Flow and Go: Mind-Body Together

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The scene depicted by this photograph to the left is amazing! It can tell many stories, I’m sure. Think of the tremendous effort that went into sculpting these huge terraced fields, perhaps even centuries ago, and the expense and back-breaking labor to plant these crops. Now just imagine the pride of the owner in walking through them and enjoying the fruit of the labor from them, not to mention the gorgeous view!

The Mind-Body Connection that helps you reach your goals

There is no doubt that it takes both your mind and your body to make your goals and dreams happen. Whatever wonderful things you dream up in your mind cannot come to fruition unless your physical body takes action to make it so. If your body is under attack from a sickness, disease, or just plain fatigued, the top priority for your body is to rest and heal itself. It is not wanting to find the energy to start a new project or to go out and change the world.

Under normal conditions either your mind or your body may be conflicted over making some changes or moving ahead on a goal. You can find yourself stalling along the way and perhaps not knowing why. This can be due to lags or disconnects or even lack of energy flow in either the mind or the body. It is good to be aware of what’s going on in both so you can easily spot the issue and get yourself back on track. 

When you need to get yourself going and taking inspired action, determine which part seems to be dragging – your body or your mindset and thoughts? Since they are interrelated, they affect each other.

When your body gets weary, it can slow down your mind or start sending “slow down” or “stop” messages and thoughts to you that it’s time to quit. If your mind is super revved up and having a grand time bolting forward, it can crowd out those body messages and just keep going, pushing the body’s limits even further. I’m sure you’ve seen more extreme examples of this in sports and competitions. Competitors often keep going even through pain and injury, as they opt to keep focused on the goal or prize of winning or performing well.

On the other hand, your mind can have energy-draining thoughts like “I’ll never finish this,” “It’s too hard,” “Why did I even start this?” or “Who am I kidding?” and it begins to automatically shut down its creativity and problem-solving pathways till you get discouraged and decide to quit. It can actually make your body feel weak, stressed and tired to confirm that it is indeed time to quit or at least take a break.

How can you use this interrelation of mind and body to stay energized and accomplishing your goals?

To understand this better, let’s ask which one comes first: the thoughts, vision and mindset or the way you physically feel?

The vision and mindset can bring clarity, leading to focus plus excitement and confidence in knowing you are going to have success. This can fuel you on and send endorphins (feel-good chemicals) to your body to stimulate you and energize your body.

I like to think of the example of a teenage girl who says she is too exhausted to go anywhere or do her homework. She just wants to lie on her bed and live in a mindless zone. All of a sudden she gets a call or text from a guy she likes and becomes full of energy and joy! She could jump on the bed or run a marathon! It’s truly amazing how our minds win out over our bodies almost every time!

On the other hand, if your body is feeling energized, charging at the gate ready to go, but your mind has nowhere clear to go at the moment, it can be frustrating. It can also start draining your energy and deplete or depress you. Think about a child being all excited to go to the mall on an outing with a parent, but if it takes that parent an hour to complete their tasks before they are ready to go, the child can be antsy, then turn tired and lethargic as he spends all his excited energy and winds down in the frustration of waiting. He may have changed his mind and gotten interested in something else and no longer wants to go. It’s no longer at the top of his mind. He may need a reboot of his thoughts to get excited again to go.

As you can see, usually one or the other can impact, but the “mind stuff” wins out when there is a clear path to a goal that feels good. Add in the right motivation and a feeling of confidence in taking action and your mind can turn your body around to do its bidding!

When the mind is not feeling cluttered, conflicted, or overwhelmed it can actually alter your body consciousness. The state of your mind clearly can have a big effect on your body.

When I get juiced up & focused (translation: my vision, motivation and sharp mind is revved up and ready to go), I feel unstoppable! I get to work, I don’t want to slow down and the creative juices flow. My body supports and sustains me as I forget about time, eating, physical comfort or even bathroom breaks (for a while)! I am on a roll and don’t want to be stopped!

However, when I don’t honor my body and push my limits too far, I will pay the price in pain or discomfort and even getting burnt out if I do this too often. So pace yourself to support both mind and body functions.

Tip for Mind-racers:

What do you do when your mind is pumping on all cylinders but your calendar won’t allow you to put all that energy and excitement to work on a project?

I keep a special file on my computer for ideas and tasks I need or want to do in the future. I may even schedule in a time to write and develop my creative ideas and put it on my calendar. I also keep various sized notepads and notebooks by my bed so when thoughts come that I want to remember or act on, I can jot them down. I’ve even gotten fairly good at writing in the dark, when the light is turned off and my mind hasn’t shut down yet – or when 2 a.m. inspiration strikes!

If need be, I can be flexible enough to re-prioritize if something comes up that truly needs to be at or near the top of the list that I’m working on.

It’s a constant dance between the body and mind to keep you focused and moving forward. So enjoy the dance! Feed your passions and make that difference by getting your important and meaningful things done (even including the dull routine things that make the rest of your life work well)!