How Well Do You Really Know Your Body?

How well do you really know your body?

Straightaway, you’re prob like “the best.” Better than anyone else.

This should be the case, but I’m gonna throw some doubt your way.

The best is true.

You are the Queen, the owner, the master of your own body.
However, I wonder how well your orientation to it matches those roles.

What I mean is…
-If I asked you to stand on one foot with both eyes closed, would you trust yourself to balance?
-If I asked you to walk in a straight line in the dark, would you believe you could do it?
-If I asked you to name the ten foods that make you feel most alive, could you do it in under 5 minutes?
-If I asked you to tell me what pre-sleep routine is most effective for you, could you describe it?
-If I asked you to tell me which crevice in your skin is most sensitive to touch, could you point to it?

All of these are examples of both body-awareness and body-trust.

Just like any successful, flourishing relationship both are needed at very high levels.

If you were unsure about any of the above questions, it might be time to:
a) Try these exercises/challenges.
b) Simply bring awareness to your breath.

Why breath awareness?

Because, breath is the bridge from the mind to the body — from living outside of yourself, ungrounded, un-sensing, unknowing, to being embodied. And embodiment is a vast component of self-knowledge — one of the tenets of Ashtanga yoga (called ‘svadhyaya’) and one of the tenets of my coaching methodology.

Step one is pretty much always bringing awareness to the thing you want to know better.

So, in this case, it is your body.

I’ve been baffled by people who say they really know their body well — what foods make them tick, what time of day they are most amped to exercise, how alcohol makes them feel, etc. — then, when I curiously inquire for their answers, they suddenly get shy.

This is a glitch in the process.

You may know your body well — have paid crystal clear attention to it over its many gracious years, but you may not have fully accepted what it requires to thrive.

I believe that’s why people go to the extremes of either quiet, subdued or catty, protective when: I present the idea of keeping a food journal (“oh, I already know exactly what I eat…I’m doing well in that arena”); I present the idea of going for more walks throughout the day (“I don’t have time…I work all day”); or I present the idea of meditating (“I have my other ways of clearing my mind”).

Some ingredients for the body simply cannot be replaced. They are non-negotiables.

I would say knowing which foods your body thrives on, knowing how much movement keeps you calm, still, clear, creative, loving, etc (the best version of you), and being able to be still with whatever is moving through you are three of those non-negotiables when it comes to seriously knowing your body.

And knowing your body is a key piece of knowing who you are.

Like I said, awareness is step one; then comes acceptance; then comes action; then you’ve created a routine that serves you in a loving, wholesome, svadhyaya way.