Your Body Was Made For Moving
“There are shortcuts to happiness and dancing is one of them.” – Vicki Baum
Have you ever experienced something for the very first time and as a result a piece of your mind clicks together, like a magnetized puzzle piece finding its home?
An experience that produces one of those “Ah ha!” moments?
I recently had one of those, in the form of a Kundalini Yoga class and I’m pretty sure it changed my life.
I like to be open to new experiences when they present themselves, so I grabbed my yoga mat and headed into class.
Honestly, I had no idea what Kundalini Yoga was or what I was walking into.
I rolled my mat out and set my water on the floor next to me.
The room was warm and the air was full of incense smoke gently making tight circles as it ascended upward.
The instructor donned a beautiful white gown and wore a white turban on her head. She sat in front of a large gong and I was overcome with a feeling that I was about to experience something unique and special. Verged on the edge of sacred.
The next 60 minutes was nothing short of magic.
The practice was centered on repetitive movement, a breathing technique called Breath of Fire and chanting. All of which are designed to help raise your Kundalini energy, your life force.
We moved in a pattern that resembled some sort of ancient dance. We closed our eyes and sang without holding back. We were all connected to one another with no trace of judgement or self-consciousness.
There was only acceptance and this sense of energetic freedom.
When the movement was complete, we laid in Savasana. The instructor bathed us in vibration as she played her gong.
Every time she struck the large metal disk, the sound vibration filled the room penetrating everything in its path.
It filled my body and charged my energy unlike anything I had experienced before. After 15 minutes of this gong bath, I sat up and took in what I had just experienced.
My body, down to its very last cell felt electrified. My energy was buzzing like it had just been activated. Like it had just been awoken from a long deep slumber.
Over the next several days, I found that my thoughts kept coming back to that experience.
I kept thinking of the feeling of unbridled energy I had felt throughout that hour.
The movement had made my body feel truly alive!
And that’s when I realized…
When you surrender to pure movement there is a surge of energetic release that results in balance and clarity.
Movement is integral in sustaining a healthy energetic body.
As we progress throughout our day, we pick up energetic imprints from every single thing that we come in contact with.
You could compare it to the cardiovascular system.
If you eat a diet that promotes high cholesterol, you get clogged arteries and your risk of heart disease increases.
Similarly, as we go throughout our day, we accumulate energy within our energetic bodies.
All of this “energetic junk” will build up and clog our meridians or “energy pathways” unless it’s cleared and released.
Blocked meridians can manifest in several different ways. So, how can you determine if you have blockages?
Here are some common signs that you can look for:
1. Lowered energy.
2. Lowered sense of self-esteem.
3. Lowered vibrational emotions, like anxiety, anger, fear.
4. Feeling unmotivated.
5. Feeling ungrounded and stressed.
6. Inability to communicate your point to others.
7. Forgetfulness.
8. Inability to think clearly.
When your energy is moving freely and without disruption, you will feel centered and calm with a clarity that brings a grounded confidence.
Movement is the most effective way to clear your body of stagnant, old and unwanted energy.
When we move our bodies there’s a release of energy that occurs that is so potent, you can feel it physically.
Runners experience this as the “runner’s high”.
Yogis feel it as the sensation of being “blissed out”.
Movement not only clears our meridians and floods our bodies with endorphins, but it also provides us space to be present in a concentrated way that is hard to achieve any other way.
I listened to a podcast recently and the guest was talking about how she loved to run. She didn’t describe herself as a hardcore runner or athlete, but she loved to go on 3 or 4 mile runs a couple of times a week because of the clarity it brought to her.
She said that anytime she was confronted with a problem or needed to make a decision about something important, she would always go for a run first.
By the time she was finished, she always had a clear idea of the direction she should go.
This is because she had given her energetic body the space it needed to clear the blockages that were causing indecision and confusion.
Post run, her stagnant energy had been dispersed and her meridians were flowing smoothly. The proper flow of energy allowed her the clarity she needed in order to make the proper decision.
I’ve heard this story again and again.
People saying that they experience the same thing with swimming, boxing, weight lifting and so many more.
But movement does not have to be limited to working out in a traditional sense.
Find movement that you enjoy, that brings a sense of fun and excitement. Something you are able to do with abandon.
Go to a concert and lose yourself in the music.
Find a local class, as I did, that promotes freedom of movement.
Have a dance party in your kitchen.
Chase your kids around the yard, or take your dog to the park.
Move in a way that makes your heart swell with so much joy that you have to release it with laughter.