#LiveWholeHealth

How often do you make things harder than they must or should be? This week's episode of #LiveWholeHealth is a progressive muscle relaxation to reduce stress and lighten your load. 

When we have aches and pains, we often notice our body “talking” to us. This Tai Chi basic moves practice helps with those aches and pains before they begin.

Connecting mind and body is important for your overall whole health. Your body responds to the way you think, feel, and act and this is often called the “mind-body connection.” 

Relationships support our quality of life and contribute to our whole health. Relationships can affect our emotional, mental, and physical health and well-being. Connections to family, friends, community, and even animals can help reduce stress and improve physical and emotional well-being.

Balance. Inner peace. Physical and emotional health. These are some of the possible benefits of a regular Tai Chi practice.

People refer to a poor “work-life balance,” finding themselves spending more time doing chores than going fishing, or having trouble finding the right mix for exercise and relaxation. How can these people find balance?

Tai Chi is a simple mind/body practice, and these warm-ups enhance relaxation, calm and focus the mind, improve sleep, posture, strength, flexibility and balance.

Music is a gift that speaks to the heart and body. Even if you are not a dancer, you can still enjoy moving your body in gentle ways that will get your blood flowing and your muscles moving.

Body scan, or being grateful for the ways that your body supports you, is a daily practice that can improve your life in many ways.

Breathing slowly and deeply in through the nose and out through the mouth with a soft and relaxed belly can increase the body’s exchange of oxygen. This technique also stimulates the body’s rest and relaxation response. It quiets the areas of the brain that register fear and anger.

How can your body help your mind? How can we work on connecting them? What role does your breath play? The fourth session in this series, Connecting Mind and Body, will help to answer these questions.

What does it mean to feel grounded? For me, grounding is a sensation of being fully connected to myself, and in the present moment. When I feel grounded, I feel more stable in my mind and body.