In this way, when we activate the body through exercises, we develop body awareness, capable of transforming anyone’s quality of life .
If you still don’t know what it is and what its benefits are, don’t worry! We explain everything in this article. Good reading!
What is body awareness?
Have you ever noticed when your posture was wrong? Did you have back or leg pain from work? Did you notice that your shoulders were tense? All of this is part of body awareness.
It is through it that we perceive our entire body. In other words, we feel and understand the movements he performs, his limit, his physical capacity, as well as the symptoms that poor posture and lack of physical activity cause.
In this way, body awareness allows you to know and experience the body in a different way, making you recognize the origin of muscle pain and discomfort, as well as realizing the daily benefits of performing some physical activity.
With this, you develop a deep self-knowledge, identifying the capabilities that your body has — and developing them even more —, improving your relationship with the environment.
How important is it to develop it?
It is very common to read or hear the importance of practicing some physical activity, having a healthy diet and developing a good quality of life. All of this can be worked on by improving your body awareness.
After all, its greatest importance is to know your own body, to know its limits and strengths, to identify the pain and to know your normal pattern. In other words, it is literally becoming aware of your organism.
Thus, you guarantee several benefits — which we will list below! — as well as avoiding a sedentary and unhealthy lifestyle. For example, let’s say you have a habit of bumping into different places while walking, or you live with muscle pain and you don’t know why.
This is because you have not yet developed body awareness and you do not know the limits of your body. By improving it, you promote self-knowledge, establishing better contact between the organism and the mind, as well as between you and the environment.
What are the benefits generated?
By now, you may have already realized that body awareness provides a number of benefits, from identifying common pain and natural movement processes to enhancing self-knowledge.
Below, we separate other advantages that it brings. Check out!
Improves quality of life
Constant work and a busy routine often prevent us from recognizing what the body is showing, whether good or bad. This causes many people to have bad posture, joint problems and back pain.
By understanding what is being harmful, you automatically correct your body and avoid attitudes that bring harm in the long run. A great example is the simple movement of sitting.
When using chairs without ergonomics and armrests, too high or too low, the spine finds some way to compensate for what is missing, which, in the future, causes pain and stress.
But then, how does body awareness help in these cases? It is through her that you perceive compensation, relaxing your shoulders, standing straight and adjusting your legs to leave them at 90°.
This all contributes to a healthier and happier life, without muscle discomfort and chronic pain.
And more: by knowing your own body, you also improve the ability to recognize your emotional states, identifying movements related to anxiety, sadness, joy and fear.
Decreases the risk of injury
As we mentioned, by having body awareness you considerably reduce the risks of having an injury, both at work and during the practice of physical activity.
After all, you have full knowledge of what is happening to your muscles when performing a movement. In addition, you perceive the strength of your body, more easily dosing the amount of weight it can handle and, consequently, warding off injuries.
Generates more disposition
Do you remember that at the beginning of this article we explained that one of the causes of tiredness and lack of motivation is the lack of body awareness? A conscious body improves your physical conditioning , leaving your joints lubricated, muscles strengthened and, in addition, a good relationship with the environment.
All of this contributes — and how! — to improve the mood and face the challenges of the running routine with more tranquility. Thus, you feel motivated to practice physical activity and ensure a healthier life.
How to get body awareness?
But then, how to develop it and achieve all these benefits? It must be very difficult, right? In fact, it is very simple and easily achievable. In addition to being aware of the movements performed daily – such as sitting, walking, lifting and pulling -, the practice of physical activity is one of the best ways to gain body awareness.
So, when you do any movement, focus for a few seconds and notice which muscles contract, which joints are used, the pain that may arise and how the rest of your body responds to the exercise.
Also, if you want to intensify awareness, observe your breathing rate, identifying what your body does after breathing in and out calmly.
What are the recommended activities?
There are several activities that are effective in achieving body awareness. The important thing is to choose the one that brings motivation and willingness to continue practicing, as well as happiness in everyday life.
In this way, analyze your personal tastes and look for an exercise that brings benefits, avoiding activities that do not match your personality and personal preferences.
It is worth remembering that there are some practices that deepen knowledge of the organism, such as dance, Pilates, functional training , yoga, stretching and RPG, since they work with many movements simultaneously, although all exercises allow the perception of the musculature.
Developing body awareness is not a big challenge. Just invest in the regular practice of physical activity, choosing the one that best suits your routine and preferences, focusing on each movement.