Hello,
As you may know, I teach movement. I don’t teach how to do a thing that requires movement, like a yoga teacher or a pilates or dance instructor, nor do I drill folks like a soccer coach; I am a tour guide dedicated to making plain — from the inside out — the many possibilities and intricacies of coordinated moving. I use as my main tool, attention, otherwise known an awareness… so I am super embarrassed: while getting ready for a private client, I left a cabinet door open, forgot about it, stood up unaware and, BANG, blood pouring down my face!
I’m OK. The blood was just a reminder not to do that sort of thing and was mostly for dramatic effect. The thing is, how could I, a movement expert, a teacher of awareness, have let this happen? How could I have become so unaware? There is only one explanation: I was hurrying.
Hurrying ≠ moving faster.
Hurry is an emotional state characterized by heightened anxiety, stress, fear and frustration. Greater anxiety is distracting , imagine standing at the chalkboard doing complicated and unfamiliar math while your 7th grade teacher is yelling and throwing chalk… (wait, that is a story for another day). All the emotional noise involved in hurrying takes up the cycles available for paying attention to what you are actually doing, hurrying makes it hard to notice the details. Hurry makes you less efficient, less effective and more likely to hurt yourself, like I did…
So how do you move quickly when something is important and not drown out awareness of your environment (and thus not hurt yourself)?
Simple: breathe
As you may know, I teach movement. I don’t teach how to do a thing that requires movement, like a yoga teacher or a pilates or dance instructor, nor do I drill folks like a soccer coach; I am a tour guide dedicated to making plain — from the inside out — the many possibilities and intricacies of coordinated moving. I use as my main tool, attention, otherwise known an awareness… so I am super embarrassed: while getting ready for a private client, I left a cabinet door open, forgot about it, stood up unaware and, BANG, blood pouring down my face!
I’m OK. The blood was just a reminder not to do that sort of thing and was mostly for dramatic effect. The thing is, how could I, a movement expert, a teacher of awareness, have let this happen? How could I have become so unaware? There is only one explanation: I was hurrying.
Hurrying ≠ moving faster.
Hurry is an emotional state characterized by heightened anxiety, stress, fear and frustration. Greater anxiety is distracting , imagine standing at the chalkboard doing complicated and unfamiliar math while your 7th grade teacher is yelling and throwing chalk… (wait, that is a story for another day). All the emotional noise involved in hurrying takes up the cycles available for paying attention to what you are actually doing, hurrying makes it hard to notice the details. Hurry makes you less efficient, less effective and more likely to hurt yourself, like I did…
So how do you move quickly when something is important and not drown out awareness of your environment (and thus not hurt yourself)?
Simple: breathe
3-minute lesson:
Please don't misunderstand this exploration in breath: I am not telling you that this is the right way to breathe... it is simply a way to breathe. More variety leads to more available choices which leads to a more informed decision. We are trying to upgrade your pack of crayons from the 8-pack to the 64-pack.
Get comfortable. If you are sitting (and it is appropriate) slip off your shoes and feel your feet on the floor. If you can lie on a carpet or blanket on the floor, do that…
Take a minute to settle in and notice the places where you touch the ground.
Without changing it, notice your breathing, notice the parts of you that move when you breathe.
* How long is your exhale?
* How long is your inhale?
* What happens when you are finished breathing out, right before you breathe in? How long do you pause?
* What about the pause after breathing in… How long is that?
* Does some part feel like it requires more effort that the other parts?
OK. Rest. Let you mind wander for just a moment.
Bring your attention back to your breathing and gently see if you can start to breathe in and out for the same length of time. You may need to lengthen the inhale and shorten the exhale or vice versa… but gently start to track the breath so that it is an even amount of time.
* Is it easier to shorten the inhale or shorten the exhale?
* Is it easier to lengthen the exhale or lengthen the inhale?
Now rest, breathe normally. Let your mind wander.
Once again equalize the length of time of your inhalation and your exhalation. Without strain, explore lengthening or shortening the pauses between breaths until they match the length of time of both your inhale and exhale. Eventually, slowly, over time, you will have four parts to your breath, all of equal length.
* How easy is it to lengthen or shorten the pauses?
* Does shifting the timing of the pauses make the inhale or the exhale harder to track?
Rest again… breathe normally. Notice how you are breathing now.
* What has changed about the movement of your breathing?
* What is your mood like now? Do you feel calmer (or did something about the challenge of this rile you up?)
Get comfortable. If you are sitting (and it is appropriate) slip off your shoes and feel your feet on the floor. If you can lie on a carpet or blanket on the floor, do that…
Take a minute to settle in and notice the places where you touch the ground.
Without changing it, notice your breathing, notice the parts of you that move when you breathe.
* How long is your exhale?
* How long is your inhale?
* What happens when you are finished breathing out, right before you breathe in? How long do you pause?
* What about the pause after breathing in… How long is that?
* Does some part feel like it requires more effort that the other parts?
OK. Rest. Let you mind wander for just a moment.
Bring your attention back to your breathing and gently see if you can start to breathe in and out for the same length of time. You may need to lengthen the inhale and shorten the exhale or vice versa… but gently start to track the breath so that it is an even amount of time.
* Is it easier to shorten the inhale or shorten the exhale?
* Is it easier to lengthen the exhale or lengthen the inhale?
Now rest, breathe normally. Let your mind wander.
Once again equalize the length of time of your inhalation and your exhalation. Without strain, explore lengthening or shortening the pauses between breaths until they match the length of time of both your inhale and exhale. Eventually, slowly, over time, you will have four parts to your breath, all of equal length.
* How easy is it to lengthen or shorten the pauses?
* Does shifting the timing of the pauses make the inhale or the exhale harder to track?
Rest again… breathe normally. Notice how you are breathing now.
* What has changed about the movement of your breathing?
* What is your mood like now? Do you feel calmer (or did something about the challenge of this rile you up?)