(Image from Action To Happiness)
When you have a long-term health condition the words ‘listen to your body’ are repeated many times. Whether it's a health magazine — medical professional or health charity but do we actually understand the purpose and importance of this phrase?
Being mindfully aware of how our body feels on a normal day and when it feels different allows better management and control of our conditions. A change doesn’t necessarily mean a trip to the doctor.
It may mean simply decreasing the intensity of exercise that we do that day to taking a nap, changing our nutrition or upping the amount of water we drink.
How do we actually make it happen? In her blog ‘How To Listen To Your Body’ Kayla Itsines explains that balancing a healthy lifestyle that includes the following is key:
keeping a journal
enjoying food
making time for yourself
meditating
being aware of how your body reacts to stress
noticing how your body responds to stress
thinking about what you need
moderation
making body-centric decisions
Self-management is always going to be the preference. So listening to our bodies — recording how they feel — logging our response — judging the success — adapting and learning. All will lead to better control. Understanding — a stronger body and mind. Increased confidence and more productive days.
A challenge and not something that will breed success overnight. A good support network — knowledge and guidance will all make it seem more achievable.
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