement system that began in her cramped NYC apartment and grew into a global following. Stiles' newest book, Make Your Own Rules Diet, hits stores November 11, and while the recipes are good, it's her easygoing frankness about fitness and food that has contributed to her success.
Here, she shares her top tips for sticking with a healthy lifestyle long-term.
1. Stop With the "Eat This" / "Not That" Talk
"It's really about taking care of yourself and taking time for yourself," Stiles explains. Think of it this way: Your body wants to feel good. And despite what that Oreo cheesecake and frozen strawberry marg might be whispering to you, those won't leave you feeling great in the morning.
"Your mind is just in the way sometimes. If you're giving it sugar and caffeine, you'll feel good temporarily, but not long-term," Stiles says.
Think of your mind and bod as a married duo. In it for the long haul. Make decisions that will impact you positively down the road — not just in the immediate future. Bonus: Those healthier eating patterns have a positive impact on your productivity and daily attitude.
2. Give Yourself Permission to Indulge
Forgive yourself for occasional indulgences. Stiles constantly travels for work (like, seven cities in seven days for her book tour, then jet-setting to London) and lugging a minifridge of kale and blueberries isn't an option.
The alternative? "I always have a bag of mixed nuts, chocolate, and dried fruit," she says. "I'll get the bag that looks the most indulgent at Whole Foods, so I feel like I get something yummy, and then I'm not tempted to just walk over to the fast-food place."
At restaurants, don't be afraid to ask for healthier modifications or items that aren't on the menu. "Sometimes, I'll just ask, for instance, can you make scrambled eggs and a side of greens," says Stiles. Professional kitchens are stocked with all kinds of ingredients. If you travel or have client dinners all the time, ask for a simplified version of something on the menu.
More important though, Stiles stresses not obsessing about food or beating yourself up when you have a decadent meal. Occasional rewards can have a positive effect on our psyche and give us a mini mood boost. "I'm not eating healthy all the time," she says. "That would be super boring."
3. Rethink "Emotional Eating"
Go ahead, get emotional about your food. Think of it this way: If you have a killer salad at lunch and then power through the rest of your day with energy, you feel awesome, right? Start associating positive feelings with the good food you eat.
Stiles' new book addresses that mind-food connection. "The first half of the book is really about taking care of yourself. If you're eating healthy things one day, then not doing it the next because you don't feel like it, maybe something else is going on. [The book] gets to the root of that anxiety and why you're not already [eating well]."
Her current fave recipe is her Veggie Detox Soup (recipe below), which combines curry powder, coconut milk, handfuls of veggies, and hot sauce for a mega-cleansing meal you can make once and eat for days.
4. Tell Yourself Five Minutes Counts
You don't need to spend hours in the gym. OK, you've heard that before, but believe it. If you're a fitness newbie or on a time crunch, try stretching for just five minutes in the morning, five minutes before bed, or both.
And if you're stuck at a desk 24/7, Stiles says, it's especially important to stretch two areas that can hold tension: your shoulders and your hips.
Try these supereasy (and quick) moves to relieve tension and instantly relax.
To open your hips:
Sit in pigeon pose. To get into pigeon pose, start on all fours, then slide your right knee forward, while releasing your left leg back behind you. Square your hips to the ground and sit tall, breathing slowly. Repeat on the other side.
To relieve stress in your shoulders:
Standing in a forward bend, gently clasp your hands behind your back and let them drop forward without forcing them too far. Sway from your hips slowly side to side, keeping your knees loose. Then, lightly release your hands and let your arms come up over your head, down to the floor, still slowly moving side to side.
5. Make Feeling Good Your Goal
Aside from all the physical benefits, regular yoga practice comes with real mood enhancers, Stiles says. Work out for those added benefits, not for a number on a scale.
"Yoga gets you going, and often you feel good right away. That main result — feeling amazing — is why you want to keep going with it," says Stiles.
With regular practice, those mental and emotional positives quickly start carrying over to other parts of your life. Heading into work with a calm mind and easygoing attitude means you're less likely to freak when a last-minute project gets thrown your way. Regularly releasing your body's tension through stretching and yoga means you're less inclined to release it in unhealthy ways (read: too many G&Ts at happy hour).
Catch more of Tara Stiles at the Fun Fearless Life Weekend, where she will lead attendees through an energizing morning stretch (yup, yoga from a chair) and offer tips on how to feel insta-better.
"Getting up and getting your blood flowing is a perfect way to start the day," says Stiles. "Aside from the physical activity, it's the mood enhancements that you'll hang on to for hours."
Veggie Detox Soup
• ½ red onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 cups water or veggie stock
• 4 handfuls chopped veggies
• 2 tablespoons hot sauce
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cup coconut milk
1. Saute onion and garlic in olive oil in a large soup pot.
2. Add the water or veggie stock.
3. Stir in veggies, hot sauce, and spices.
4. Bring the mixture to a boil, and then turn down to low and simmer for 30 minutes.
5. Stir in the coconut milk, and simmer for 10 more minutes.
6. Enjoy blended or as is!
— Excerpted from Make Your Own Rules Diet, by Tara Stiles.
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