Since being away in Croatia, i've learnt the art of rest and how important it is. In the past i've always felt guilty, lazy and struggled resting. But it is a key part to whatever journey you're on...
Why is rest important for our body?
Your muscles and joints need time to rest so they can effectively recover from the stress they've been under; they need a good amount of time to heal.
The rest will prevent muscle fatigue and burnout.
When the muscles are recovered... they can progress further; you'll feel stronger and move forward with your strength & flexibility.
If you don't find time to rest your muscles; you're over training.
This can lead to swollen, exhausted muscles and will decrease the muscles performance.
It depends on how intense your week is and how much you're doing, but i'd recommend giving your body some love by letting it rest to recover.
Why is rest important for our mind?
We can calm the body and mind together. They come hand in hand.
By relaxing our mind, we can reduce stress and anxiety, release tension and feel calmer day to day.
A calmer mind will help your body recover, reduce tension and in turn you'll have more energy.
If you don't take time to relax your mind, you may be releasing stress hormones.
Stress hormones keep us alert and use a lot of adrenaline.
There are many ways to relax our mind and i'm sure we all have some we prefer more than others... here are my tips.
Take some time away from your phone to focus on what's around you.
I love a warm bath full of muscle recovery salts (no phone here too)
Drink water.
Write down any thoughts that are re-occurring, i find it helpful to have them out my mind and on to paper.
Concentrate on the 5 senses: See, Hear, Smell, Taste, Touch - Its great to do this on a walk, get out into nature.
Breathing exercise - this is my favourite:
Lie on your back in a comfy place
Turn off any distracting lights or sounds
Close your eyes
Bring your hands to your belly
Inhale feeling your belly expand for 4 seconds
Hold your breath for 7 seconds
Exhale releasing your belly, try exhaling for 8 seconds
I like to think of the exhale as releasing my anxious thoughts.
Try doing this for 1/2 minutes before bed.
If you find your mind wandering, gently return your focus back to your breath.
On my VIP Programme I recommend a full REST Day to recover and recharge for more acrobatics fun.
Thanks for reading,
Love Bryony
