Mindful Movement For All: How to Practice Moving Intentionally

Thrive • Jun 24, 2021

Thrive incorporates the concept of mindful movement into its treatment of eating disorders and perinatal mental health conditions. We emphasize mindful movement in these programs because of the healing effects that body movement awareness can have on individuals struggling to regain a healthy, accepting relationship with their bodies. But mindful movement is not just for individuals struggling with eating disorders or perinatal mental health. Actually, mindful movement can help everyone approach movement with self-compassion, flexibility, and a sense of enjoyment — all while boosting your mental health and physical wellness.

WHAT IT MEANS TO MOVE MINDFULLY

Mindful movement is noticing without judgment the sensations that you feel in your body when you are intentionally moving. When you move mindfully, you move for intrinsic reasons, rather than extrinsic reasons which typically drives traditional exercise. Oftentimes, the motivation for traditional exercise is results-based. Exercising to lose weight, win in competitive sports, or change how your body looks is not only not sustainable, but these external motivations also take all the fun and meaningfulness out of moving intentionally. When moving mindfully, the motivation is internal. The goal of mindful movement is to simply enjoy the experience of moving intentionally in your body.

Our bodies are distinct. As a result, physical activities are going to feel different for everyone. Additionally, we all have varying perspectives of what exercise consists of in terms of physical activity, intensity, and duration. You want your type of movement to be enjoyable, and because we are all unique, mindful movement can mean different things for different people.

THE BENEFITS OF MINDFUL MOVEMENT

Consistent mindful movement provides many physiological benefits, including:

Promoting cardiovascular health
Promoting stronger bones
Promoting better sleep
Increasing immunity to illness
Lowering the risk of chronic pain and injury
Maintaining functional mobility throughout life

Additionally, there is a direct correlation between mindful movement and positive mental health. Mindful movement is a form of self-care. If you help take care of your body physically, your body will help take care of you mentally.

Everyone can benefit from mindful movement. Research shows mindful movement can help lower stress and anxiety, in addition to improving depression and overall mood. There is also scientific evidence that supports the idea that practicing mindful movement can help lower the risk of relapse from eating disorders and addiction disorders as well as sustain long-term recovery from these illnesses.

MINDFUL MOVEMENT AT THRIVE

Thrive incorporates mindful movement therapeutic groups into both our eating disorder and perinatal mental health treatment programs. Eating disorder treatment clients who are struggling with overexercising or exercise-avoidant behaviors also have access to individual sessions with Thrive’s mindful movement specialists. As we continue to expand, Thrive intends to offer mindful movement therapy as an outpatient service.

A Typical Thrive Mindful Movement Session

To begin…

Before starting a movement session, clients take a few deep breaths. They turn their attention inward by performing a head-to-toe body scan, noticing without judgment how they feel in their bodies. They assess their energy levels. From there, the mindful movement specialist asks the participants to think about how intensely they would like to move their bodies based on how they feel. The clients make an intention or goal for the movement session.

While moving…

During the movement session, clients practice noticing without judgment how they are feeling in their bodies as they move.

To close…

After the movement session, clients perform the same deep inward awareness exercise that they did before they started. They take a few deep breaths while noticing how they feel in their bodies after moving. Clients reflect on how, or if, they met their intention without judgment.

HOW TO INCORPORATE MINDFUL MOVEMENT INTO YOUR LIFE

It’s not necessary to join a mindful movement therapy group to incorporate the practice into your life. You can take ownership of your movement. Here’s how —

Block out time in your schedule to move mindfully, regularly.
Do activities that are fun and feel good.
Mix up your routine with a variety of physical activities. Doing the same kind of movement can get boring. Keep your movement fun, so you keep engaging in the activity.
If you are feeling emotionally drained or tired before you plan to move, be flexible and practice self-compassion. It’s okay to walk rather than run. If you’re feeling physically or emotionally exhausted, it’s even okay not to move at all. Listen to what your body is telling you.

There you have it. Now, go practice moving while listening to your body without self-judgment and adjusting as necessary. Remember to make sure it’s enjoyable, too. If you’re in need of additional guidance, Thrive is also always here to support you on your holistic wellness journey.

