We can all agree that there are many ways to work out. Cultivating a healthy lifestyle involves finding that perfect workout that speaks to you, that you can truly enjoy and be consistent with. After all, moving your body doesn’t have to feel unpleasant and disconnected. It’s all about finding works for you and staying on track with your progress and growing with it.

Perhaps you use exercising and physical fitness as a way to disconnect from the outside world, burn off stress and tension and get ride of the pent-up energy or strong emotions. As a way to disconnect from the outside world, you may enjoy listening to music or watch TV while doing your workouts to let your mind go completely blank.

Or maybe you’re more of an overachiever trying so hard to reach that next level of physical fitness so much that you stopped listening to your body. You may even try to overcome the natural limitations that your body has to reach that next level. In this case, you may be one who believes in “No pain, no gain” thinking that without the price of painful workouts, you may never see great results.

There is nothing wrong with these approaches but there is a third approach that you could take when it comes to reaching your fitness goals. This approach is not about disconnecting yourself from your body’s limitations and sensations. It’s about connecting to what you sense and how you feel during and after your physical activity so that you can learn how to self-regulate and encourage a healthy mind-body connection. Developing this internal awareness will move us closer to a meaningful connection with how our body works and with practice it will seep into your everyday life as a second nature. With this approach, you will become more aware of what you are feeling; both physically and emotionally.  Awareness will give you the ability to choose between continuing to move in the same way or try something different. And ‘Choice’ is powerful!

Here are a few tips on how to start developing body awareness during your physical activity to have a more conscious connection between mind and body.

1. Experiment with your breathing to integrate mind-body practice in your fitness routine: Try to discover when it is more powerful for you to inhale or exhale during a physical activity. For example, while doing squats, you may find it easier and more powerful to engage to your muscles if you inhale just before you begin to lower down, and exhale as you extend your legs back to the starting position. The more you become aware of the power of the breath, the more you can benefit from its numerous physical and emotional benefits.
2. Investigate good technique and better physical alignment during workouts: This process involves taking a serious look at your body mechanics by spreading awareness throughout your body and making your whole system work in unison. For example, during a push-up, focusing on the right placement of your muscles, joints and bones will assist you in creating a safe and powerful transfer of force from your hands to the arms, chest and shoulders. Another example is to try adding body awareness to your regular day to day activities such as walking. Notice that if you look down while walking, your feet tend to land heavier and with more force. Instead, look straight ahead. See if you can keep a lighter feeling in your hips and pelvis while walking and become more aware of the connection to your legs and feet.

I believe that practicing body awareness during your workouts can increase mind-body connection and reduce injury and pain and over time, improve your performance by supporting efficiency, safety and sustainability.

If you’d like to learn more on increasing body awareness through mindful movements so that you can age gracefully without burnout and judgement of your own body, please DM me or drop a comment below. I would love to connect with you!