Getting in touch with our bodies can be challenging sometimes, especially if we have spent years being out of touch with them, and are now leading a stressful life that is dominated by competition and ideas of success and achievement.
However, I know that there’s a way because I have witnessed many women transform themselves and their lives by fostering a deeper connection with themselves and the bodies that they inhabit.
Here are 20 ways you can work on getting in touch with your own wonderful body:
1. Walk barefoot more often.
Connecting with the earth is so important in order to remain grounded and calm. So kick off your shoes and get some barefoot time.
2. Explore what your body feels like.
We are so used to navigating life with our eyes and through what we see. Close your eyes and become curious: what does my body feel like? What’s it like to be in my skin?
3. Massage lotion into your body slowly and gently.
We often rush through this part of our post-shower routine, but rather than thinking of it as an annoying task, make it a daily pleasure ritual.
4. Send love to the parts of your body that you dislike.
Particularly on those areas of your body that you dislike, practice placing your hands on these areas and explore what that area feels like without judgment.
5. Eat slower and take breaks between bites.
Food is such a source of pleasure and that’s wonderful, so make full use of this pleasure by really savoring every bite.
6. Explore the texture of your food by chewing more often.
Food is so versatile in its texture. Pay attention how an apple’s texture is pleasing in a different way from a walnut’s texture.
7. Sleep naked more often.
It can feel uncomfortable at first, but being in your most natural state is a wonderful sign of self-acceptance.
8. Breath deeply.
Especially when we’re stressed, we often only breath shallowly. Make it a ritual to take deep breaths throughout the day. I imagine that my breath is sweeping soft gold air into my body all the way into my hips and then out again in a soft of refreshing and cleaning way. It’s lovely.
9. Dress in a soulful way.
By that I mean to dress up in a way that really shows who you are. The way you dress your body is a way to honor its authenticity and say, “You deserve to wear beautiful things because I love you.”
10. Explore what it feels like to touch something with different parts of your body.
What do you detect when you are the one touching? Explore what it feels like to touch with your fingertips versus the back of your hand versus the toes versus your shoulder.
11. Explore what it feels like to be touched by someone or something.
What do you detect when you are the one BEING touched? How does someone else’s touch feel against your skin?
12. Keep a food and emotions journal.
How does a certain food make you feel? Energized? Lethargic? Bloated? Soft? Warm? Cloudy? Happy? Guilty? Bright? Shameful? Dull? Fresh? Clear?
13. Ask yourself first thing in the morning how your body feels that day.
How can you support your body in feeling well?
14. Try meditation.
Even if it’s only for five minutes. Being present in stillness in your own body is a very powerful experience. It also means potentially working through your own resistance of just being without doing.
15. Move your body in new ways.
If you are a runner, try belly dancing. If you are a yogi, try kickboxing. The key is to approach this in a playful way (and not as a perfectionist).
16. Listen to your favorite music with your eyes closed.
Explore how and where your body just lights up.
17. Get massages.
Touch is such an important aspect of our existence and getting your muscles moved and massage is key in order to feel light, flexible and at ease in your body.
18. Swim in open water.
Not only will you be in a bathing suit, but there’s also something very special about being in touch with the waves of the ocean or the glacial water of a lake. Your body will also feel light and effortless floating in nature’s waters.
19. Stretch your body every morning and every evening.
I don’t mean the sweat-inducing stretching but the gentle stretching to lengthen your limbs, get your digestion going, and release tension. Your body deserves this.
20. Look at your full body in the mirror and speak to yourself kindly.
Compliment yourself on your legs and arms, your hair, your eyes, your mid-section… Go on a scavenger hunt to find YOUR beauty. Smile at yourself.
Caroline Zwickson, M.A.
Caroline Zwickson, M.A. is a fertility & life coach for women who desire to live in fertile bodies and lead vibrant lives so they can become happy mothers in the near or far future. Through her own experience navigating hormonal imbalances after coming off birth control in her 20s, she experienced first hand that fertility is so much more than just biology. She integrates nutrition, positive psychology, and a variety of other holistic techniques to elegantly combine personalized preconception support, natural hormone balancing, and life coaching for physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. Her approach is based on positivity and the firm belief that women have an immense capacity for creation.
Caroline has been featured in The Huffington Post, MindBodyGreen, Your Bella Life, The Beauty Bean and Cafe Truth. She has spoken at companies like Martha Stewart Living, Yelp, AMEX, Twitter, and Charity Water. You can find out more about her at www.carolinezwickson.com and you can download her FREE workbook guiding you through her top 5 tools to help you conceive naturally.
