Health is a precious gift. Of course we should care about it. But perhaps we sometimes care a little too much. Instead of living outdoors, moving, getting cold, getting tired, we sit inside and buy pills, vitamins and supplements. Maybe health is not something we can simply add from the outside…
Be Healthy and Strong!
First, take care of your body!
To be healthy and strong is supposed to be our default. For millions of years our bodies were designed and forged to move, carry, climb, squat, walk long distances, face cold, heat and generally much harsher conditions than today.
Yet today, thanks to our lifestyle, where most of us just sit, we sometimes struggle to walk a few blocks or do ten squats. And the body adapts very quickly. If we don’t use strength, we lose it. If we don’t move, the body learns that movement is no longer necessary.
The body becomes good at what we repeatedly ask it to do.
Interestingly, something similar was noticed a very long time ago. According to an old Shaolin tradition, Buddhist monks were spending long days in meditation. But instead of helping them, their weak bodies slowly became another problem. Pain, discomfort and tiredness were distracting them from the meditation itself.
The answer was surprisingly practical. Exercise.
A healthy body is not the goal of everything. But it is a prerequisite for almost everything. Even meditation. Perhaps this is also why movement became so deeply connected with traditions surrounding Chan and Zen. The body and mind are not two separate systems. And maybe being healthy and strong is not about becoming something exceptional. Maybe it is just returning closer to what our body was built for.
Move. Walk. Stretch. Use your muscles. Give your body a reason to stay strong.
During Guided Relaxation, we are resetting closer to the default. We slowly remove some of the layers that protect us from the harsh reality.
And then we learn to enjoy the opposite again. Cold. Heat. Movement. Effort. Pressure. Discomfort.
Not because suffering is good. But because our bodies were built for weather.
I am healthy and strong.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Guided Relaxation enough to make me healthy and strong?
No. Guided Relaxation is not a replacement for movement, exercise, sleep or proper nutrition. But it is a good start.
It works on another layer. It works with your attention, perception and the way you relate to your body.
But you still need to use your muscles to move.
Why do you say being healthy and strong is our default?
Because the human body was shaped in an environment where movement, effort and changing conditions were unavoidable.
Walking, carrying, climbing, cold, heat and physical work were simply part of life.
Our bodies adapted to that reality.
Why is discomfort part of this Guided Relaxation?
Because discomfort is not automatically something bad. Cold, heat, effort, pressure or tiredness can simply be signals that the body is doing something it was built to handle.
The idea is not to seek suffering. It is to stop treating every small discomfort as something that must immediately disappear.
What if I have a health condition or injury?
Then listen to your body, your doctor, and use common sense. Guided Relaxation should never be used to push through pain, ignore symptoms or replace medical care.
Instead, we try to help you regain trust in your abilities and support your body. Almost like your own personal trainer.
If you have a medical condition, injury or any doubt about what is safe for you, follow the advice of a qualified healthcare professional.