2011, for me, was a year of learning. and growing.  I almost feel as if I knew all along that it was merely a preparation.  A time to listen, and feel.  To overcome, to persevere, and to clear space for all that is to come in 2012.  And now…. 2012 is here.  So as I tumble out of bed, I feel almost giddy as I down a glass of fresh squeezed OJ (resolution #1 – no diet sodas) and brew my own coffee (resolution #2 and #3– consume less sugar, and don’t squander money at Starbucks for ludicrous half-caff sugar free mochas).

For the New Year, I have resolved to begin each morning by drawing an ‘angel card’ for a daily intention.  These are small cards with one word printed on them…. representing the specific ‘angel’ that is working with you to guide you along your path each day (resolution #4- be open to study and explore my own spirituality).  Today, I decide to shuffle the cards before choosing.  As I do so, I start to feel an inexplicable pressure to choose the right card.  The best card.  I mean… I’m kind of expecting this little card to offer some deeply profound insight for the ENTIRE year.  After all, my friend Katie has told me that she is positive 2012 will be my MIRACLE YEAR.  My friend Cathy has told me that, exactly one year ago, her psychic predicted that 2012 was going to be my YEAR of ABUNDANCE (No pressure).  This card I’m about to pick HAS to be perfect!  But then…. I breathe, and realize that I’m being ridiculous (resolution #5 – stop trying to be perfect, and accept my soul’s inherent perfection).  SO I calmly continue to shuffle, meditating on my intentions as I do so (resolution #6 – practice meditations).  Just then…. a kind of miraculous thing happened.  At least…. I choose to think of it as miraculous (resolution #7- notice, and appreciate small miracles…. they are a key to the divine).  As I am shuffling… 3 cards flip themselves over.  Now… this breaks all the rules (resolution #8 – break more rules) of having to CHOOSE just ONE card, but I harnessed resolutions #7 & #8, and just went with it.

the 3 words facing me were: ABUNDANCE.  AWAKENING.  and AUTHENTICITY.  As I stare at each card, I marvel at the perfection of these words. I look forward to the vast potential of this new year. This fresh start (resolution #9 – learn from the past. Be present. Look forward). It’s beginning to appear that 2012 will… in fact… be my personal MIRACLE YEAR.

ABUNDANCE.  AWAKENING.  AUTHENTICITY. I couldn’t have chosen better myself. Which leads me to notice…. a rather wonderful lesson: sometimes…. The true path to your destiny, means getting out of your own way, and trusting that LIFE…. may have bigger plans for you, than you could ever have imagined for yourself (resolution #10- Trust more.  Fear less) I hope YOUR New Year is….. MIRACULOUS.

Like most of us, I sometimes get swept up in the big picture.  the grand plan.  In that respect, i ABSOLUTELY lead with my heart (sometimes, even at the expense of my head).  I mean, 5 years ago i picked up my life in NYC, packed it in one suitcase, and moved it all the way across the country to LA with no job, no family, and no idea what was in store.  nothing but faith.  I’d say that qualifies as leading with the heart.  BUT…. what about every day tasks?  what about grocery shopping.  or looking for parking?  When i’m doing laundry…. am i doing laundry “with all my heart”? Well… maybe not.  but WHY not?  aren’t we reminded in every yoga class to be present in THIS moment?  if so, wouldn’t it be wise, and maybe even make life a bit more joyful, if we DID do laundry, and buy groceries, and find parking with all our heart?  Every moment we have is a truly special gift.  i mean let’s face it.  all we have to do is turn on the News for 5 minutes to be reminded of how fragile & precarious life is.  and so MUCH of life is spent doing what might be considered menial, or mundane tasks. brushing our teeth, doing the dishes, getting dressed, running errands. but what if they weren’t mundane?  what if we made a conscious effort to make those moments count just as richly as any other?

