Listening to Your Body

I have felt compelled to write on this topic due to my own personal experiences with being forced to listen to my body lately. I am convinced that while our bodies do adapt to anything we put it through, if we do not listen to our body's needs overtime, our body's will do the talking for us - FORCING us to listen!

We live in a fast paced society where bigger is better, faster is more productive, and we squeeze every single free hour in our appointment books full of other tasks. While this is amazing for short-term productivity and accomplishment, this style of life is not a way to live every day. (I am in NO way degrading sacrificial efforts for specified time-periods, in fact, it is absolutely essential that you are out of balance from time to time to accomplish great things)!

We need oxygen to survive. Breathe....

In my most recent personal experience, I have experienced lack of sleep and lack of overall-balance in order to achieve great goals. In doing so, I ignored all that my body was telling me  like rest, slow down, and get more sleep (yes, we all do it!). The outcome? My coaches ordered me to take a week off of the gym entirely and listen to my body while easing back in to training. While I did this, it was inevitable that I got sick and have had the flu for a week. Talk about down and out! Guess that's a way to force you to slow down and sleep. The second I slowed down, my body decided that sleep is the number 1 thing that I have needed. Ever had this experience?

So while I felt down and out for a couple of weeks, I have now learned that embracing this time of rest and recovery is absolutely essential to overall well being. This can be extremely difficult on the mental state of someone (such as myself) who is a go-getter and always looking to do more, be more, rise to the top and outwork anyone else! It's funny how as motivators we are forced to practice what we preach at all times. If we don't, it shows! Whatever you put your body through WILL in fact create some sort of response; whether positive or negative. It is important to recognize these triggers and nurture your body in the way that it needs to recoup and function efficiently. This is true in the fitness and nutrition world which go hand in hand. You must recover from muscular tears and breakdown, and also fuel for performance in order to function at optimal levels. It is also true in day to day life pertaining to relationships, family, fun, spirituality, and every other part of our lives.

With all this said, whether you need a day of nothing, a day of spiritual feeding, physical rest, a day of fun, or just a mental break from the hectic parts of life listen to your body! The worst thing for our body's is stress which actually has many negative health effects on all of the hard working efforts you are putting forth, not to mention reduced productivity and focus.

Evaluate yourself and your situation where you're currently at. Look at your schedule, and allow yourself to breathe (even if you have to schedule it in!). There is a fine line between lazy and recovery, so be weary and have an action plan to stay on track with your goals.

It is okay to recover when necessary. Though I may be subconciously affirming this to myself by putting it out to my readers, I also hope that anyone else who is struggling with acheiving balance will benefit from this, and take some time to listen to your body over everything.

Afterall, health means something different to us all. The important thing is that we enjoy our precious lives & find the beauty in the process. Without struggle there is no progress. Keep faith alive no matter what obstactle you are faced with! Embrace your struggle, and you will certainly overcome it!

The mind is deceiving. The body never lies.

What is your body telling you?