About the Author

LIZ LASS, RN, CEDRN, CPT — Director of Nursing

Liz Lass, RN, CEDRN, CPT, is Thrive’s Director of Nursing and is truly passionate about working with the eating disorder community. Liz earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Nevada, Reno, and Bachelor’s in Science in Exercise and Sport Science from Western Washington University in Bellingham, WA. Liz is a CEDRN (Certified Eating Disorder Registered Nurse) and has 9 years of experience working with the eating disorder population. Liz is also a certified personal trainer and is passionate about integrating her background of exercise science into her practice through mindful movement and helping clients heal their relationship with exercise. Her dynamic role at Thrive Wellness includes performing nursing assessments, providing meal support, leading groups, consultations, and assisting prescribers at Thrive Wellness with coordination of care between agencies, pharmacies, and laboratories. In her free time, Liz enjoys all that the Reno-Tahoe area has to offer, including skiing, hiking, biking, camping, wake-surfing, paddle boarding, and listening to live music. She grew up in Sun Valley, ID, and lives with her husband, two sons, and blue heeler in Verdi, NV.

The post Mindful Movement For All: How to Practice Moving Intentionally first appeared on Thrive Wellness.

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Clean House, Healthy Mind: Spring Cleaning Benefits for Mental Health

By Sage Tippie • 23 Apr, 2024

Spring Cleaning Benefits for Mental Health Spring is a time of new beginnings, change, and transitions, including in our homes. With the warmer weather kicking motivation into high gear, Spring can be a prime time to do a deep clean. Not only is a clean space aesthetically pleasing to the eyes, but it can also help to improve your mental health. Learn about how tidying up your space can also tidy up your thoughts below along with tips for cleaning when you’re struggling with your mental health. 4 Reasons Why Cleaning is Beneficial to Mental health 1.Decreased Stress Not only does an uncluttered space provide a sense of calm, but the physical act of cleaning can release feel-good endorphins, reducing feelings of stress and anxiety. As you cross tasks off your checklist, your body also releases Dopamine. Also known as the “happy hormone”, Dopamine provides a sense of accomplishment and pride that can promote motivation in other areas of our lives. 2. Improved Focus Studies have shown that an uncluttered space can also lead to an uncluttered mind. Your focus can be drawn away from important tasks by a chaotic, messy space. Research has also shown a connection between procrastination and clutter, as an unwillingness to tackle larger chores like cleaning can translate over into various areas of our lives. By keeping your space tidy, it can inspire you to stay on top of other major tasks like work and school assignments. 3. Regulated Emotions According to this 2015 study , cleaning can function as a practice in mindfulness, providing an increased sense of calm and inspiration. Slowing down while cleaning gives you room to relax and free your mind of burdens, stressors, and irritants that can affect your mental health. Cleaning can even be considered a practice of self-care as the action helps you to connect with yourself and the outcome allows you to better enjoy your own space. 4. Sense of Order and Control When experiencing mental health struggles, people may feel a lack of control over their lives and emotions. Cleaning even small areas of the home can provide an increased sense of order and control as you cross tasks off your to-do list. Through realizing your own power by simply completing minor tasks like cleaning, it can reaffirm your ability to do more. 10 Tips for Cleaning When Struggling with Mental Health Mental health struggles and disorders commonly create barriers to one’s ability to clean and properly practice personal hygiene. Although these behaviors are normal side effects of mental health disorders, we want to work to aid our clients in cleaning to the best of their ability even in difficult times. Below, Thrive Wellness occupational therapist Meadow Deason shares some helpful tips she gives to clients when they struggle with cleaning due to mental health conditions: 1.Ask For Help Having support to clean can make a huge difference. Do the cleaning with the person helping you and have them hold you accountable. 2. Don't Wait for Motivation Motivation might not come before action, but it can build as you begin to see the results of your efforts. 3. Start Small Start with one area or one task and go from there. For example, concentrate on your bedroom first and then move on to the living room and bathroom. 4. Do Something Daily Even if you do only one small cleaning task a day, doing that one task creates momentum and prevents small tasks from building up and becoming overwhelming. 5. Use Sensory Modulation Change your environment by playing music, adjusting the lighting, or using aromatherapy. This can help to put you in a new headspace for cleaning. 6. Start with "High Impact" Tasks Start with more intensive or all-over cleaning tasks such as picking up clutter or doing the dishes. The visual "noise" of some tasks makes a large impact on the entire space, building motivation to continue cleaning. 7. Make a To-Do List Write a detailed to-do list of tasks and cross them off as you go. Physically marking down what you’ve accomplished can promote increased motivation. 8. Reward Yourself Set up a reward system where you reward yourself with a favorite activity or item when you complete a task as an incentive to clean. 9. Use the Rocket Method Don't think about it, just choose a task, countdown from five or ten and then start. This can help you to avoid potential anxiety and dread that can prevent you from cleaning. 10. Gamify Tasks Make up a game for your tasks or time yourself to promote increased engagement in cleaning. Your ability to complete tasks can be affected by a multitude of different factors and conditions including OCD , anxiety, depression , ADHD , and more. If you are struggling with motivation due to your mental health, help is here at Thrive Wellness.

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