10 Tips for Mind and Body Awareness

We, humans, are so busy at times that we forget to be mindful of our body and mind. There are just too many things to worry about—work, relationships, finances, and the like. We are too driven to succeed in life to the point that we neglect our mental and physical health.  With this, we compiled 10 tips for mind and body awareness and wellness.

1. Meditation

Meditation keeps you in touch with your mind and body. It strikes a balance between the two. This gives you a restful awareness, a state wherein your body is relaxed while your mind gains a deeper awareness of the “self” and the environment. This helps relieves mental and physical stress as well, which in turn allows you to achieve wellness.

According to research, meditation helps decrease hypertension, anxiety, heart disease, insomnia, depression and behavioral issues. It is also essential in promoting stress regulation, memory, calmness, sense of the self and empathy.

2. Healthy Diet

Meditation alone is not enough to promote a healthy body and mind. What we eat also affects our mind and body wellness. Suffice it to say, we must eat nourishing food. The secret to a healthy diet is to keep it balanced. You must eat the six tastes— sweet, salty, pungent, sour, bitter and astringent. We need all these tastes, but we must not eat them in excess. Keep everything balanced. Aside from a balanced diet, we must also eat freshly prepared foods. If you cannot resist eating frozen, ready-made, canned or frozen foods, at least limit your consumption of them.

3. Regular Exercise

Exercise is not only about getting fit and having that great body. Regular exercise also has great benefits for your mind and body. It promotes mental and emotional well-being, on top of its many health benefits to the body. Physical activity like daily exercise helps promote the brain’s ability to perform cognitive tasks. It can also lift depression and reduce the effects of stress.

Your exercise program must target strength, cardiovascular health, and flexibility. There are various aerobic activities and exercises you can try at the gym or even at home. Just keep it fun.

4. Restful Sleep

Sleep is essential for our health and energy. Having inadequate sleep is not good for you, physically and mentally. It disrupts our body’s balance and speeds up aging, worsens depression and weakens the immune system, among others. On the contrary, if you are well-rested, you are physically and mentally energized. You can combat stress better and can be in touch with your mind and body. The number of hours of sleep matters, but what matters most is a restful sleep, regardless of the number of hours.

5. Do Things You Love

Be true to yourself and do the things that you love. If you love outdoor activities, then find time to go hiking or cycling. If you love the arts, then express yourself through art. By doing things that you love, you can connect more with your mind. Mind and body awareness starts when you know what love and you do what you love doing.

6. Relationship with Yourself

Establishing relationships with others is important, but it must not be at the expense of your relationship with your body. Loving and being aware of oneself is highly essential in achieving mind and body wellness. We must take care of our body and respond to what it wants. We must discipline it and focus on its well-being. Once we establish a relationship with our body, then everything else follows.

7. Keep a Journal

You can get in touch with yourself better if you express yourself. You can do this by keeping a journal. Expressing yourself in writing can clear off emotions, calm the nerves and alleviate stress. Writing is a way of releasing bad energy. You don’t have to be a great writer. Just be true to yourself and pour out your emotions and thoughts on the blank page.

8. Build Confidence

Confident and self-esteem promote inner peace and mind and body awareness. If you have confidence in yourself, then you can love yourself better. If you have self-love, then you can get in touch with yourself more, mentally and physically, even spiritually. Confidence also allows you to do many things, discover yourself and build mind and body discipline.

9. Do Away with Doubt

This is easier said than done, but you can at least try. If you clear your head, you can get in touch with your mind and body better. Anxiety clouds our sense of the self and of our awareness of things. If you do away with self-doubt, then you can take charge of your well-being better.

10. Be Positive

Having a positive mindset allows you to develop mind and body awareness. Negative thoughts just get in the way and may even result in stress and anxiety. While staying positive is not as easy as it may seem, you can at least try. Develop a positive mindset in your way and at your own pace.