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Have you considered...
What are the Components of the Mind/Body "Space"
We are mostly "Space"; matter is Energy Potential. Feel the Infinite within yourself, within your cells, within the breath you breathe. Feel the Infinite brushing up against your edges, imploding into your center. The Moments Matter - Celebrate your Aliveness!
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Space: The Components of the "Mind/Body" Space
In the technical world, in "Computer-ese", "Space" refers to a particular type of technology. All of the companies that are competing in a particular arena to create, refine, corner the market and become the name brand for a particular "piece" of the space -"asp" space, "wireless" space, "web relevance" space are meeting a challenge or looking to win a prize worth winning.
In terms of Mind/Body - "The Mind/Body Space" we can speak about the many choices we have to explore. Popular now are Pilates, Yoga (Hatha), Tai Chi, and the list goes on. What are the common attributes of Mind/Body exercise? What can we hope to gain from this "Space"? Generally speaking there are five attributes of any Mind/Body activity. Mary Monroe enumerated these in an IDEA Source article entitled, Mind/Body Exercise goes Mainstream July/August 1998. In my own words I will summarize these attributes of Mind/Body Fitness:
- Breath Awareness
- Energy Awareness
- Body Alignment
- Proprioceptive Movement
- A Mental Component
Let's take a look at each of these components.
Breath Awareness is the easiest route into the "now". By following the rhythm of our breath we have no choice but to be present in the moment. Physiologically a few things are worth mentioning. One1s blood pressure is lowered. Each time we exhale, especially a slow, deliberate exhalation with mindfulness, our heart is decelerated. Youth enhancing hormones are circulated throughout our system.
Energy Awareness is what I referred to above as "our Space". It is an awareness of our internal state. If I ask you to quantify how you feel on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the best, you would need to be energy aware. You may say, "I am about a 6 today, meaning you are not feeling ill, but you are also not feeling energetic. This is energy awareness, pure and simple. The linking of activities and how we feel during and after these activities allows us to differentiate the correlation between our activities and their net effect, how we feel.
There was a study conducted in which 3 rats were tested for stress hardiness. Rat A received a shock and had a button with which to turn off the shock. Rat B received a shock, but had no button to learn to shut off the shock. Rat C did not receive a shock and had no button. Which was the most "Stress Hardy" rat? I hope you guessed Rat A. Being alive means there is a certain amount of stress in our lives. The ability to respond to the stress - to successfully turn it off, to have control over the outcome - is the key here. How do you feel when you meet a challenge successfully? My bet is probably better than prior to the challenge. Incidentally, Rat C was the least "Stress Hardy". We need stimulation! I would further say that energy awareness is not just being aware of how we feel generally. Understanding what contributes to our "State", what circumstance, which habits contribute to how we feel, leads to self-knowledge. What makes you feel alive, awake, fired up, at peace, relaxed? What saps your energy and makes you feel depleted? A yoga class after a night on the town will feel very different from a class after a restful night1s sleep.
Most important is how one feels after a mind/body class, this gives us a true indication of how a particular Mind/Body endeavor is influencing "our space". I refer to "our space" as an awareness of our internal state. Isn1t the reason we take yoga classes, go through a Pilates based session not only to "look good" but to FEEL GOOD. A sense of well being is the prize. Cultivating our internal space is most important.
Body Alignment In order to execute a Pilates based move, a Hatha yoga posture or a Tai Chi sequence one must learn the position. Awareness of your abdominal wall, your pelvic floor, the distance between your ear lobes and your shoulders all affect your posture. These points of reference are indicators of how well your body is in alignment with the "lines of gravity" in any particular position, held or moving. We have seen too many examples of miscarriage. The athletic body or the dancer1s body is a body that flows with the line of gravity in such a way that the muscles support the bony structure. The body is in alignment so that freedom of movement, freedom from painful movement is possible. Any quality mind/body class will reinforce posture.
Proprioceptive Movement This concept is a little more tricky, just like it1s name, proprioceptive. This word sounds so esoteric! When we move a limb in space with our eyes closed, when we walk down a dark hallway, we are employing the proprioceptive nature of our nervous system. When you raise your arm with your eyes closed, you can feel or sense where your arm is in space without actually seeing it. While walking down a dark hallway you are able to sense were the walls are without seeing them. Without this ability you would walk into the walls having no sense of how close them them you would become as you locomote. This is what proprioception means. At times during a mind/body class one will be asked to move with eyes closed, to feel the movement without visual feedback. Our nervous system responds to repetitive actions with movement memory by creating movement patterns. When we try a movement with eyes closed we are releasing the tension associated with the movement pattern. Our body senses something is different and re-learns or re-discovers the movement. Disciplines such as Feldenkrais Movement Awareness are based on this principle. Repetitive movement makes life easy for us, but also is the source of poor postural habits as is lack of movement awareness. Tai Chi, Somatics, Alexander Technique, and Feldenkrais classes and sessions reinforce proper body alignment.
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