Listen to your body for balance and health
January 27, 2009
Listening to your body’s messages is essential to maintaining balance and good health. Our fast pace of life, coupled with the constant stimulation of being wired to everything through TV, radios, cell phones and so on, creates an overload on the nervous system. In all the busyness and noise, we lose connection with the most fundamental “signals” of life — the valuable information that comes to us through bodily sensations and emotions. We need to learn to pay attention to what is happening in our bodies.
I remember once giving a stress management seminar to a busy staff and spending at least half an hour talking about the need to visit the bathroom when nature calls. Almost everyone admitted to feeling too busy to stop what they were doing to go to the bathroom, take a drink of water, stretch their bodies. Sometimes people were so absorbed in what they were doing that they didn’t even notice the signals of hunger and thirst. When they were aware of them, they couldn’t tear themselves away from what they were doing to take the necessary break. Some even felt guilty about taking the time away from their desk.
How often do you ignore basic needs? Do you rest when you are tired? Do you get as much sleep as you need? Do you eat when you are hungry, and stop eating when you’ve had enough? Do you drink when you are thirsty? Do you even notice? Our bodies tell us what they need to be balanced. Our job is to listen.
We can go a lot further than paying attention to these most basic needs. The need for sleep can be a “loud” signal from the body, but we can start to notice “softer” cues that our bodies give us as well. As we increase the awareness of our body’s signals, we get a lot of valuable information about how to keep it in balance.
The more we can perceive about what is going on in our bodies and emotions, the better. If you start to notice more subtle messages from your body, you can become aware of an imbalance before it manifests in a disease. You can notice when you begin to get tired and take a meditation break or a catnap. You can feel discomfort in your body before it screams in pain from a repetitive motion injury. You can notice things early and nip problems in the bud.
Of course, awareness is only the first step. Once you are aware of what your body is telling you, you need to follow through the action to bring it in balance. It can be difficult to form this habit. You may feel you don’t have the time, but in the long run a little time and attention here and there to care for your body can help avoid spending a lot of time having to heal something, not to mention avoiding unnecessary pain.
We created the Body Awareness Meditation specifically to help develop awareness of the body’s signals. It helps you to slow down tune in to your body, so that you can be sensitive to your body’s needs. Even beyond that, it is relaxing and grounding. Listening to the body isn’t just a way to avoid future pain. Much of life’s pleasure comes through the body. The sense of connection with the body is satisfying and worth cultivating for its own sake. Start paying attention to your body. It will thank you for it!
Have you “Turbosonic’d” yet? Whole Body Vibration Therapy.
February 28, 2007
I’ve been using a machine called the Turbosonic for several months now, for only 10 minutes a couple times a week. The results have been quite remarkable. My muscles are much stronger. I have more energy and sleep more deeply. My digestion is better and I feel “lighter” in general.
(In case your wondering, there is no financial or other benefit for me in promoting this product.)
I’ve heard from others, either first or second hand, that they have had similar results. In addition to people experiencing what I have, I’ve been told of one woman’s depression lifting and another whose fibromyalgia symptoms vastly improved. A friend of mine lost an inch all over in less than 2 months’ time and I ran into a woman coming out of her session who states she lost her cellulite. (I must say, however, she was fairly trim and probably didn’t have a whole lot to begin with.)
These are rather remarkable changes for something that takes so little time and minimal effort. You are advised not to use the machine more than 10 minutes a day, and all you do is stand on a platform which moves up and down with various frequencies and amplitudes. There are many claims for what the machine does from increasing serotonin and growth hormone to strengthening bones. Apparently there is research substantiating some of the benefits, but so far I’ve only read about one study done in Belgium and reported in the Journal of the American Geriatric Society. The study demonstrated that whole body vibration is as efficient as standard resistance training for improving strength and speed in older women. There is a lot of enthusiasm for the benefits of the machine for the middle aged and elderly, but I know of at least one very athletic man who is very enthusiastic about the machine.
Interestingly, whole body vibration therapy reputedly was developed by the Soviets for the cosmonauts in order to help them recover from weightlessness in space. The machine I have been using was apparently developed in Korea where the technology was supposed to have been considerably improved with input from a qigong master. I haven’t done the research to verify that all this is fact. It’s enough for me that I and others are directly benefiting from using the turbosonic. I’d certainly be interested in comments from anyone who knows more!
You can read about the turbosonic at www.turbosonicusa.com and find a dealer near you. The machine is quite expensive, but in our area several people have bought them and rent out time to others for a nominal fee. There are contraindications to using the turbosonic so be sure to check on that if you have any medical conditions or concerns. I’ve also found that like anything, there is a right “dose” for everyone. Some people use it everyday. Two times a week is plenty for me and more is over-stimulating for my particular makeup.
Please add your comments if you’ve had any experiences with the Turbosonic or can share any information about it!
April 27, 2008 Update: Although it appears whole body vibration can be very beneficial, I wanted to add a note about my own experience that has made me want to caution people in using the machine. After using the machine for about 4 months (only twice a week), my ankles started to swell. I did some research and discovered that some people do get this side effect. When I stopped using the machine, the swelling went away. There is a list of conditions for which use of the Turbosonic is contraindicated, but I don’t have any of those conditions. Clearly there can be side effects that aren’t known so far. If you decide to use whole body vibration, just be alert to any unfavorable changes.