We’re all experts at tension.

Everyone reading this is old enough to be a ‘black belt’ in their body’s use . . . so why aren’t we? Why aren’t we smarter about how our bodies and minds work? We go about our day thinking that we’re relaxed but if we really paid attention we’d realize we’re not. Maybe we hold our shoulders a little high, hunch our back or slump a little in our chair. We wonder why we have a knot in our back, a stiff neck or get headaches. Why are we constantly rewinding and replaying events in our mind or fast forwarding to what we hope is a better future? We’re black belts all right . . . at tension.

Our minds can be just as tense as our bodies. Does your mind race along jumping from one upsetting thought to another? Can you focus on a simple task without your mind wandering off to what may happen later? Try doing something simple like eating a piece of fruit and see if you can really taste & enjoy it. Do you feel the fuzzy skin of a peach? Smell it’s wonderful aroma when you slice it open? Do you notice the different textures in your mouth as you bite into it? Does it taste slightly sweeter when the juice is on the tip of your tongue or the sides? Slow down and enjoy it in the moment rather than trying to fast forward your life. This moment is all we have!

Take a yoga or Tai Chi class and you’ll soon understand real relaxation goes much deeper than you think.

During your day look at people around you and see if you can tell who’s tense and who’s not. Tension in the body tends to manifest itself in awkwardness. Rather than an upright, relaxed appearance where the body is naturally ’stacked’ and held in place by harmonizing with gravity, tense people hold their body & its parts at odd angles where they have to fight against gravity by using excess muscular effort. When they walk, their gait doesn’t look natural. They swing their arms but it’s not in rhythm to their body movement. That’s the key. If someone is relaxed, their movement has a natural rhythm about it.

Now look at yourself and see if you can figure out where you are holding on to tension. In fact take a moment from reading this post right now to listen to your body and feel where you are tight or uncomfortable. Reposition your body so that it’s naturally upright. If you sit up straight (like your mom told you!) the vertebrae in your spine can sit on top of one another with minimal effort. Let gravity hold everything in place like children’s blocks neatly stacked. Take a deep breath and envision your breath going into that tension and then melting it away as you exhale. Let it go, take another breath and let it go again.

If you’re dealing with depression you know your mind isn’t relaxed and neither is your body. Your energy level is probably low and anxiety high. Your sleep is disturbed & memory gone. By learning to relax you’re taking a giant step towards improving all of these problems. In fact, I’m convinced that there isn’t anything that relaxation can’t make better. Sleep, energy, mental focus and memory will all improve.

The ‘fight or flight’ response is still very much alive in all of us. We may not have to worry about being eaten alive by some wild animal but our body and mind’s response to stress in our lives is very much the same for us as it was for our caveman ancestors.

The trick is in making your response to life one of relaxation. So how do we do that? Practice. Everyday, & every moment is an opportunity to practice letting go, calming down and being in this moment. If a moment arises at work and your body tenses up & mind races, take a deep breath (or several) and imagine the tension leaving. Move your body - exercise it. If you can, get up from your desk and take a walk. If you can’t, plan on it later and then follow through with it. You don’t have to turn yourself in to a yogi or Zen master. Just gently pay attention to your body & mind and practice letting go. Stretch and exercise your body & mind everyday and before long you’ll realize you’re using both more efficiently and effectively. You will have earned a real black belt!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 15th, 2007 at 6:20 am and is filed under anxiety, mindfulness.