Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.  And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our fear, our presence automatically liberates others.      Marianne Williamson

    The first step in recreation is brain detoxing….removing that nasty word “exercise’  from our vocabulary.  Be honest and think about it…have you ever been in a classroom and had the instructor say, “Now we are going to do a little exercise to test what we have learned?”  Panic!  Most of us still associate exercise with testing or competition or being judged.   Or better yet, remember the “No Pain No Gain” philosophy from the “Exercise Gurus” of the past.  This is a form of self-abuse.  Who needs to live with an abuser when we are quite capable of abusing ourselves?  We all see pictures of celebrities who are pencil thin with their “diet and exercise” advice only to learn later of their eating disorders and self-abuse.

   Exercise can and does become an addiction as with any other form of self-abuse.   Research indicates that high-intensity aerobic exercise producing an elevated heart rate for long periods of time such as jogging or running on hard surfaces may lower immune response and create chronic ligament and joint problems with long-term tissue degeneration.  One of the serious abusive side effects of “exercise” is the creation of stress.

   Re-creational Movement  is a gift that we give ourselves and everyone who comes in contact with us.  It is a form of play or recreation.  Think about that word…re-creation.  Recreational movement is a time for not only developing and recreating the physical body but also a time to play with words and ideas, dramatize fantasies, recognize and appreciate our own individuality without judgment or self-criticism.  Recreational movement is about being good to ourselves.

   Time seems to be everyone’s enemy today.  We live in a society of organized chaos.  Even play for our very young children is now organized to death.  How do we work recreational movement into the schedule?  Stop the self-abuse!  How many of the activities that we have on our schedules are really necessary and how beneficial are these activities to our lifestyle and wellness? 

   Rest is essential.  Every minute of sleep before midnight is worth four minutes after midnight.  Prepare for rest by turning off the television and the world an hour prior to bedtime.  Have your last meal at least three hours before retiring for the night. 

   Start the morning with movement therapy by stretching and breathing when you get out of bed.  A lot of people have strange ideas about what “yoga” is, but try just one class to get the idea of gentle core body movement.  Take a few moments to appreciate what your awesome body is going to do for you today and think about how your life would be different if your limbs or organs were not able to function.  Speak to your body with love and respect saying thank you for knowing what to do in each second.

   Lay on your back and raise your knees to your chest…breathe…stretch your arms to each side and gently rotate your knees to the right side…hold for a count of 18…rotate your knees to left side and hold for a count of 18.  Get the idea?  Your body will tell you how it wants to stretch and your mind will tell you what it wants to think about.

   Core body movement strengthens the immune system by stimulating circulation of the lymph fluid though-out the body.  A great core body movement is about two minutes of jumping-jacks on a mini rebounder.  (Do not over-exert and self-abuse…five minutes per day is upper limit)    Swimming or dancing in water has the same effect.  Use your imagination in thinking of other extremely enjoyable forms of core body movement.  It is okay to laugh at yourself while you are doing this.

   Start the morning with your favorite happy music.  If your morning starts with chaos and negativity, that is your day.  Sleep late…cup of coffee…running late…no time for a shower…curse…its raining…curse…turn on the traffic news…curse …hurry…road rage…get out of my way!  What kind of message are you sending to your body or mind?  I call this “the prayer of despair.”

   Turn on the happy music while taking a shower and sing along.  Dance with yourself naked in the bathroom mirror and laugh.  (This is recreational movement)

    During the day…take breaks.  Get up and walk around taking deep breaths.  Acidity accumulates in the brain from shallow breathing.  Drink a bottle of water.   Smile! 

    Set aside 15 minutes each day to walk outside when you can get sunlight on your face.  Hundreds of studies now link vitamin D deficiency with significantly higher rates of many forms of cancer‚ as well as heart disease‚ osteoporosis‚ multiple sclerosis, depression and many other conditions and diseases.  Sunlight is the best and only natural source of vitamin D and it is free.     Stand up straight and smile! 

Living Well with Recreation Movement is Living Well without Exercise.

Love, Light & Lots of Laughter…Joa

www.joacarter.com