Your Body is Giving You Information

Your body is constantly talking to you.

The problem is that most of us have become pretty good at talking over it.

We notice that we're tired and immediately reach for another cup of coffee. We feel stiff and decide we simply need to push harder. We feel hungry and criticize ourselves for eating too much. We feel stressed and try to squeeze even more into an already crowded schedule.

Sometimes we treat these signals as problems that need to be overcome rather than information that might be worth understanding.

I'm not suggesting that every feeling should dictate what you do. There will always be days when you don't feel like exercising but benefit tremendously from doing it anyway. There will be times when you're tired because you stayed up too late, and the answer isn't necessarily another day off.

But paying attention to patterns can teach us a lot.

If you're consistently exhausted, maybe your body is telling you that recovery needs some attention.

If you're constantly hungry between meals, perhaps your meals aren't satisfying you as much as you need them to.

If you're repeatedly experiencing discomfort during a particular movement, that may be worth paying attention to rather than simply pushing through it.

And if you notice that you feel happier and more energized after walking outside, that's useful information too.

The goal isn't to become obsessed with every sensation.

It's to become curious.

Instead of immediately judging yourself, try asking what might be going on.

That small shift can change the way you approach health.

Rather than thinking, "Why can't I stick with this?" you might begin asking, "What is making this difficult?"

Rather than saying, "I have no energy today," you might wonder whether you've been sleeping enough or whether you've been asking too much of yourself lately.

Rather than seeing your body as something that needs to be controlled, you begin seeing it as something you're learning to work with.

That relationship takes time.

And like any relationship, it improves when we actually listen.

This week, pay a little more attention to what your body is telling you. Not with judgment, and not with the expectation that you'll have an immediate answer.

Just notice.

Sometimes the information we've been looking for has been there all along.

Have a wonderful week,

Adam