![]() “Breathing is probably the single quickest way to change you from the sympathetic nervous system domination – the fight-or-flight response, where most people in our society spend most of their hours – to the more restorative parasympathetic nervous system.”īreathing consciously, slowly and deeply is well known to create a feeling of relaxation. “Breathing is probably the single quickest way to change you from the sympathetic nervous system domination – the fight-or-flight response, where most people in our society spend most of their hours – to the more restorative parasympathetic nervous system,” says Timothy McCall, MD, medical editor of Yoga Journal magazine. Studies have shown that slow, controlled breathing can calm our heart rates and nervous systems, tapping into and amending what are usually involuntary responses. Take a Deep BreathĪll mind-body exercises emphasize deep, controlled breathing as an essential step to calm and focus ourselves, and to become more aware of what’s going on in our bodies and minds. “By concentrating on movement with focused awareness, you’re able to affect your heart rate and your respiratory rate and heighten your mind-body connection.”Īlthough the range of mind-body exercises runs the gamut from meditative activities like tai chi to highly exertive ones like Pilates or Ashtanga yoga, most experts agree that all these exercises contain a few fundamental elements: deep breathing, mindfulness and precise form, each of which has specific benefits. “Your brain is connected to every single part of the body through the central nervous system, so by bringing your mental faculties of concentration into your movement in exercise, you’re assisting it to work at another level,” says Archer, a health educator and fitness-and-wellness specialist at Stanford University School of Medicine. These exercises power down the sympathetic nervous system – your fight-or-flight response – and power up the parasympathetic system, which induces rest and relaxation. “It’s about cultivating your health by restoring balance….You start to uncover your body’s own wisdom.”Ī growing amount of scientific evidence has linked mind-body exercises to improvements in balance, mental health, emotional well-being and stress reduction. ![]() “Mind-body exercise is about creating wellness,” says Shirley Archer, author of 12 books, including Pilates Fusion: Well-Being for Body, Mind and Spirit. ![]() Its purpose was to harmonize and rejuvenate the mind, body and soul. In the ancient Eastern traditions – where many of these disciplines are rooted – exercise wasn’t seen as a way to burn calories or flatten abs. It’s also a form of meditation, spiritual growth and a way to squelch the stress of everyday life. Without a doubt, mind-body exercise is more than a physical regimen. Mind-body exercise takes you to a different place.” “The other side of it is the absolute celebration of how they feel about themselves. “People are looking for a sense of freedom, letting go of any type of resistance or stress,” she says. Tonita Moniz, a fitness instructor at Life Time Fitness in Chanhassen, Minn., teaches a class called “Body and Soul” that combines free-flowing movements with core exercises, yoga and Pilates, controlled breathing, and lots of music. One survey even found that more than half of fitness professionals are creating hybrid programs, blending principles of yoga or Pilates with other forms of exercise. Increasingly, these classes are being offered at places beyond fitness centers, including hospitals, resorts, schools and senior homes. About 25 million Americans practiced mind-body exercises like yoga, tai chi and Pilates in 2005, according to a 2006 study by the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association many others are exploring activities like qigong and belly dancing. Mind-body fitness is one of the hottest trends in the exercise industry. Being able to focus gives you a base that can enhance any aspect of your life.”Ĭlearly, millions of people are discovering the same thing. “Once you get that discipline, your performance will really begin to skyrocket. “Mind-body connection leads to discipline,” says Seabourne, PhD, author of Mind/Body Fitness: Focus, Preparation, Performance. For Seabourne, the mind-body connection is many things – a way to summon a powerful punch, concentrate on the ball during a tennis game or free himself from worry in order to relax. He’s a two-time national champion in tae kwon do who can chop cinder blocks in half and bench 275 pounds he also once pedaled 458 miles nonstop in the “Ironbutt” 24-hour bicycle race.
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