Today’s #reverb10 prompt asks, “Body Integration This year, when did you feel the most integrated with your body? Did you have a moment where there wasn’t mind and body, but simply a cohesive YOU, alive and present?”
I’m experiencing this more and more, as my workouts get better and I get stronger. I’ve already blogged about the 2010 moment when I felt most alive – finishing my first 5k – and in those moments, I felt completely integrated. My mind and my body were in complete harmony, working towards the same goal.
Every morning, while lying in bed, thinking about getting up, I stretch, starting from the tips of my toes, through my calves and hamstrings and abs and shoulders and neck, bit by bit, waking everything up. I flex my feet and wrists and shrug my shoulders and stretch, slowly and deliberately. It’s a good way of rousing the mind and body, reconnecting them for the day ahead.
I do something similar after I run, investing some time in thoroughly stretching my legs and hips so I don’t pay the price in the morning. And it’s always worth the time.
How about you?
This post is part of #Reverb10, a month-long project to reflect on the year nearly gone. Read all my #Reverb10 posts, or learn more.
Adventures of the Former Elginista 
I’ve been looking for a 5K to train for, for a while now. I miss that alive body feeling! Thanks for the reminder of how good it feels to be active and to stretch. Taking a page out of your book this morning for a few stretches 🙂
There are lots of good 5ks out there, depending on where you are! Try active.com to see if any are near you.
Glad to hear you started the morning with a good stretch. I did a nice, prolonged stretch this morning – it was so hard to leave the warmth of my bed when facing a -15 degree windchill!
I am not a good stretcher. I need to be better about that. I do a little stretching but then I get distracted and wander off to start dinner, or feed the dog or whatever. Chalk that up for a 2011 resolution – stretch.
It took awhile to build the habit because I get distracted easily, too. But once I started running I found I really NEED to stretch. Hence the early-morning before I get out of bed: I can’t get distracted by anything else.
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