Facebook, Computers, Gadgets & Connecting

Someone (from Facebook) wrote to me insinuating that my blogs tend to be body-and-women-focused. Really? Good job noticing! While, I'm not really sure what he meant by it -- as if to say I should be writing about my personal Friday night plans or my favorite eye candy (mystery novels) -- he's on the mark.

I'm fascinated with how we live (or don't live) in our bodies, and being in your body isn't just for women! Men, you can use a dose of listening to your body too! And, I tend to write for women because, hellew, I've got experience in that area. That's why I decided to create my business to help others find peace and energy in their bodies, and therein, their lives. Lo and behold, I created a blog that happens to be connected to Facebook where we all tend to connect in random and sometimes energy-sucking ways.

Like many of you probably, I have a love-and-hate relationship with computers and gadgets like Blackberries, iPhones, etc. They allow us to dive into a world of knowledge, videos, games, news and the all-consuming social networking. I think it's magnificent to have the world at our fingertips, but I think it's a shame sometimes our fingers are the only ones dancing.

If you read this by chance, take a moment to turn away from the computer (or iPad or B-berry), shut down the Twitter window, and forget browsing for the latest-and-greatest coupons. Take a deep breath that goes all the way down into your belly. Now, see if you can exhale. Let go. Let go of the drama. Take a few more deep breaths and notice how your body feels --

*How are your shoulders?
*Your jaw?
*Is your face relaxed or are your brows in a furrow?
*What about your spine - are you tall and awake or slumped?
*Now take note of your legs. Could they stretch? Walk, Kick, Run, Dance?

*What happens when you follow your body?
*How do you feel when you stay stuck?

Come back to your breath. That's all you really have to do. It will lead you to stay and continue browsing (which I'm not knocking, I'm just saying!). It will lead you to get up and get moving. It will lead you to your truth, your energy, your gut, your hunch. Take time to tune in, to check in, to connect with yourself. There's nothing Greater.

Disease is inertia. Healing is movement. If you put the body in motion, you will change. You are meant to move: from flowing to staccato, through chaos into lyrical and back into the stillness from which all movement comes. ~ Gabrielle Roth

Breath Made Visible - a film

I just happened upon such a beautiful message that I thought I'd share with whomever might be out there tonight....(in case you're wondering about how dance can teach, heal, inspire and transform...or any connected movement for that matter...)

Check out the trailer for this dance documentary featuring dance pioneer Anna Halprin -- I love how she says "Dance is the breath made visible. Anyone can do it -- I don't care whether they've had any training at all."

This website is too beautiful for me to try to summarize, so please see for yourself. Read the synopsis, then watch the trailer. The music is breathtaking as well as the message:

http://www.breathmadevisible.com/?lang=en

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What is Your Word?

I'm not giving anything away by saying that in the movie Eat Pray Love, Elizabeth Gilbert shares an inside "joke" of sorts with her Italian friends that goes like this: "What is your word?" Then, you have to think of a word that describes yourself or an object besides the person/object's real name. For example, for California, you might say its word is "wine". Or, for Vince Vaughn, I'd say his word would be "adorable" (this is all subjective, ok?). Or, Mother Theresa, "generous". Make sense?

What would your word be? Think about it. And, just one word that makes sense in all or most areas of your life. I won't spoil it by telling EG's word -- you've gotta see the movie all the way to the end. :)

My word -- Connected. And, I don't mean I'm connected in the name-dropping sense. I just mean I try to stay connected to myself, my heart, my breath, my body, and special loved ones on a daily basis. It takes reminding and practice, and I'm completely human -- I slip up and forget sometimes. And, while I have tended to navel gaze quite a few times in my life, I don't believe connected always means to be so deep and serious. Simply present, hopeful, mindful and living with good intentions.

So, how are you connected? To your breath, your self, your body, your heart, your loved ones?

The Zone!

The ZONE! Not the diet, the FEELING! I'm talking about when you breeze through an activity without your mind's endless chatter. You sense the warm feeling of being in your body or in a hobby that oozes with comfort, presence and enjoyment. Time clicks by, but it doesn't matter whether it's 5 minutes or 50 minutes, you sense the connection with yourself.

This "zone" or "flow" or "connection", however you definite it, might be exercise, art, writing, playing with a baby, or even reorganizing your closet or desk. However, bear with me, I'm not talking about escapism. I know it can be easy to "zone out" to an episode of LOST or even run hard on the treadmill only to get to that 30-minute mark. I'm not saying tv is bad, and I'm not even saying that having an exercise time-goal is a terrible thing. But, I do hope you can incorporate a true connection more and more throughout your day.

In the exercise world, it's really easy to zone out. Like I mentioned above, aiming for that time-goal, or pushing as intensely as possible through a step class just to feel the burn and blast the calories. But, what about actually staying present, listening to your body and enjoying the process?

I took a step class last night since my Tuesday night client had trained Monday afternoon. What a treat to enjoy my favorite step instructor (yes, we even have a group honoring him on Facebook - "Scott's Diehard Mansley Mall Step Class").

