MIND OVER MATTER!
This journey isn’t just about healthy living for your body — it’s also for your mind. Learning to be in tune with your body is an important part of living a healthy lifestyle and can help you make better food choices for life. Understanding how to listen to your body can help you react before you become hungry, thirsty, or exhausted. You know your own body the best but most of us just don’t spend enough time listening to it. That’s where mindful meditation comes in!
Here is a quick 10-minute activity to train yourself to get more connected with your body:
- Find a comfortable, distraction-free space (maybe out in nature), get comfortable, and close your eyes.
- Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth.
- Take notice of the sensations around your body — warmth, shivering, pace of heartbeat, etc.
- Focus on small parts of your body, working from your toes to the top of your head, sensing and listening to how they feel.
- When you’re done, slowly open your eyes.
What did you learn about how your body is feeling at that moment?
Here are some great tips from others:
- At least once a week I like to take off my shoes and socks and spend at least 10 minutes walking barefoot outside. On the grass, or the beach, or even on a dirt path. I feel rejuvenated.
- Taking time every day to be grateful. I use a journal and every night before bed I take time to write down at least 10 things that I am grateful for in my life.
- Smile. It seems simple but it really makes a difference in my mood. I smile at people in the grocery store or even smile at myself in the mirror.
- I love to dance in my kitchen. I put on some fun crazy music and just dance. Sometimes my daughter joins in and we have an impromptu dance party. We end up laughing so hard we can hardly stand.
- Our family has a gratitude jar. Every day we write out a little slip of paper with something we are grateful for and put it in the jar. If we are feeling down in the dumps we pull out the papers and read them.
What are some things you and your family do to have mind over matter? We’d love to know. Go to the Facebook group and write in the comments section of today’s post.
