Mindful movement is simply tuning your brain into a specific part of your body during exercise and moving with focus and intention. Did you know that mindfully focusing on exercises can increase the number of muscle fibers working? This can actually protect you from injury and spark physical change at a faster rate.
So during your next workout, instead of going through the motions, use these three ways to incorporate mindful movements:
- Follow your instructor's focused intention for each exercise. If your doing squats, she might tell you to put your weight into your heels when your at your lowest squat point to help activate your thigh and leg muscles. This is your focused intention.
- Do mind-strengthening exercises like cross-body unilateral movements (right arm with left leg).
- Slow down and pause your movements. Maybe hold a pose and say a little mantra to yourself in the pose before moving out of it or switching sides.