After setting up my bench with one riser on each side, we warmed up, I took off my long-sleeved blue shirt, and we stepped combo after combo. I found myself bursting with energy one moment, and then I'd simmer down with the next combo. It was back and forth, high-medium-high-medium-low, throughout class.

I used to want to go full force throughout the whole class - and sometimes I still do if I've got the energy. But, last night (like most classes for me) was definitely like a pendulum - sometimes I needed to kick hard and hop, sometimes I needed to stay grounded and enjoy a large but soft range of motion. I stayed in my zone, honored my body when it said, "simmer down, stay low", and I kicked it up a notch with my favorite move or tune!

Classes give me the most enjoyment - I love the energy of all the people. Yet, there are days when I need the repetitive rhythm of a walk, or a nice light sweat on the elliptical. And, I'll admit, if it's an elliptical day, I take something to read like a magazine. Beware of the magazine though! It's a great way to block all the silly number the elliptical's digital screen blares. Yet, it can also encourage "zoning out" v. "zoning in". So, if you're in the mood for a calm but warm sweat (ie - it's a treadmill, stationary bicycle or elliptical day), please tune in to your body. Stay with your breath. Read something light so your attention can stay with your body, and you'll be able to sense what intensity or resistance your body needs throughout each minute.

The goal here is connecting with your body, your breath, your self. Staying present instead of escaping. Having healthy intentions with exercise v. punishing yourself through exercise. If you need helping checking in and figuring out what in the world you can do to even find your healthy zone in the exercise arena, please let me know. I'm open ears and am happy to help. caroline@mybodyflow.com

thank you for coming!

Great turnout today at the art+movement workshop! For those of you who came, I hope you enjoyed the experience, were able to take that connection home with you, and are blessed throughout 2009! Thank you to lululemon (JJ and Abby) for allowing us to use their beautiful space! www.lululemon.com

And, a similar workshop's around the corner. Need more body love and self care? Connect with your self and your body through art and movement.

Resolve to Love Your Body: Self care through art + movement
Honoring EDIN's Love Your Body Month (www.myedin.org)
When: Sunday, February 15, 2009, 3-5pm
Where: lululemon showroom, Atlanta


...more details to follow

Connecting During the Holidays

Poppaw and me ~ Jonesborough, TN ~ Christmas 2006

I just returned from an overnight trip to visit my 94-year-old great grandfather in Tennessee. Poppaw's in poor health, and I knew I needed to see him on a quiet weekend when I could only hope to connect with him.

His ample-yet-lanky 6'4 frame has whittled down to skin and bones. The blankets on the bed barely rippled over his legs and hips. When I first walked into his room and said hello, he held my head close to his, murmuring how he loved me, how life goes by fast, how I deserved the best.

Somehow I let his words and his feeble presence soak in peacefully. I felt a sense of calm, I didn't need to be upset. He'd be okay.

We talked and talked all afternoon - About the people he saw appear in his bedroom and the lights he saw above his bed. About how if I should ever need anything, anything at all, I should let him know. About how his elbow, leg and eye hurt. I rubbed lotion on a callous on his hand, something I know my mother did several times for a week before while he was in the hospital. I thought about the life cycle - how he used to take care of me instead of the other way around.

Again though, I felt a certain sense of peace with the situation. We had the time to connect on a sweet and real level.

As Thanksgiving approaches this week, as you see your own loved ones - family or friends, think about your own connections - with those people and with yourself.

*How are you taking care of yourself this week so you can connect with others when appropriate?

*Are you resting?

*Are you eating mindfully?

*Are you resting enough?

*Are you moving enough?

*How fast are you moving?

*How long is your to-do list?

*How many holiday invitations are arising?

*How are you drained, how are you energized?

*Are you saying "yes" or saying "no" when appropriate?

First, take care of yourself - your spirit, your body - then tend to others so you have something to give. I know it's a tall order of self care, and it's something I work on everyday too, but that self care is necessary for healthy, whole, mindful, joyful living.

If you're in need of a reminder of where to start, I love this "expressions" link to Margo Maine's website: http://www.mwsg.org/expressions.htm - Read the first piece "Thank You Body". Start there, and let that gratitude roll out to other areas - your energy, your creativity, your peace, your rest, and your connections to others.

Happy Connecting this week. ;)

EDIN workshop

Writing with the Body: Words and Movement
Monday, July 21, 2008
7-8pm
EDIN’s Decatur office:
124 Church Street, Decatur, GA 30030
*free

Join FLOW Training for a workshop
combining gentle movement and writing.
Drawing or coloring is also an option.
Practice tuning into your mind-body connection.
Let your body and your heart speak.

*Bring your journal and yoga mat.

Connect with your body, connect with yourself, connect with others. FLOW Training offers a variety of fitness training and workshops focusing on connecting the body, self, breath and community. For more information:

FLOW Training
404.210.6752
carolineflow@gmail.com
www.mybodyflow.com

*For more information about EDIN (Eating Disorders Information Network), please visit www.myedin.org