Move your Body - Calm Your Mind

“An active mind cannot rest in an inactive body.”

Learning to move my body for the sake of feeling better and helping my entire body function better is such a different thing then exercising to help me lose weight.  It comes from a different place, a place of choice.  When I used to commit to exercise for losing weight I resisted like crazy!  It seemed like punishment.  I had to force myself to do it. Of course, I always felt better afterwards, but it was painful getting to that point!

When I read the quote above it really resonated with me.  I do have a very active mind and I never thought about exercise as a way of counteracting that.  But it makes so much sense.  Through physical exertion it changes the chemistry of the body and promotes physical functions that I probably will never fully understand.  But it makes sense, and it is motivating me in a healthier way.

Since I started moving to ease my busy mind, I have felt much better.  Plus it has been much easier to ease into exercising.  On the other side of the coin,  I have also learned that resting helps ease my busy mind as well.  Taking time to sit quietly and meditate or take an afternoon nap is an important balance I need.

It’s all about motivation - what is it that can propel me to get up and move my body or take an afternoon nap?  At this moment it is knowing that it helps me on an emotional level - to feel more at peace in my head.  The old way stopped working a long time ago.  To many years of forcing myself to do exercises that I didn’t enjoy.  Now I haven’t put any rules about how I exercise - no schedule, no self-inflicted time limits or expected heart rate or repetitions.  It’s just go about moving because it’s good for me.  And that’s reason enough.

What motivates you to get your body moving?