How Moving My Body Gave Me Back My Spirit

The Body Book with Cameron Diaz

I recently wrote an article (see below) about how movement helped me reclaim my energy and life for The Body Book Blog.  I was so excited to be on this very informative and inspiring blog based on Cameron Diaz’s Book The Body Book: The Law of Hunger, the Science of Strength, and Other Ways to Love Your Amazing Body.
Here is a quote by Cameron about aging that I think sums up why she is helping women to feel empowered with themselves.

‘A lot of us fear the idea of aging – getting older, being less mobile, having less energy, and being less of ourselves. But I look at aging like this: getting older is a blessing and a privilege, and if you lay the foundation for a healthy life in your younger years, your older years may very well be some of the best of your life. And the point I’m making is not about keeping up your youthful appearance. This is not about beauty and the aesthetics of our bodies. I want you to feel young. I want you to feel strong. I for one can say honestly that I feel better and stronger and more capable now than I did when I was twenty years old, because I’ve taken better care of myself in the last fifteen years than I did in the first twenty-six years of my life.

For more on living a healthy lifestyle see The Local Rose.

How Moving My Body Gave Me Back My Spirit

A few years ago after a painful breakup I began to sink into a mild depression. What helped me begin to awake from it, was when I saw a photo of myself where I didn’t recognize the girl looking back at the camera. In the photo, I looked heavier both physically and metaphysically. It seemed the lightness of being I used to take for granted had disappeared under a heavy weariness. My shoulders were slumped and my face looked swollen.

I have always eaten fairly healthy, however since I was always naturally slim I rarely exercised. Seeing myself in this new light, I could see I had to do something. Around this time, I had just moved near the Santa Monica Mountains and I always had a calling to go up to the mountain paths. Now I began to make an effort to actually hike up the trails. What began as a calling to be in nature, turned into a workout and therapy session rolled into one.

I noticed that I began to crave the walking/hiking sessions and when I missed a day I could actually feel the nervous energy and negative thoughts returning. On my walks I would think of issues that were pressing on me, and come up with solutions. It seemed I could only solve problems when I was moving physically. I did this without listening to music, and solitary. Soon I realized that the trees along the path, the birds in the bushes, and certain plants and wild flowers, were greeting me. The physical world around me was feeding me as my heartbreak was healing.

It seems the walking was creating endorphins in my body along with the meditative quality that comes from being in nature. I was energetically clearing negativity through movement. A metamorphosis was taking place. This was happening without a gym, without a trainer, without pressure.

Around this time I also started practicing Kundalini Yoga. Kundalini yoga classes usually entail lots of breathing and some mediation. It isn’t quite as physically challenging as Hatha or Ashtanga yoga practices. The Kundalini mantras, mediations and breathing exercises, lifted my well-being on another level. There have been scientific studies done on how certain movements, along with deep breathing can actually change the neuro pathways of the brain. The practice can also work on the pituitary gland, which can help calm the nervous system, enhance ones’ intuition and lead to a more youthful existence.

A few months ago, I caught a glimpse of myself from a more recent photo. In the picture, the woman looking back at me was confident; shoulders were aligned and straight, and she seemed whole, clear and with spirit. I know I couldn’t have reached this place without moving my body. Without healing through movement.