If we really want to make the most of the time we have, we won’t wait until the weekend, or our vacation, or the fulfillment of all our hopes and dreams, to be happy.  we will create our own happiness NOW, by placing great value on these everyday tasks.  perhaps we can shift our view.  after all…. “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”.  what if…. we could make grocery shopping a reminder of how fortunate we are to be able to put food on the table.  what if brushing our teeth was not just “brushing our teeth”, but rather, a commitment to longevity & wellness in the body. and so on….

so today, maybe make an intention to take the sage advice of Confucius, and “wherever you go, go with all your heart”.  Even if, where you’re going….. is the laundromat.

Today is one of those days, where you have so much on your “to do” list, that you just want to curl up and cannonball directly into a pint of Haagen Dazs double chocolate chip.  I had 6 classes to teach ranging from Yoga to “Burn Bliss” to Core Sport.  By noon, I had taught over 150 people and done at least 679 chaturanga pushups.  I kept powering through my list, item after item, until finally I finished my last appointment of the day.  Approximately 62 items still remained on my list, but I decided that instead of tackling them, I would instead choose to breathe, relax, and enjoy my “blissful activity” of the day:  An Afternoon Hike up Paseo Miramar with a friend.

I was getting picked up at 3:30, and had literally not sat down (unless you count sit-ups and core work as “sitting down”) since 7:30 this morning.  Nonetheless, I knew I would find a restful heart and mind by enjoying the cool, sunny afternoon breeze and the stellar views of the pacific. SO…. I hopped in the car, rolled down the windows, and off we went for an adventure up Sunset and the PCH

The first part of this 5 mile hike is no walk in the park.  Rather, It is a steep uphill climb.  The sun, which was so cool & inviting by the beach, seemed vehemently scorching now as it fogged up my sunglasses and forced beads of sweat down my forehead.  After dozens of warrior series and hundreds of squat presses earlier in the day, I am struggling to keep up with my friend.  Now, He finds this endlessly amusing,…. But as a 6’1” former marine with legs as long as my entire body (I may be exaggerating here just a bit), I feel he has an unfair genetic advantage over me.  I keep falling behind, but after about 20 minutes I’m able to hit my stride and find my breath long enough to notice the extraordinary view of the pacific coastline.

The sky is clear, and the water is a cerulean blue that is a few shades richer than I’ve ever seen it.  We continue our trek straight up the mountain, and I’m surprised by how few people we pass, since this route is usually heavily traversed.  I am struck by the stillness.  By the quiet. By the fact that, in this moment, we seem SO far away from Los Angeles, that I would have believed you if you told me we were journeying up the Amalfi Coast of Italy, or along the Adriatic shores of Croatia.  I allowed myself to get lost in the views, and the smell of fresh air, and the jaunty conversation.  I left all the remaining items on my “to-do” list back at my apartment behind locked doors.  I was able to escape.  To release.  To smile.  To laugh.  And…… to let go.  It was as though this hike was more of a ‘moving meditation’, than a heart-pumping workout.  I allowed myself to dive head-first into this experience…. And to breathe.

We finally reach the lookout point, and sit down on a wooden bench which is “dedicated in memory of”….. someone I don’t know, but who was obviously loved.  As I sit there in a moment of reflection, I realize that….. on this clear day, you actually CAN see forever.  Literally forever, because the views reach from Malibu to Catalina to the Palm Dessert mountains.  Metaphorically forever because, at this moment, it seems SO easy to see Divinity in all this beauty.  Without even trying, you can experience a little piece of enlightenment.

