The Secret Stories Our Bodies Tell: Rewriting The Psychosomatic Script

Your body is miraculous, mysterious, intelligent beyond your wildest dreams. It pulses with molten wisdom and stories as old as stars. It was present for every experience of your life and embodies emotional imprints of these events. Answers to lifelong questions are steeped in cells, tucked in the folds of tissue and buried in bone marrow. ‘There is more wisdom in your body than in your deepest philosophy.’ Nietzsche You just have to ask the right questions, lean in and listen. YOUR BIOGRAPHY BECOMES YOUR BIOLOGY  The body, like everything else in life, is [...]

December 9th, 2016|Fitness, Headspace, Wellbeing|
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Transcendental Training Template: Workout Enhancement

Ever experienced fitness fatigue? Your usual exercise of choice has lost its pizzazz (or never had any in the first place). You’re feeling flat, physically bleh (bloated, puffy, weak) and you're tired of trainers banging on about reps, intervals, calories and measurements? Ahuh, I can practically feel you nodding through the screen. The secret to turning a fitness fling into a forever-love is this. Replace "routine" with "self renewing rituals". What’s the difference between a routine and a ritual? As Gretchen Rubin says: “A 'routine' is a string of habits, and a 'ritual' is [...]

November 15th, 2016|Fitness, Guided Meditations, Rituals, Workout Guides, Workout Videos|
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Your Magic Day Planner: Printable Morning Ritual

Ola, I’m back again, with another gift to add to your Magic Morning collection! (If you haven’t already tried the Magic Morning Workout Video, you can stream it (FREE) here, get the printable guide here. Or download it to your device here. Now, on to the next instalment - a creative journalling ritual, to help design a day you love. HARNESS THE POWER OF PURE INTENT Intention is a pulse of creatively charged consciousness, potent enough to awaken the infinite organising power of the universe. Not only will it conspire, in mysterious ways to turn your desires into reality, [...]

October 30th, 2016|Headspace, Meditation, Rituals, Wellbeing, Workout Guides|
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Sonic Goodness: Chakra Balancing Sound Meditation

"Music that melts the separate parts of your body together." Anais Nin Back in my festival fiend days (a past life ago now) you'd find me two-steppin' round the dance-floor boom boxes. I got off on feeling the kick-drum in my chest, my whole body amped and electric with sympathetic vibration - fuzzy frissons from head to toe. These days i'm a lot more savvy and 'self-lovey' about what I expose my more delicate organs to. Progressive house and ear-drum-damaging-doof have made way for pure sound waves that replenish my body [...]

October 14th, 2016|Guided Meditations, Headspace, Meditation, Rituals|
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Dude…Big. News. The Wabi-Sabi Shop Is Open!

If you’ve been part of the WSW tribe for a while now you’ve probably spent some time working up a sweat with me by streaming workout videos on the website or YouTube. Meanwhile, requests have been rolling in for downloadable versions of the workout videos, and i'm stoked to say that you can now get the good vibes to-go. Yep, WSW workout videos are now available for you to download and keep! Wohooo! Of course, the workouts are still available to stream on the website, but if you've ever had an online workout rudely interrupted (or prematurely cut off) [...]

May 23rd, 2016|News, Workout Videos|
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That’s My Jam: Rage, Rinse, Repeat

If I had a nickel for every medical intuitive that’s pulled the “Liver/Anger” card on me over the years…well I’d have a lot of nickels. My kinesiologist, acupuncturist, theta healer and even my remedial masseuse have all gazed into their crystal balls and seen the same angry little liver. (For those who are uninitiated into the world of non-Western medicine: In many healing traditions the body’s organs are connected to specific emotions- and the liver is often associated with anger.) Initially I didn't get it. “Don't got no rage ‘round here,” [...]

March 23rd, 2016|Headspace, That's My Jam Series, Wellbeing|
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New Interview: Brieann Gets Wabi-Sabi With Lex Weinstein

Many moons ago I had the pleasure of training Lex Weinstein - Blogger, Artist, Stylist and “Ambassador Of The Senses,” among other things. Hers is the voice of free-thinkers, rebels, creative minds and peaceful rule breakers. Those who’ve traded the modern hamster wheel and 9-to-5 security of the “real world” for full time wandering, adventure and inspiration. True to Lex's life, our One-On-One sessions together were a trip. Spontaneous, unpredictable on and off screen adventures. We trained on the sunny shores of Burleigh Heads, in the back of her broom [...]

March 16th, 2016|Headspace, Interviews, News, Wellbeing|
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The Digitised Self: The Perils of Hero Worship + Who You Post To Be

The digitised self. The portraits we showcase in the 640px by 640px frame known as Instagram. Moments (more often manufactured than candid), images that we decide “will carry this message well.” It all becomes twisted when it's received as a fixed reality, a snapshot representing a life in which blemishes, bad hair days, bloated bellies, imperfection, sadness and darker shades of suffering do not exist. It's surprisingly easy to be seduced by pretty pictures. It’s easy to think the “sun shines out of their arse.”  It’s easy to think she [...]

