July 28, 2022

Mindfulness and Body Awareness

By Ken Giglio, Principal of Mindful Leadership

Mindfulness is as much about the body as it is about the mind. By fully inhabiting our bodies, we ground ourselves in the present moment. Our minds can travel to the past and to the future; we have the mental power to leave the present to visit a memory or a future imagining.

Our bodies, however, stay put in the here and now. Mindfulness as body awareness is the practice of being connected with embodied selves. We are in touch with all the emotions and sensations coursing through us. This could be tension in our shoulders when we are in stressful situations or a lightness in our chests from the excitement of hearing good news.

Everything our body has to offer, if we are conscious/mindful enough to be in touch with it, is valuable information about how we are relating to others and our environment. To be more mindful, consistently ask yourself, what am I sensing in my body and in my surroundings?