I attend a Pilates class every Tuesday and Thursday morning. Truth be told, it is something that that I look forward to every week. It is a period of time that I devote completely to myself and no one else. It is a chance for me to connect with my mind and body.
This morning I attended the class like many other mornings. As soon as I sat down on my mat and began to stretch, I looked in the mirror and noticed that the woman sitting behind me was distracted. Her brow was furrowed and her mind seemed to be a million miles away. I felt for her because I have been in that exact same place before.
We are able to get the most out of activities like Pilates when we allow for our minds and bodies to connect. The mind-body connection, however, only arrives when we are willing and able to let go of whatever we walked into the room with. We have to give ourselves permission to not think about what is going on outside of the room…tests, kids, relationships, finances, etc. The only thing that we pay attention to is ourselves. It sounds simple but we all know that achieving such a connection is difficult.
Why is that we don’t allow ourselves to take the time (even an hour) to focus on ourselves without the cares of the world getting in the way? I, you, and many of my clients have struggled with this question. When we stop to think about the question we often arrive at an answer similar to others thinking that we are selfish for taking the time to: attend a Pilates class, go for a run, read a good book, or do whatever it is that we really want to do.
Is it really selfish to focus on ourselves? I have often noticed that I am able to be most present and able to handle the demands of life when I have taken the hour to attend a Pilates class…we are able to connect with others on a significant level when we have first connected with ourselves.
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No Thoughts About You