Do you ever stop and think about the amazing things your body is capable of? It not only maintains thousands of minuscule operations every minute, like pumping blood, firing synapses, sending messages to your brain and more, but it can also hike mountains, lift barbells, run races and twist into a pretzel in yoga class. Take a moment to really, seriously stop and think about how amazing the body is… it’s mind blowing. Sometimes I struggle to wrap my head around all it’s incredible capabilities.
And to think that our bodies can do all these amazing things, but most of us spend more time hating on our bodies than loving and celebrating them. Geez louise, that body is working hard for you! Give it a pat on the back once in a while!
I took one of the best yoga classes of my life recently, and while laying in savasana I couldn’t stop thinking about how incredible the body is. You could hear the breath of everyone in the room as our heart rates came down and the room cooled ever so slightly from its toasty hot-yoga temp. It was one of those classes that really pushed you to the edge; forced you to find how far you could go. It’s amazing when you allow yourself to experience those moments, because wow can our bodies go far. All that sweat and savasana brought me to this thought…
Dear body…
I began thanking my body for all the amazing things it showed me it could do. I even thanked it for showing me the things it couldn’t do. Twisted dancer feeling extra wobbly today? That’s ok.
I began writing a love letter to my body, in my head…
Thank you body for sweating, moving, flowing, feeling the beat of the music. I love you for allowing me to experience the beauty of an incredible yoga class, for allowing me to soak in a moment like this by allowing me to move freely. I am grateful for the clear mind and open hips that made my practice so wonderful today. I love you body for rooting me into my mat, finding balance in most moments and wobbling so wonderfully as I find my edge. I even love you when I completely fall out of a pose – thank you for showing me what I am capable of today. Thank you for giving me all the little cells that make me whole, to fully embrace this moment.
I continued writing this love letter as class ended and it really got me to thinking…
Our bodies deserve more love letters and less hate mail.
It’s easy to tear our bodies down and pick apart the things we dislike. What if we did away with the hate mail and began sharing more love with ourselves?
I challenge you to take some time this week to write a love letter to your body; reflect on how incredible your physical being is and share that gratitude on a piece of paper. Save that letter and when you are having a day full of hate mail, pull that love letter out to remind yourself of the beauty, strength and grace that is already yours.
