Developing Your Mind-Body Connection

Developing Your Mind-Body Connection

Liberate Your Potential for Graceful Movement

Your mind and body cannot decide which one of them leads in the
continuous dance of life. Therefore, if you change your body, you can
affect your state of mind, and vice versa.

We are an unconscious society, often living numb to both our internal and external environments. We eat foods that numb our minds to the condition of our bodies, and we watch television that fills us with mixed messages about our lives and our bodies. Further, most of us sit at desks for hours every day, allowing the bottom half of our bodies to atrophy.

For the very few of us that do exercise regularly, most of us put on headphones, and, if we use a treadmill, find something to read or television to watch, and let our lonely legs pound away as we wait for our time in exercise purgatory to end.

Is it any wonder then, that the majority of clients I train have no idea what is happening in there bottom half and, there ain’t that much goin’ on anyway. Hips that are locked, bums that are sad and droopy, knees that are crying out for attention and feet that turn this way and that. It’s all a big mess down there below the waist.

What to do when your lower half is a mystery – Mountain Pose

In order to get your mind to pay attention to your lower body you have to let it know that this is an important task. Otherwise it will continue to ignore your legs until they give out, usually with either knee or hip problems.

Here is the first exercise: stand. In yoga we call it Mountain Pose, and it forms the foundation for all further exercises. It probably sounds silly, but think about it. No! Better yet, try it. Slip off your shoes and stand up in front of your computer. Really pay attention to your feet – get them hip width and parallel (heels and toes in line).

Visualize yourself as a mountain – we only see the smallest part, a mountain’s roots drive deep into the ground, making a solid connection with Mother Earth. So stand! Tall. Reach the crown of your head (this is the top part at the back where most of us have cowlicks) towards the sky while your feet connect with the earth. Reach your arms down by your sides, fingers reaching towards the earth with palms forward. Feel your chest open and expand as your breath moves smoothly from your belly.

Inhale and exhale through your nose. As you inhale, pull energy up the front of your body, lifting your kneecaps, your belly button and your chest towards the sky. As you exhale, feel the energy complete the circuit, moving down the back of your body, lengthening your neck, pulling your shoulder blades back and down, travelling down your legs and back into the earth through your heels.

Now. Stand here until you can feel your feet. Feel them flowing with energy. Feel them throbbing with discomfort after standing still for a few minutes. Don’t worry, it will get better.

You have just begun to develop your Mind-Body Connection. Once you have it, you will be able to develop a much more graceful habit of movement.