Your Buddy, Your Body

Being at one with our bodies.

Not a new concept by any means, but it’s one that is sometimes set aside, especially with the frantic pace of life. The good thing is you’re not alone in this and there are ways to find your body’s balance.

Practices like yoga, tai chi, meditation, and other activities exist to help us be more connected to our mind and body. Diverse cultures in different time periods have all contributed to the things we know now to be true about body awareness.

Because the truth is we all want to be comfortable and confident in our bodies—it’s the only one we have. By paying attention to our physical and mental limitations and by knowing exactly what our body needs in certain situations, we can go through life in a more stable and, eventually, happier state.

Prepare to be Body Aware

When was the last time you monitored how you breathe? Or observed the gait in your steps? We do these activities so automatically that they fly by our field of awareness. But there are benefits in observing them a little more closely than normal—you might even be surprised at what you find out.

Here are the types of body awareness we all should be aware of:

This is the ability to perceive bodily sensations, commonly involving our basic senses like sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch.

As beings that walk on two legs, this is particularly relevant to us, as this involves our orientation and the position of our bodies. It’s good to be aware of

When we slouch, bad posture can lead to many health detriments.

This comprises our knowledge of how the different parts of our bodies move in relation     to each other. This is really important for avoiding physical injuries like sprains and joint pains.

These three, despite generally being physical in nature, also affect your mental and emotional states. By gaining awareness in these topics, you can boost your confidence and self-esteem, avoid stress and anxiety, and maintain a more balanced emotional state.

Finetuning your Body’s Rhythm

Ready to be your body’s wellness buddy? Here are some body awareness practices that we all need to do regularly until they’re second nature:

Don’t you notice how our breathing changes in tense and relaxed situations? There’s merit in controlling this involuntary action, especially during moments involving stress and anxiety. Besides improving your respiratory health, you can also regulate your emotional state, normalize a quickened heart rate, and improve coordination and concentration through mindful breathing.

Not only does proper posture help your bone health, it also dictates how you present yourself physically. You can alleviate back, neck, and shoulder discomfort while also enhancing your confidence and self-esteem by being aware of how you sit and stand. Yoga, Pilates, dance lessons, and other mobility-improving activities can work wonders for your posture.

Having a feel for what your body is capable of not only determines your physical boundaries, but also gives you an idea of how to improve them. Building strength, flexibility, and mobility boosts coordination and balance while helping diminish the risk of mental health issues like depression and anxiety through the release of endorphins.

There are so many activities to choose from, for example, contact and team sports, strength and endurance training, and the like. It’s important to pick a physical activity you would enjoy—this makes you more likely to be consistent with it.

Now you see how everything ties neatly together? Practicing good body awareness creates a domino effect of health benefits that accumulates over time. Just stay consistent and, soon enough, you’ll notice improvements in your overall health and wellbeing—glowing in health from the inside out!