Have you ever taken an exercise class or worked with a personal trainer to improve your physical health? One benefit is that the trainer helps you focus on how you’re doing specific movements. With that focus we begin to see what needs to be changed to get different results.
Many of us take our bodies, and the way they move, for granted. We are often unaware of the habitual ways we move. Past injuries and repetitive motions ingrain an unconscious pattern to our physical movements that can be limiting and even harmful to our long term health. A skilled physical trainer can help us become aware of these habitual patterns of movement. With that awareness we can modify the movement to bring about more desirable results. Focused attention on our breath (which we often hold), or reaching fully into a stretch, or isolating a specific muscle as we exercise, contributes to developing an overall more mindful presence in our bodies. We ‘show up’ in our own skin and lose the sense of disconnectedness we once felt.
Athletes, and those of us who simply wish to be physically healthier, look to trained professionals to help us understand our current movement patterns and help us find, and implement, healthier options. The same holds true for understanding our mind and heart patterns. We develop habitual behaviors that don’t always bring about the results we desire. Procrastination, perfectionism, and busy-ness are just some of the areas we can struggle with repeatedly.
Awareness is the key to starting the change process. First we must know what we do, and how it’s impacting us, before we can create any modifications. This awareness happens at a rapid pace when we work with a trained professional, or coach, who guides and reflects back to us what they see. Beyond physical awareness, we benefit from becoming aware of how our thoughts or feelings are creating patterns of behavior in our lives that may not be serving us well. As we become aware of these thought and feeling patterns we then experience a moment of choice. Will you continue to do it as you always have or will you modify them to create different results? The choice is yours. Just as a physical trainer teaches you how to move your body differently, a life coach guides you to life movements, or choices, that promote your overall well being – mental, emotional, physical and even spiritual.
Awareness creates choice. Choice offers options. Options empower us to move forward one step at a time. That movement creates positive energy and we are encouraged to start the cycle all over again. With consistent action we create new habits, or behaviors, that bring about the results we desire in our lives.
Creating change in a mindful and purposeful way takes effort. Having a support team to help you achieve the changes you want to see in your life is a clear advantage and will ensure your success. Who is on your team? Who can best help you create the change you want in your personal and professional life? Just as you choose an exercise class, or 1-1 time with a physical trainer, to support your physical growth, consider how a workshop, or 1-1 time with a life coach, can support you overall.
To sign-up for any upcoming workshop, please contact Carol:
Email: [email protected]