March 9th, 2016|Headspace, Wellbeing|
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Weight Loss 101: Lighten Up, Keep Calm and Cut The Fat

Contrary to popular belief you don't have to train like a beast to look like a beauty. High intensity interval training (HIIT) every. Damn. Day. is not the magic bikini body bullet, it will not make you "summer ready" (whatever that means) and it is not the only thing standing between you and the would-be Victoria's Secret six pack. Not only is it exhausting to keep up with a rigid routine, it's also not helping you lose weight. In fact, science says it could be making you well...heavier. This may [...]

February 17th, 2016|Fitness|
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New Interview: Wabi-Sabi Well On The Inspired Table Podcast

If you've seen our vlogs then you know that we like to talk. A lot. Especially when it comes to topics that light us up. So it will come as no surprise that we have a bit of fun doing three-way podcast interviews. Yeah, we said it. We love a good three way. We recently had the pleasure of being featured on Jordanna Levin's podcast, The Inspired Table. Jordan is a holistic wellness coach, speaker, writer and conscious cook, who believes that food should inspire and nourish, not be a [...]

February 10th, 2016|Headspace, Interviews|
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Wabi-Sabi Well

2 months ago

Wabi-Sabi Well

I wake ‪at 4:30am‬, in the soft dazed light of early morning and catch my reflection in the bathroom mirror. Time is a strange, ephemeral thing.

It’s my 34th birthday today and I’m struck by the woman staring back me. Shy lines appearing from years of deep concentration, a quiet valley of care and concern between my brows. The sun-kissed skin along my chest, dappled from the easy daffodil days I’ve spent on this wild earth. My shifting curves, once washboard and determined, have gathered depths of beauty and decided to softly settle.

A while back, this kind of reflection would have ruffled me - body parts representing a myriad of problems to fix, eradicate, enhance or correct. But on the other side of an eating disorder and the insecurities of my younger years my aspirations and ideas of what “beautiful” is have changed. Rather than lament the loss of a thigh gap, and the natural shape-shifting of my body’s landscape, I now embrace Wabi-Sabi – a paradigm that celebrates the beauty of nature - it’s imperfect, impermanent and incomplete design/s.

I no longer see those lines and bumps as areas to obsess over. Instead I see them as historical celebrations of my life, worthy of honour and respect. My body speaks in tangible poetry, an ancient library of wisdom – sonnets of scars from carefree childhood days, maps, freckles and softened signs of being home to another life. Of bearing and birthing. Every precious piece reads in a way that is as miraculous as the star-stuff it’s made of.
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To Be Continued. Somewhere more spacious, like the WSW blog 😉 ... See MoreSee Less

