Do you want to feel more alive? If so, this episode is for YOU. ... Spirituality can be uniquely defined by each individual, yet we can all agree that it is connection to some larger force, essence, or entity. Spirituality is a FEELING. Which is why it can be so challenging to express in words! Yet, it is non-negotiable to experience the essence of Spirit in our lives...if we want to live a more fully relished and inspired Life, that is. This begs the question: How can we access that super sweet feeling of aliveness more frequently? I gotchu. ... You can access a remarkably ecstatic, enthusiastic, effervescent vibration called Life Force (some call it Chi, Prana, Mana, Nyama, Chu'lel, Shekinah, Tummo) when you consciously choose to animate the life within each of your flesh-bound vessels. And it can begin in your next workout. In this episode, I detail five practices you can begin in this moment to elevate your next workout into a mechanical expression into a visit into a delightfully majestic movement universe. The How: Practice #1: Perform six cycles of box breathing before your workout. Bringing your attention to your breaths--where the air is flowing and going, and concentrating on harmonizing a particular strength + length of breath that helps bring you into an even tone of parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous system states, will prime your body and brain for more focused performance and sensitized engagement with your surroundings. Bonus Tip: breathe in and out of your nostrils, which limits your breathing to the belly. Belly breathing stimulates the vagus nerve and activates your relaxation response. Practice #2: Match your inhales and exhales to the load and explode portions of your lifts, respectively. Called "biomechanical breath pairing," this technique guides you into the most ergonomically efficient and natural pattern of breathing while resistance training. You will inhale and fill up with oxygen on the loading phase of a movement (i.e. lowering body in a pushup, squat, deadlift and exhale on the exploding phase of your movement (i.e. pressing up to high plank and standing). Practice #3: Prior to your workout, return to your why. Invest a handful of breaths in connecting to your intention for the movement session on deck. Make it your own ("to feel powerful," "to generate love," "to embody my calm,"). As discussed in Episode 001 of the pod, your deep why is the deep cavern of fuel you can tap when you feel tired or amotivated. So your intention from workout to workout will spring from this clear desire/set of desires. Please return to this episode if you missed it, as it will be key for your fitness journey. Bonus Tip: To arrive at your unique intention, ask yourself: "what do I want to express?" and "how do I want to feel?" Practice #4: Ask your Spirit what it needs to feel more alive, then pull from your movement toolbox to nourish it. What movement would make you come more alive? What pace, shape, amount of resistance, amount of balance? You are involved a process of physical expression from your spiritual center! Another way of Open up your Spirit, y'all, and give it a voice. The more trained you are in various movement patterns and resistance training techniques/principles, the more intuitive this practice can become. Practice #5: Visualize and embody--so you may next cultivate, the peak feeling you'd like to experience. This is a no-holds-barred practice. You don't have to stop at happy and strong--why not ecstatic and f*****g invincible? I challenge you to take whatever answer you first come up with and multiply it by 100, 1,000, then 1 million.
