Self-Care Tip #2: Move Your Body

Until You Can Get a Massage Again – Tip #2: Move Your Body!

How are you taking care of yourself this week?

Last week I did my morning yoga/stretches, spent time outside each day, went for slow and meandering toddler walks, baked lemon blueberry muffins, cooked veggie-heavy dinners, took naps, cleaned out a closet, and virtually connected with some family, friends and colleagues.

Over the next few weeks until I can see your beautiful faces again, I’ll be sending you some ways you can take care of yourself until you can get a massage. Besides the basic ways you probably already know – get plenty of sleep, stay hydrated, eat more fruits and veggies and less sugar, get some sunshine everyday – I’ve got some ideas that will help you manage pain, stress, digestion issues, painful periods and more.

Tip #2 – Move Your Body – Everyday and in a Variety of Ways!

If you are someone who likes to exercise and you are sheltering at home right now, I hope you are using this time to fine-tune your at-home exercise routine. I also hope you’re able to do some exercise outside, while staying within the social distancing guidelines.

Even if you’re not someone who likes to exercise (ahem, me, ahem), it’s still important to move your body in a variety of ways everyday. This can help with circulation, toxin flushing, hormone regulation, digestion, mental health, stress reduction, as well as pain management. In addition to some great online resources for in-home yoga, pilates, and strength-training (see some links below), I highly recommend looking into Nutritious Movement with Katy Bowman.

From the Nutritious Movement website:

“Nutritious Movement recognizes that not only do we need to move our whole bodies more; we also need to move our individual body parts more.

So we combine big-picture education on biomechanics, kinesiology, physiology, and natural movement; and also simple, basic exercises to wake up all your trillion body parts. With lifestyle tips and community-building initiatives, Nutritious Movement helps you build a supportive movement community and create a more natural habitat in a modern context.

Simply put, we help you move more parts of you more often and more effectively.”

On the Nutritious Movement website you can find online classes, books, podcasts and more to be able to integrate more movement into your everyday life. Check it out!

Here are some fitness & movement professionals who teach Nutritious Movement locally:

Zoe Levine at The Thriving Body

Heather Josten at Abundant Balance

Here are some other online exercise & movement resources that can help you move your body everyday:

Leslie Rodriguez of Empowered Fit + Wellness has some great virtual prenatal and postpartum fitness classes. Leslie is local to the Denver Metro area!

Empower PT & Pilates is also local and is offering some virtual pilates classes.

My favorite yoga YouTube channels:

Yoga with Adriene – I love her calm, nonjudgemental attitude towards yoga and how she breaks down the poses for all levels.

SarahBeth Yoga – so many types of sequences, a great way to mix up your yoga routine.

I also like Halona Yoga on Instagram – it has many yoga sequences, tips and demonstrations.

My overall point is to increase circulation, toxin flushing, hormone regulation, digestion, mental health, stress reduction, as well as pain management by Moving Your Body Everyday and Moving Your Body in Different Ways.