Get Back Your Groove

It’s great that we’re starting to dig out of corona. Restrictions are being lifted. Life is beginning to get back to normal, but often it’s hard to remember what normal actually is.

We’ve all been through a stressful and for some I would even say traumatic experience and it takes time to get back to ourselves. Feel calm. Feel energized. Be in the zone.

Get back into your groove.

It’s important to be gentle and understanding with yourself. Not to demand too much. On the other hand don’t  fall into the rut of compromising on your life. Of accepting less than you should.

Maybe you’d like to feel more energized. Maybe you’d like to let go of the corona-induced health defeating habits.  

Maybe you’re feeling stressed. Maybe you’re worried about the next wave of corona. Maybe you’d just like to be strong and boost your immunity so you can sail through this time period  feeling confident about your health and your ability to weather the storm.

I understand that. I have had all of those feelings.

I use this technique to help me.

I’d like to share with you one technique I’ve learned that can help you – no matter what you’re feeling. Doing it can lower your stress levels, help you feel energized and boost your immunity.

I like to call it remembering-the-breath. It’s so simple yet so powerful.

Simply set aside 5-10 minutes – it could be before you go to sleep at night, when you wake up in the morning, or when you take a break at work.

With your back straight, and your hands on your belly begin to notice your breath. Notice as your belly rises on the inhale and falls on the exhale. 

Start to count each breath starting from the number 30 (or a different number of your choosing) working backwards until you get to 1. Right before the inhale say the number in your head and then inhale deeply. Exhale slowly and right before you inhale the next breath say the next number in your head until you get to 1. If your mind wanders, which is likely, just return to the last number you remember.

That’s it. 

Why it works:

Breathing is something your body automatically does, like your heart beating and your blood flowing. It can reflect the underlying state of stress in your body. When we are stressed – we often tend to breathe quickly and in a shallow way. When we are relaxed we tend to take deep breaths and our breathing slows down.

But here’s the amazing thing. The breath is actually the bridge between psychology and biology. And the message flows both ways –  if we slow our breathing down and take deep breaths – we actually feel less stressed.

Unlike your pulse and blood pressure which you can’t consciously control, you can consciously tune in to the breath and use it to restore calm in your body.  When the breathing is slow and rhythmic it sends a message to your body that things are safe and calm and that reduces stress in the body.

And once your body is calm the magic begins to happen. Your immune system works better. Your psyche begins to feel calm. You are focused. You are powerful. You feel energized. You are back in your groove.

Just do it.