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  • I wake ‪at 4:30am‬, in the soft dazed light of early morning and catch my reflection in the bathroom mirror. Time is a strange, ephemeral thing. It’s my 34th birthday today and I’m struck by the woman staring back me. Shy lines appearing from years of deep concentration, a quiet valley of care and concern between my brows. The sun-kissed skin along my chest, dappled from the easy daffodil days I’ve spent on this wild earth. My shifting curves, once washboard and determined, have gathered depths of beauty and decided to softly settle. A while back, this kind of reflection would have ruffled me - body parts representing a myriad of problems to fix, eradicate, enhance or correct. But on the other side of an eating disorder and the insecurities of my younger years my aspirations and ideals have changed. Rather than lament the loss of a thigh gap, and the natural shape-shifting of my body’s landscape, I now embrace Wabi-Sabi – a paradigm that celebrates the beauty of nature - it’s imperfect, impermanent and incomplete design/s. I no longer see those lines and bumps as areas to obsess over. Instead I see them as historical celebrations of my life, worthy of honour and respect. My body speaks in tangible poetry, an ancient library of wisdom – sonnets of scars from carefree childhood days, maps, freckles and softened signs of being home to another life - of bearing and birthing. Every precious piece reads in a way that is as miraculous as the star-stuff it’s made of. ................................................................................... To Be Continued. Somewhere more spacious, like the WSW blog 😉
  • In the West, we’re quick to dismiss and discard anything blemished or “broken”. The Japanese on the other hand, observe Wabi-Sabi. Celebrating the beauty in imperfection, they re-new “damaged goods” by filling the cracks with gold. This practice of “gold joinery,” known as Kintsuji, is the perfect embodiment of Wabi-Sabi. The transformation is not just in glueing fractured pieces back together, it’s a total re-invention. Broken places become beauty spots - details to be embraced rather than disguised. Subsequently, the whole object is re-experienced as #wabisabi - unique and interesting with a story to tell. This practice is as applicable to us, as it is ceramics. We see it in the way @sarashakeel transforms her tiger marks into works of art #glitterstretchmarks👆🏻 It’s there in @thebirdspapaya ‘s affectionate reframe of stretch marks as “STRENGTH marks.” And @theperfectmom ‘s celebration of “hope wounds” as the happily-ever-after in a long fertility journey. Wabi-Sabi invites us to not just accept the way things are but go a step further and mint gold. With our collective and somewhat chronic anxiety about imperfection, it’s the kind of zen-lens that provides true relief. So dear friends, I encourage you to make this your practice? Every morning take in your reflection. Rather than banishing what is at first site unwelcome, look deeply for the minute details. The ones that give that feature character, intrigue and charm. Those redeeming traits that give it soul. Then be a loving parent to your “less-than-perfect” qualities; Re-baptise them as beautiful; Welcome them home to unity in your life and re-Mind yourself, you are already, all-ways whole. Give it a go. Report back. I’d love to know how you are mending the (figurative) cracks with gold. Use the Hashtag #WabiSabiWell so I can find you. On the other hand, if you know of anyone who inspires in this way, #WabiSabiWomen and #KintsujiKindreds like those I’ve mentioned tag them here. 📷 @sarashakeel @thebirdspapaya @theperfectmom
  • “And then one student said that happiness is what happens when you go to bed on the hottest night of the summer, a night so hot you can't even wear a tee-shirt and you sleep on top of the sheets instead of under them, although try to sleep is probably more accurate. And then at some point late, late, late at night, say just a bit before dawn, the heat finally breaks and the night turns into cool and when you briefly wake up, you notice that you're almost chilly, and in your groggy, half-consciousness, you reach over and pull the sheet around you and just that flimsy sheet makes it warm enough and you drift back off into a deep sleep. And it's that reaching, that gesture, that reflex we have to pull what's warm - whether it's something or someone - toward us, that feeling we get when we do that, that feeling of being safe in the world and ready for sleep, that's happiness.” || Paul Schmidtberger Balmy nights when the temperature drops with first light. That perfect moment in between seasons; Replacing fires with fresh night air; The smell of Jasmin through open windows. This is where we are. Summer, so close. I can almost taste it.
  • Our tiny gang. From left to right: The Fluff, The Wombat, The Koala & yours truly
  • There’s something misleading about this photo. My eyes are closed but I’m not actually getting any shut eye. I’m wide awake + doing some impressive arm-origami to take a selfie. This was my morning... 12am: Feed, burp, nappy change, rocking the babe back to sleep. 2am Feed, burp, feed, burp, fresh nappy, swaddle {Boom 💥👊🏻 winning! Going to tear off a nap before the next feed. Wait, 🤣🤨 what’s that sound? A little BB gun in his nappy - bap bapping off sharts 💩 (shitty farts)? Ok there goes my nap.} Repeat the whole process, 🔁 un-swaddle, change the nappy, soothe feed, burp, breast, burp, swaddle, put in co-sleeper. 4am: Hot shower to relieve engorged right boob, accidentally smash the VOS glass water bottle on floor. {Fuck it! That can wait till tomorrow.} Try to lie down, burst into tears, immobilised by the boob 🔥 5am: Feed, Josh starts up the breast pump (which we don’t know how to use but I’m desperate), the two of us massage my raging right boob, pop a ibuprofen (the first pain relief pill I’ve taken in as long as I can remember), change my own nappy (yeah you can laugh but this was one of my favourite 1st week post partum tips), stretch my stale legs and numb arse, hot water bottle, nipple guards, cabbage leaves (they help apparently), still the tears keep coming, teeth chattering in spite of the 6 blankets on me, eye mask, ear plugs and waiting... waiting.... waiting... for the rush of sleep to wash over me. And an hr later I’m somewhere new. Open my eyes to peace, a hushed breast, little creature squeaks and snuffling noises, warm bodies, golden light, the smell of coffee and toast and the sound of the ocean (ok, so it’s the white noise maker but still lush). This is my world falling apart and coming together. This is less than perfect but more than wonderful. This is the sweet and the bitter. And like they say, the sweet without the bitter is never as sweet. And with a ratio of 1:1000 000 (bitter:sweet) I’d say nights like this will simply dissolve in the mix.
  • Koa Iluka McInnes arrived Thurs 14th June, at 6:25pm. Born in the burrow his Dad built (see previous post) with O.B as assistant Doula 🐶 Josh playing Macgyver- diffusing tension with hip squeezes and making props out of thin air (we now have a DIY labour support rope hanging from the rafters) and Laura @birthingwings where do I even begin... This woman is everything! Pure presence, tireless love and shamanic awesome-sorcery. You two were my angels. I am forever grateful. And still peaking off the happiest Birthday of my life. Welcome to the world baby boy. #MyBoys #PerfectLove

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