Invincible Mind Life Coaching

Tensing up reduces available mental resources.
We all do this.
You worry about the future. Tension. You’ve had a big week at work. Crazy amounts of tension.
If you need to feel tense, or zone out afterward, make sure you do it on purpose.
Ask if it’s working for you.
If it’s not, I suggest you start taking mini breaks.
Do simple things like noticing that the stories in your head are just thoughts.
Shake out the muscles in your shoulders, neck, core, legs and arms.
Listen to yourself breathe for a minute.
You can take mini breaks every half-hour, or even more frequently to disrupt the tension.
Your mind will thank you for every effort to reduce strain, and gain perspective.
If you want to check into this topic more, and get more ideas on how to take mini breaks, read my article on Medium here.

1. Observe the Breath
Focusing on your breath helpfully grounds you in the midst of whatever thoughts you are experiencing. Put your focus on the feeling of breathing and observe them without intending to change anything. Are your breaths relaxed, short, uneven, or heavy? Do your breaths change on their own while you observe them?
2. Measured Breathing
Count up to four as you inhale, and back down to zero as you exhale. This can be a way to help yourself breathe a little more slowly and deeply. It can involve you a bit more in the present, or if you count to a larger number as you exhale, help you to prolong the sense of release and relaxation.
3. The Internal Body
Notice parts of your body that feel more tension, pressure, tingling, pinching, release, or any other sensation. Observe how what you are feeling emotionally is embodied in muscle tension.
4. The External World
Observe the world around you with all five senses, one at a time. How do the clothes you’re wearing feel? What about the air in the room or outside? What objects do you see, what are their colors and textures? What do you hear when you are still?
5. Describe the Sensation of Emotions
Name whatever emotion is most present for you and identify how that emotion is showing up for you physically. Sometimes emotions feel fast, slow, hot, or cold. You might feel that they have a character you can describe with a color, a texture, or a shape. For example, I might describe the feeling of anxiety as prickly, neon yellow, and it vibrates intensely in my chest. The words make the emotion more concrete for the mind, less mysterious, and more manageable.
6. Shake it out
Stand up for a minute and shake it out, arms, legs, shoulders, and hips. Observe how this shifts your emotions a bit. If it feels silly or awkward, you’re doing it right.
7. Stretch
Learn stretches that target areas where you feel tension, and practice doing these stretches throughout the day. They’ll work best if you use them before you feel tense, and repeat them frequently, every half hour, or even more often.
8. Get up and move
Go for a walk, take the stairs, go outside, anything to get your blood flowing.