If you have lived most of your life up in your head it can be difficult to establish mind-body connection.
How to begin?
Take time at intervals during the day to check in with your body. Imagine if you asked the different parts of your body what they were feeling and what they wanted to tell you, what answers you would get. Start at your toes and work up.
To help you do this here are ten principles for beginners establishing mind-body connection:
1) allowing
If you were always told at school not to daydream and to pay attention, you have been told to concentrate on your outer world, rather than your inner world. You may have learnt that you are expected to be outer focused and to do what the world demands of you. Instead try to to make the intention and conscious choice to allow yourself to listen to what your body is telling you.
2) comfort
If you have never established a connection between your mind and your body, you may have never asked yourself if you feel comfortable. Start doing this at points during the day and if you are not feeling comfortable ask yourself what can you do to make yourself more comfortable. Problem solve your way to comfort.
3) ease
Start small. you might only be able to notice what you are feeling in your hands when you begin. Be O.K. with this all being new to you.
4) don’t load this new practice with expectations.
You don’t get extra marks for number of epiphanies.
5) comparison
Don’t compare yourself with the meditation teacher whose chakras are so balanced they glow technicolor. Also don’t think you have to be a meditation teacher to have mind-body connection. The executive who has mind-body connection is likely to recognise the better deal and the business partner who is a better fit.
6) getting off the wagon does not mean you can’t get onto it.
O.K. so you forgot to check in with your body all day and now it’s seven in the evening and your shoulders are screaming. It’s O.K. to begin again. ‘Hello shoulders, pleased to meet you…’
7) Realise that recognising what you are feeling in your body might bring up emotional gunk.
Get help with them if you need to, from a therapist or if generally you are able to function well mentally, from a coach. Talking to a friend or journaling can help process what comes up.
8) Don’t think you have to be the ‘yoga type’ to have mind-body connection.
Think of rufty-tufty survival in the wild experts. If they don’t have mind-connection they would be putting themselves in major danger. No Lululemons required.
9) Timing
Mind body connection is harder when you are tired. When you are beginning work out times for you that are best to check in.
10) Alone
This is the way to begin. You can branch out when you are able to be aware of your body when you are alone. Then you can try taking that awareness out and about with you.
Be patient with yourself as you learn to connect your mind to your body. Notice what the rewards are as your awareness grows.
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