By Renee’ Fulkerson
Do you trust your body?
(Trust) a firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something.
I asked myself this question when my husband and I began discussing a two-week spontaneous trip to Japan. Travel for us has always been more like an adventure race than a vacation. This trip focused on spring snowboarding at several ski resorts. And I knew this would mean not stop action.
Prepping for a trip always means getting a house/pet sitter for my two kitty girls. When I reached out to my girlfriend to house/pet sit, she said what are you doing physically to get ready for the trip? That comment took me by surprise. And I felt confident to say nothing but my usual physical activities. And then I thought, is that enough? And I am happy to report it was enough.
When I met my now husband in my early twenties, a spontaneous trip relied on adrenaline. I knew my youthful body, full of energy, could get me through a fast and furious trip. And recovery time would be minimal, if any. Now I am fifty-three, and youth is not on my side. But that does not stop me.
Teaching yoga and offering manual therapies, I see firsthand the limitations people face with their bodies. Some of it self inflicted, and some situations are out of our control. There is freedom in saying I trust my body! So how do we get there? How I keep my body sustainable my top three:
Walking
While walking, I can focus on creating proper posture habits. Good posture means everything when carrying my day pack or something heavier (like a snowboard). During my walk, I can also focus on proper breathing techniques. Full inhales and exhales allow my diaphragm to expand and contract. With efficient breathing, my upper body stays buoyant and lifted. And my feet, knees, and low back thank me. Walking reduces strain on my hips, knee, or ankle joints versus high-intensity workouts. And the best thing about walking is the more I do it, the more energy I have.
- a cardiovascular physical activity
- improves blood flow
- lowers blood pressure
- increases energy levels
- low-impact workout
Biking
I bike inside on a trainer every other day 45min to an hour. Some days I feel more inspired than others. Biking is another opportunity to create proper posture and breathing habits. Strengthening my legs and lower body muscles will keep knee pain from sneaking up on me. Building endurance helps any activity be more enjoyable, like long days of snowboarding.
- easy on your joints
- burns calories
- builds endurance
- strengthens legs and lower body
- improve cardiovascular health
YogAlign
My YogAlign practice keeps me in alignment. Good posture creates comfort in my body with no spinal compression on my low back. Without thinking, I move gracefully and with ease from the core center of my body. Showing up for my YogAlign practice allows me the time and space to get to know and support my body’s needs. I always look forward to creating space in my body.
- functional breathing
- strengthens posture muscles
- builds strong core muscles
- improves stability, balance & coordination
- supports real-life movement
Along with the top three I also hike and swim in the ocean regularly to keep fit and healthy. Exercise is not always easy for me. But trusting my body is a freedom I am not giving up. I seek out activities I enjoy and not things I dread. I have been snowboarding with my husband since we were 23 years old (30 years now). And we look forward to many more years.
Side note: the hot mineral Onsens every night and sake certainly helped. haha
Do you trust your body?
Aloha
Inner Breath Yoga~ YogAlign 
love this
Great blog post! I appreciate the emphasis on trusting our bodies and finding sustainable activities that we enjoy. My question for you is, how do you recommend someone who has experienced physical limitations due to injury or illness regain trust in their body and find the right activities for them?
Jessica Dunne
http://befitandhealthy.net/
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Aloha Jessica and thank you for your kind words and great question. How do you recommend someone who has experienced physical limitations due to injury or illness regain trust in their body and find the right activities for them? I certainly do not have all the answers. And can only speak from my personal experience. I have worked with an 18-year-old boy who broke his Femur straight across. After surgery and the swelling went down, we started with a massage. Everywhere but the incision site. Massage alone created whole-body pain relief from injury compensation patterns. Once his incision site healed, I got him into hot mineral springs. He could use gravity to his advantage and relieve shoulder pain from his crutches. Then he began leg lifts with and without resistance while lying on his back in bed. He continued to walk as much as he was comfortable on his crutches and lots of self-massage. After three months, he was off his crutches. And we began working on the lost muscle mass on his injured leg. We added light weights and lots of toe and foot exercises lying down, in a chair, or standing up. The next step was getting onto the bike to build lost lower body strength. He needed to trust that his injured leg was not weak. His Drs. we astonished at his recovery time. I have also worked with a woman in her mid-seventies with extreme osteoporosis, high blood pressure, and depression. My first goal was to get her breathing from her diaphragm. Her breathing was shallow due to the collapse of her frontline. She started by lying in bed with a pillow under her knees. She began to inflate her ribcage by sipping in through a drinking straw. I had her pause at the top of her breath for a second. And remove the straw slowly and S-hale like a snake. Breathing gets her circulation moving and her spirits up. PNF was our next step in waking up her body. While lying down or in a chair, we began syncing breath with movement. Creating fists with her hands on her inhale tightening up her entire body, and then relaxing into the s-hale. She needed to become aware of her lack of proper breathing, collapsing her frontline. Exercise for her was cleaning her own house. And then short walks in her front yard. Next came resistance with weight. She began lifting a cork yoga block with her arms and hands while sitting on the couch. For her trusting her body meant having arm strength so she could get in and out of the bathtub. And that is what we continued to work on. I hope this was helpful. Aloha
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Jessica, I think your question deserves a blog post of its own. Stay tuned.
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