In my teenage years when I was very active and sporty, the words ‘gentle exercise’ were like a foreign language to me. I had a black belt in karate, represented my state in basketball, won tennis championships, and I regularly went swimming and to the gym – it was an area of my life where I was considered successful. On reflection, I was not as successful as I could have been as there was always a drive to do better, achieve more or win more championships.
The way I had to push my body with karate is something I find hard to re-visit. There are memories of running barefoot on gravel and not wanting to come last because I would be made to do it again; memories of smashing my shins into those of heavy, grown men – and I was a delicate 12 year old girl in a class of adults.
My focus during exercise was always on pushing my body to do more. There was no enjoyment in the process of exercising – instead my mindset was that it was good for my body; or that by winning I was better than others.
When I used to look at my body it was almost with a cloudy vision and I would look at what I didn’t like … my thighs could be thinner, or my hips not so wide.
Recently I started doing weekly exercise classes with Danielle Pirera and her Re-Connect Exercise program. These classes and their gentle way of exercising are like no other exercise I have experienced before. I have been able to break a lot of my old patterns of how I exercised as well as discover the beauty and power of my body.
Doing Re-Connect Exercise classes with Danielle feels amazing; to move my body and to build my strength in a way where I am listening to my body and am present with my body and what I am feeling. My body feels vibrant with a real flow through it now. There is no longer the continual heaviness in my legs that I often experienced. Over the last 6 months the way I view my body has changed so dramatically: now when I look at my body I see a beautiful, powerful, strong and sexy woman.
I have also been able to heal the damage I did to myself from my former ways of exercising. The first time Danielle suggested push-ups against the wall, I cringed at the thought and I was thrown back to memories of my karate days. But this time I was able to do the push-ups in a different way and re-imprint how I now know push-ups can be – healing for the body and not harming it.
As a high school student I would wear ankle weights daily and I was constantly trying to make sure no one noticed. And they were so uncomfortable! I wanted my legs to be thinner and more toned and I thought by wearing ankle weights I could speed up achieving this goal. I recently bought myself some ankle weights to use in the Re-Connect Exercise class. The first time I went to put them on, I nearly couldn’t – the memories of my teenage years were almost too much for me. I went straight back to the huge lack of self-worth I felt as a seventeen year old. I did put them on, however this time I did it with love for my body and because I wanted to support my leg exercises and not to change the shape of my legs.
To re-visit that time of my life has been so incredibly healing; I could begin to let go of all the pain I carried from those years when I hated my body and was so consumed by how my body looked.
To exercise in a gentle way while being fully present with myself blows other ways of exercising out of the water.
My way of exercising in my teenage years left a bad taste in my mouth and from that I shunned traditional forms of exercise. Discovering this new way of gentle exercise has allowed me to discover a different way of being with my body. I have entered into a new relationship with my body – one that is based on love and support and I’m looking forward to further developing this new long term relationship.
Inspired by Universal Medicine and Serge Benhayon.
By Nikki McKee, Administration, Goonellabah, Australia
Further Reading:
Exercise – it doesn’t need to be hard work
Exercise and My Body
My Turnaround from Competitive Running to Connection with Me
568 Comments
“My body feels vibrant with a real flow through it now” the true purpose of gentle exercise.
I have a very similar relationship with exercise, before and after! Before it was rough and careless, now it’s supportive and gentle. I feel stronger and more vital now than I did back then. Most likely because I don’t get muscle cramps the following day every time I exercise now like I used to.
Great Article Nikki, as 40 years of train had to be re-imprinted by me by being gentle as presented in the “Re-Connect Exercise classes with Danielle” and I amazed at the level of vitality and strength obtained in these simple classes.
When we focus on the feeling that we are not enough and needing to do more we are feeding ourselves poison, far better to make our focus on the amazing being we are and from their exercise is done in the holding energy of love.
Glorious to read Nikki, our body surely deserves love, respect and honouring, ‘ I have entered into a new relationship with my body – one that is based on love and support and I’m looking forward to further developing this new long term relationship.’
I had a similar experience when I first went into a gym again after years of staying clear of gyms because of the fanatical way I had previously exercised. Nothing was done in a gentle way, I actually believed the more my body hurt and aches the better my exercise work out was. Now, I couldn’t possibly think of exercising in that way because I would absolutely loose connection to my body.
It is great to recognise that some of our behaviours were not always in the best interests of our body, and to replace that with a new way of being that is honouring, supportive and cherishing of our body.
The way you describe karate makes me shiver nowadays. But in the past I used to admire people when had advanced skills in “martial arts”, like many people do in society. Now I can see what pursuing these kind of sports do to your body: you cannot practice these sports for a long time without it having a permanent negative effect on your body. A body that basically is tender and delicate and not meant to be hard and insensitive.
“now when I look at my body I see a beautiful, powerful, strong and sexy woman.” A beautiful exercise in being fit for life.
Likewise Nikki, the way I used to exercise as a teenager has had to be unlearnt as it always used to lead to me hurting myself from over doing it. However, its been hugely worthwhile as what I do now as exercise has given me a lovely relationship with my body which I value enormously and supports me in all sorts of different things that I do through my day.
I remember when I first went back to the gym after having been much more gentle and honouring of my body and i had similar experiences. I did not do weights as I considered this too much for me at the time Now reading your blog I realise I could bring weights back into my exercises sessions. I have not been to the gym for a while either and maybe that would also be a fun way to get more strength in my body . There is a gym five minutes from my house. Thank you Nikki .
Reading your blog has inspired me to get out my weights and exercise program and start to gently exercise to support my body all the while bringing a loving tender presence.
Yes Nikki, we are so used to not having a relationship with our body, that the moment we actually connect it is quiet shocking — not so much that it is unknown, but more so we can feel that it is so known yet have not been lived for a long time.. The moment we are honest, we instantly can connect and deepen our relationship with ourselves.