Are You Merely Maintaining or Actively Nurturing Your Body?

A couple of weeks ago I asked my followers on Twitter what they were doing to appreciate their bodies that day. All of the responses I got focused on "eating right" and exercising. It's engrained in our culture that the way we "take care of" our body is to feed it properly and make sure to exercise it. These are definitely important aspects of self-care, but the attitude with which we perform these activities is just as important as the activities themselves. And there is much more to nurturing our bodies than eating and exercise.

I know many people that "eat healthy" and exercise daily, but they do so with feelings of guilt, resentment, or fear towards their bodies. They are doing what they are "supposed" to do, and demanding that their bodies behave themselves because they are "taking care of them properly". It is particularly easy to slip into negative attitudes towards caring for your body if you are trying to lose weight or dealing with a chronic health issue that already seems to demand so much from you physically and emotionally.

Actively nurturing your body is about much more than "going through the motions" of maintenance. The desire to actively nurture your body flows from a feeling of deep love and appreciation for your body. It has an energy of "I want to do this for my body because I respect and honour it" rather than "I need to do this, to try and make my body do what I want it to". It is making a conscious choice to flow loving energy towards your body, even if every part of your body isn't exactly how you want it to be right now.

If you are feeling resistant to the idea of cultivating a more nurturing attitude towards your body, try a few rounds of EFT addressing your feelings towards this topic. Here is a short script to help you get started; feel free to substitute your own words wherever you feel inspired to do so.

Karate chop (setup):
Even though I don't always listen to my body's needs, I love and accept myself anyway
Even though I don't feel like nurturing my body, because I'm not happy with it the way it is right now, I deeply and completely love and accept myself
Even though I have all this resistance to the idea of actively nurturing my body, I love and accept myself
And I'm open to the idea that my body is worthy of being deeply nurtured and supported, in all sorts of wonderful ways

Eyebrow: I don't want to nurture my body
Side of Eye: I don't have time to nurture my body
Under Eye: My body doesn't deserve to be nurtured
Under Nose: At least that's been my story so far
Chin: I'm willing to consider the idea
Collarbone: That it can be deeply satisfying to nurture my body
Under Arm: And that my body is worth it
Top of Head: I'm willing to commit to nurturing my body now

Suggestions for Active Nurturing:

There are many ways you can choose to actively nurture your body. Here are some ideas to get you started. The more you commit to nurturing your body, the more ways you will find to do so. Have fun with this!

Eating: Eating in a nurturing way means eating mindfully. Try not to eat "on the go" or while sitting in front of the computer. Give yourself permission to only eat foods that taste good to you and agree with your body. Pay attention to how the food tastes as you eat it. Eat in an environment that feels relaxing to you.

Hydration: Pay attention to your body's thirst signals. Take a drink when you need it! It's ideal to keep water easily available at all times if you can. Toss that skunky old water bottle and invest in something you will enjoy drinking from. If you have an office or workstation that you are at most of the day, create a nurturing "hydration station" with an attractive glass pitcher and fancy glass.

Elimination: Take a bathroom break when you need it! This is also a good time to check in with your body and see if it needs anything else (e.g. a snack or some stretching out of tense muscles).

Moving: There are so many different ways to exercise! Choose ones that feel good to YOU. I know I get really bored working out on exercise machines, and that I much prefer doing cardio exercises outdoors, so my routine includes lots of walking, hiking, and cycling. Also, be willing to honour your body's needs for rest - some days it needs less movement, not more.

Sleeping: Is your sleeping environment honouring your body? Do you have a comfortable mattress? Are your pillows giving you the right kind of support? Do your sheets feel good on your skin? Is it dark enough, is the temperature ideal for you? Consider spraying your sheets with lavender water or linen spray for an extra treat when you climb into bed.

Clothing: Are you wearing clothes that are too tight? Itchy? Constantly need fiddling with? Make a commitment to choose clothing that feels good to wear.

Daily pampering: Treat yourself to at least one little "body luxury" every day - a rich, great smelling body lotion, a spritz of a favourite perfume, a foot rub or even a more vigorous self massage.

Weekly Body Nurturing Ritual: I highly recommend setting aside a special time each week for a more formal "Body Nurturing Ritual". This can be anything you want it to be, as long as it feels purely loving and nurturing towards your body. My own weekly ritual includes a hot soak in the tub with soothing essential oils, a mani/pedi, a foot rub, and a head-to-toe intensive moisturising. I do this on Sunday nights so I can start out the week feeling loved and pampered!

Self-nurturing is a huge topic, and I have just begun to touch on it here. It embraces many aspects that go beyond caring for your body to totally nurturing every aspect of yourself (physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually).

To explore this subject in more detail, I recommend the following resources:

The Woman's Comfort Book by Jennifer Louden
The Art of Extreme Self-Care by Cheryl Richardson

I would love to hear some of the ways you choose to actively nurture your body!