Age Well & Move With Ease
It is not important how old you are, but how you are old.
Are You Aware Of Your Approach Towards Aging, Exercise, And Movement?
A big part of aging gracefully is being willing to change how you think. One of the easiest facets of shifting our thoughts is to shift how our thinking about movement and to become a thinking body. Remember, the manner in which you treat your body is inseparable from the manner in which you cope with other aspects of life.
Here are six of my favorite tips for aging and moving with grace. Implement them and you’ll have greater success in whatever form of exercise, fitness, or movement activity you choose.
#1
Don’t Force It.
Perform new movements slowly and gently so that you can feel what you are doing. This will give the brain the opportunity to differentiate what effort is necessary for the movements and what is not.
#2
Explore Your Comfort Zone.
Recognize your own level of comfort and move within that zone. Once you know the mechanics of the movement you can expand your zone by expanding your range of motion or moving more quickly and with greater power.
#3
Use Your Imagination.
Imagination has been used by both professional athletes and doctors to enhance the learning of, the quality and the precision of movement. Begin by doing one or two repetitions of a movement or exercise. Then, pause and take a few moments to imagine the movement. See if you can feel the movement in your imagination. Then do the movement again. What do you notice about the movement after taking time to imagine?
#4
Expand Your Awareness.
Exercise and movement is not isolated to one area of your body. Be aware of how your body feels as a whole and its relationship to the floor and your surroundings. Give attention to your pelvis, the length of your spine, your neck and shoulders, your eyes, your breathing, the expression on your face and anything else that speaks to you.
#5
Use Your Intelligence.
The body and the brain are one, they are in constant communication. When you think through your movements and concentrate on what you are doing and how you are feeling the brain receives new information. As the brain processes the new information it is able to manage your movements more efficiently and expand your movement repertoire.
#6
Age Is A State Of Mind.
There is nothing static about the movement of our bodies, our minds, feelings or emotions. When we cast aside old, automatic ways of moving, thinking and feeling and integrate new options into our lives we can learn to move through life with ease
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