Mindful movement is:
asking yourself "do I want to be active today?"
If the answer is yes - you can then decide on which type/how long/how intense of an activity you want to do today
being aware of your body during activity
being active to nourish your body not to punish it or to "burn off calories"
It can be applied to any activity! Mindful movement doesn't have to be Yoga or Qi Gong or walking, you can apply these principles to all of your favorite activities and the way you approach
being active.
Intention:
This is the most important part of mindful movement. The intention behind movement should be to nourish the body, to make it feel better AND to enjoy doing the activity in the moment (being present). If the only reason you are being active is to lose weight, then this goal is driving your choices around activity and you are missing out on connecting with what your body really needs in this moment.
Sensing:
Taking a moment in your day and ask yourself:
"do I want to move my body today?"
"how do I want to move my body? "
"for how long do you want to move your body?"
Before your activity bring your attention to the body. What is your physical state? What is your emotional state? What are you experiencing? Can you sense your breath? Take 2-3 minutes before the start of your activity to ask yourself these questions makes you present. It sets you up to be mentally engaged in the task at hand.
Feeling
Feeling is the observation of how you are doing a movement. As you move through getting your body warmed-up, for instance, can you feel yourself using unnecessary force? Or maybe if you feel a bit of pain or tightness here or there. Can you listen to this and warm up the area of the body that needs it more? Or adjust your activity to account for your observations? Are you having fun?
Adjusting
Use the information you learn from sensing and feeling to figure out how your activity is serving you and your body. Is this going well? Are you feeling good or is there pain/tightness that is telling you this is not quite right today? Can you adjust your activity and make it right for you in this moment?
Examples:
If you are in a workout class or yoga class and it's going to fast or too slow can you adjust a bit to better serve you?
If you are walking on a treadmill but find your feet are really sore today, can you adjust and maybe move to the bike to better serve your body today?
If you are jogging and finding your body is really tired today, are you o.k with walking or slowing down the pace or run/walking?
These adjustments are all about listening to the physical cues your body is telling you and making small adjustments to make your activity better serve you and your body.
Have Fun
An essential part of mindful movement is to have fun and enjoy your activity! Choose your activities based on your preferences and be sure to have fun in the moment.
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