Two strategies to help you build body & mind connections and boost your productivity even in stressful environment

Practical tools to enable success and calmness through movement.

Keeping calm in unplanned situations is the key to success at work, building your business and even living a full and balanced life. Emotion and stress management is a part of living in a healthy body and eliminating habits or coping strategies that are destructive for your long term health and fitness.

Today I want to share two tools I use every day to enable my success with business and personal goals, as well as my own goal of building muscle and living in a strong and fit body.

Active grounding technique: every morning a short 10-15minute body activation session is an easy and efficient way to stay focused during the day. I use basic bodyweight movements and incorporate them into a simple routine: squats, lunges, vinyasa flow, pushups, etc. Working with various clients, I have noticed that best results for mind and body are when the routine is created by oneself, using exercises that are well known to them. It is important to focus on breathing, mindfully continuing the flow, counting repetitions and being aware of which joints and muscles you use.

Second technique is a breathing and light dynamic stretching session before going to sleep, followed by a short mindfulness meditation that focuses on "body scan" that I find a great body awareness tool. Focus on your breathing and hold each stretch / release for 30-60 seconds, mindfully deepening it and breathing. Emphasise the body parts you feel tension in. "Body scan" meditation is a great tool to ground yourself and can be used in the morning or in the evening (or both): while focusing on your breathing find a comfortable position lying down on your back with palms raised and imagine that you are scanning your body from toes to your head; noticing how each part feels. Are there any tensions? Tickling? Maybe discomfort? Can you release the tension? Remind yourself to relax your neck and face muscles and shoulders. Be gentle and curious with yourself.

What is your favourite go-to strategy to ground yourself?