Weekend!

We had a nice weekend over here, it felt busy but not TOO busy.  On Friday we headed to one of our fave happy hour spots- Rock Bottom Brewery.  I don't know what it is about this place, but Mark and I have been going there since we started dating!  On Saturday, we went out for lunch to surprise Mark's aunt for her birthday- she was totally surprised!  I had to leave straight from lunch to get to my yoga workshop, which was  on Thai bodywork for yoga teachers.  That night we headed to the cheap movie theater in town (they show older movies for 3$!) and saw This is 40.  I thought it was pretty good, there were a lot of really funny parts!  I got up early on Sunday and went to the gym.  I was able to get in my 3 miles on the treadmill before I had to rush off to another yoga training class.  I have to go to at least one "tech session" per week, which are classes designed specifically for yoga teachers and address a variety of topics.  This one was on teaching for emotional balance- a topic I love exploring.

While I was on my way home, I heard something on the radio that BLEW my mind (because I'm a nerd) and I had to share it!  I am obsessed with Doctor Radio on Sirius XM, and I especially love the psychiatry show by Dr. Carol Bernstein.  I am fascinated by the human mind and all aspects of mental illness/wellness.  I spend a lot of my days working inside the Western medical world, and also a lot of time learning about Eastern medical practices, like Ayurveda- the sister science of yoga.  So,  as I'm driving home and listening to this show, Dr. Bernstein had a guest on who was talking about what actually happens to the brain when people engage in spiritual/meditative practices.  He explained that there is research which shows that when people meditate, different parts of their brain are activated depending on the type of meditation.  People who use visualization will activate the occipital lobe (visual cortex) in the brain.  People who use prayer or a mantra will activate the language centers in the brain.  However, no matter the type of meditation/mindfullness being used, the activity in the parietal lobe decreases.  The reason this is SO cool is because it completely makes sense when you think about the 8 limbs of yoga (the eightfold path to enlightenment.)  Maybe I will go into this more later (would anyone read that?) but one of the 8 limbs is called Pratyahara, which means withdrawal from the senses.  The parietal lobe is the part of the brain that lets us experience our senses and tells us where our body is in space.  SO, decreased activity in that part of the brain WOULD lead straight to Pratyahara, which is one of the goals of meditation.  How cool is that?  I realize this is totally geeky, but I get so excited when the Eastern and Western worlds collide and we can show that there IS scientific evidence to support some of these holistic practices!

I apologize if that was completely boring.  If it was, I'm assuming you've stopped reading by now.  If you're still with me, thanks for listening to my drivel.  

Hope everyone had a nice weekend!