Today is Day 2 of the daring & mighty action plan to get you out of your head and into your body. Time to get physical! I can’t say those words without thinking of the Olivia Newton-John song so had to add the music clip to this blog. Absolutely hilarious. Enjoy it!

Being active is probably the most obvious solution to escaping your head. Exercise increases your body’s levels of dopamine  (which make you feel euphoric) and endorphins (which are calming and relaxing). It gets the blood flowing and your energy moving about rather than having it all stuck in your head. It will help you to sleep better too – tiredness is the worst thing for worry and anxiety. There is nothing worse than lying in bed with the same thought loop running round and round in your head, not allowing you to sleep. Getting physical will help that.

There’s all sorts of ways to get active. It’s far from rocket science but here are a few ideas:

1. *Make your movement mindful. Choose boxing to release tension & anger – picture the person or problem that is causing you grief and punch the life out of it. It feels great!
2. *Competitive sport, running, swimming, cycling, climbing, hiking ….. you get the picture!
3. *Laugh! When you laugh your heart rate increases, pain & hormonal stress levels decrease and your circulatory, cardiovascular, immune & endocrine systems are all stimulated. When you are laughing, it’s hard to focus on the tough stuff that is making you feel low. Laughing is also a great way to feed your Inner Child who thrives on laughter. So, hire a funny flick, go to a comedy club, pull some pranks, do cartwheels in the park, have a skipping race – anything to make you laugh.
4. *Dance. Focus on a problem or issue that is keeping you from feeling positive and dance it out! Seriously. Make sure you are alone, put on your favourite song, turn up the volume and leap about the room. Direct all your negative thoughts into your movement. The more wild & dramatic the better. Go nuts. Hopefully you will be able to laugh at yourself – let’s be honest, you are likely to look pretty funny! This is an incredibly powerful technique. It really works to release the negative energy that has built up in your head.  Your problem may not have disappeared but I guarantee you will feel less controlled by it, accompanied by a sense of relief, freedom, clarity & perspective.
5. *Play with your kids! Get out in the garden with them, kick a ball about together, climb trees, play hide-and-seek, jump on the trampoline. It will do you all good!
6. *Have sex! It’s fun and makes you feel great. But if that isn’t enough to convince you, it also improves immunity, lowers blood pressure, burns calories, promotes sleep….. need I go on. Hop to it!

Whatever you do, choose something that you will enjoy. This is meant to be fun and it’s meant to be about connecting to authentic you. Give yourself permission to do something just for you, that you will love and that you know will give you a break from your head.

These days I get physical by walking, swimming and playing with my son. I have a Trampoline class coming up and am about to enrol in a Zumba class. Watch this space…..!