The sun began it’s descent much to quickly for my taste, and we made our way back down the mountain.  This time, in the cool shade of twilight.  Just before we reached the bottom, we heard someone call out “STOP!”.  My heart stopped for a moment as I recalled the “Beware of Mountain Lions” sign at the entrance of the trail.  Just as I was wondering if I could outrun a mountain lion (or at least…… outrun my friend), we got a little closer, and I realized…… it was even worse (at least to a ‘Ophidiophobe’ like me)  A rattlesnake had stretched itself across the entire path.  A big, fat, scary, slithering one.  I froze.  I had never seen one.  At least …. never outside of “Man vs. Wild”, and THAT didn’t turn out so well for “Man”.  I’ll admit it.  I was scared.  The rattle on the tail stopped me dead in my tracks.  My friend, who has seen this dozens of times calmly walked right by the snake, encouraging me to do the same, but I just couldn’t.  for a good 15 seconds I was stone cold still, unable to cross the snake in front of me.  Then I remembered 2 things that I am always reminding myself, and my yoga classes.  “Have faith”, and “face fear”.  So…. I took a deep breath (as my friend Shelly is always reminding me to do) and I rallied my inner strength, as I gingerly (or maybe not so gingerly) sidestepped the obstacle in my path.

Unortunately……I didn’t make it.

Kidding!! I survived to write today’s Blog.  But not without practicing some of my life lessons:  Taking time to breathe, finding God in everything and everyone around me, enjoying open honest conversation, exploring a moving meditation, remembering to listen more and talk less, and overcoming fear.  Just like happiness, these things take practice.  And we call this practice….. Life.

Segments from the “Shape: 20-Minute Makeover with Elise Gulan” workout video: A short-but-effective aero/tone interval program plus four add-on segments. Created by Shape Magazine, it features all the newest techniques — progressions, functional fitness, core training, multi-muscle exercises and more.

TUESDAY:
Exhale at the Fairmont:
8:30am CORE FUSION
9:45am CORE FUSION YOGA
Equinox Santa Monica:
12noon BURN BLISS YOGA

WEDNESDAY:
Revolution Venice:
9:15am SPIN
Equinox:
10:30 POWER YOGA

FRIDAY:
Revolution Venice:
9:15am SPIN
Equinox Santa Monica:
10:30 CORE POWER YOGA

SATURDAY:
Equinox Santa Monica:
9:30am POWER VINYASA (level 2)
11:00am POWER VINYASA (level 2/3)

Elise in “This Week in Fitness”, 8/10/2011

5 Things I’m grateful for today: 1) my breath 2) my Black Cherry “Manduka Pro” Yoga Mat 3) my Rip Curl summer wetsuit 4) my friend Justin for detailing my pink beach cruiser 5) chocolate chip pancakes, from Blue Plate on Montana

I envisioned a unique format of “mind-body interval training” for optimal efficiency & fat – burn! I se t my mind (and heart) to work… finding all the BEST moves from my background in yoga, pilates, dance , martial arts , core work , fitness , and sports….. seamlessly inter twining these disciplines in to the ultimate JOY of MOVEMENT workout!!

And Voila! Burn Bliss was born! In addition to scorching calories, streamlining the body, and building lean muscle, Burn Bliss also boosts the metabolicrate, improves bone density, and focuses on creating length & suppleness in the spine, which keeps us youthful & vibrant! Burn Bliss also tones the core, protects the back, & strengthens the

connective tissue that supports our joints. Perhaps BEST of all… Burn Bliss (and my style of coaching in general) encourages people to BE PRESENT and ENJOY the moment… to “move like themselves” and cultivate individuality & a pro found belief in the “power within”. The class was instantly a HUGE hit, debuting at the prestigious Equinox Santa Monica Club, and quickly spreading to clubs all across California. As I began teaching sold out classes to ALL kinds of people from celebrities to grandmothers, to elite Olympic athletes, I quickly realized that everyone, no matter what their fitness history, was able to work at their own individual level…. Finding both ultimate challenge (Burn), and supreme joy of movement, breath, and inner strength (Bliss). Immediately people were getting unbelievable results!! And not JUST physical results!! People were connecting radiating open hearts, vibrant minds & joyful energies!

They were literally finding their BLISS! And THAT, my friends, is the ultimate reward!