Want to feel more balanced in your body and movement? A little awareness can go a long way.
Body awareness is essentially the understanding of your physical body in relation to the world in which it exists. This connection can be broken down into two parts:
- Kinesthesia, the awareness of your body to itself and
- Proprioception, the awareness of your body to the space around it.
Movement reflects how the body feels.When everything flows together in harmony, life is good! These three accessible FeetUp exercises help to sharpen internal focus and external awareness while promoting a general sense of happiness and wellbeing. Move slowly with great curiosity as you listen to your body. Most importantly... have fun!
Floating Tabletop. With the back of the trainer facing towards your legs, place your hands on the wooden frame and carefully crawl both knees onto the cushion. Keeping your shoulders stacked over the hands and the hips above the knees, start exploring gentle movements with the core engaged. Flow between cat and cow (arch / round in the spine) a few times to build confidence before extending one arm or leg at a time to explore the space. Be mindful of keeping your weight evenly distributed so that all four legs for the Trainer stay firmly grounded on the floor.
Floating Childs Pose. After exploring dynamic movement atop the Trainer, let’s calm things down with some passive relaxation. From the tabletop position, lower shoulders towards your hands as your tailbone drops slowly back towards the heels, adjusting the knees to find a preferable leg position. Feel free to move your hands down to the crossbar or onto the ground for more space to let your head hang. Once comfortable, simply focus on each breath and visualize what your body looks in the space you’re currently in.
Supported Downward Facing Dog. Slowly climb off the way you came in and rotate the Trainer around so you are facing the front. With your hands on the frame, bring your shoulders to the cushion and allow your head to hang freely. Feel free to stay here for the simpler variation! From here, extend your legs and walk your feet towards your face. Welcome to your first fully supported inversion! Use your time here to focus in on how it feels to be upside down without having to fight gravity.
How did it feel to explore movement and balance in these shapes? Movement is a very personal experience, so make sure you take the time listen to what your body has to say and reflect on whatever gems you come across!
