Fasting Space

Anxiety exists in the future.

Discouragement and resentment are existing in the past.

Every distraction that is blocking us from our path.

It's existing somewhere else than here

in this present moment.

As we're here exploring

mind and body, we want healing in mind and body in our spirit,

and we can tend to get stuck in the mind
because that's where we're thinking.

But then all these thoughts can start racing around.

We can start catastrophizing.

Just worry upon worry.

But if we're on a weight loss path,
if we're on a health journey,

those things take place in the present moment.

We find healing in the present.

The body exists in the present.

The mind can be off somewhere else.

It can be floating off in the clouds.

Not so bad from time to time, but if it's heading to a place

that isn't serving us, say the body is existing here.

The sensations in the body.

This is what the body is doing.

It's feeling its existing.

We can tap into that by focusing on the sensations of the body.

We are moving into the present moment.

We can find relief there

from both discouragement and from anxiety.

And we can flow forward in that space in health.

This is what we're going to do today.

We're on a healing path,
and we are moving toward wellness in our total.

Being the body can help us with that.

Body wants to heal.

Body wants to move toward health.

So often we are running away from the sensations of the body

hunger.

Especially if you're trying to practice fasting.

You're going through some space or trying to avoid snacking.

Say that's a that's something that our culture says

run away from or get a distraction.

So either we distracted or ignore it.

But by actually leaning in, leaning into the body

can gain control over these difficult

experiences, difficult emotions.

Today, I want to invite you here.

Dive in with me.

In a practice of really listening to the body.

I'm going to lead us through a breathing exercise.

Help us center in the space center in our day.

Launch us off on a beautiful

path for the day.

And then from that space

is going to sink into some sensation in the body.

Finding strength within the body so that we can approach

any obstacle that we face in this day.

After we flow through that exercise,

going to leave a little bit of open space for you
just to be present with the body

Such an important thing I find if I'm going to do something

like this, a very focused meditation.

Try to ground things in the breath.

So I'm going to lead us through a box breathing practice.

Some people call that a square breathing.

Directly telling the nervous system in the body.

Got to calm down.

Go from that sympathetic activation fight

or flight to parasympathetic, calm centered

can imagine a square in your mind a little box shape.

So we're going to travel around the four sides of that square,

going to inhale for a four count

and hold for four, exhale for four.

And then hold out empty for four.

Even the simple practice,
kind of like a mantra counting through the fours

can help stop some racing thoughts, help center
our mind, calm and grounded space.

Then you bring the breathing on top of it.

Telling the body everything is okay.

You are safe.

Present in this moment.

All right.

If you can't make it all the way at first, no big deal.

Can take a few rounds.

Kind of bring that peace, that contentment into the body.

So just work at it at your own pace.

Sometimes when I'm really amped up, you know,
I just got to go in, out.

I can't even hold it.

So any of that is fine.

Take some deep breaths to start and then we'll get going.

It's all right to close your eyes.

It's just fine if that feels good.

All right.

Empty lungs. Completely.

And let's begin by inhaling

two, three, four.

And then we're going to hold two, three, four.

And now we're exhaling two, three.

Or now we're holding out to three or

and again inhale two three

or hold two three

or exhale 234.

And then holding out two three or we're heading around again.

Inhale to feeling

that abdomen belly filling up.

Holding two three

and no tension as we exhale two three

or and then hold empty two

breathe or heading around again.

Inhale.

And then holding.

Notice that stillness in the body.

To exhale.

Let the shoulders drop away

and then hold out.

Just to embrace the quietness in the mind.

Inhale one more time.

And then hold.

Exhale.

Hold out.

And then let your breathing return to normal.

Don't try to control it anymore.

We've gone through a controlled breathing, a process like that.

Bringing control, bringing centeredness.

Look at the clouds floating by behind us here.

Just a brief minute.

Floating through some time like that. Do you feel lighter?

Do you feel more grounded?

Do you feel present?

Now that we've brought some calmness into the body,

going to do our presence?

Meditation.

Can be especially helpful long as you're not driving.

Close the eyes.

Help us go inside the body.

Help us bring some more awareness.

Body doesn't know about yesterday.

Body doesn't know about tomorrow.

It just knows right now.

Says we're centering into the body.

Digging deep.

Maybe we can feel more deeply the weight of the body

pressing in to whatever we wherever we are.

If we're sitting in a chair, we're sitting on the floor.

I'd feel that pressure

pressing against the skin,

grounding into our bones.

Wherever that contact

is on our sit bones in the heels,

maybe the palms of our hands pressing.

Then feel the air

on the skin.

Does it feel cool? Does it feel warm?

You don't have to judge any of it.

Just noticing these things.

Body is working, bringing these sensations to us right now.

This is the experience of life in the body right now.

Can feel the fabric of

your clothes against your skin.

Does it feel soft?

Does it feel heavy?

Feel the muscles that are supporting you.

Release any tension that you have in the neck and the shoulders,

in the back,

in your legs.

Traveling through the body,

bringing softness to that space behind the eyes.

Relaxing the tongue.

The jaw.

Bringing in any small natural movement

that helps to release tension in any of these places.

Bringing our awareness down into the abdomen.

Feel that diaphragm as it expands and relaxes,

pressing into the stomach and then releasing.

Simply notice.

As we're sitting here, the mind might try to pull away.

If you feel any anxiety, say that's the mind

is trying to live in the future

as it happened.

Yet we're here now.

If you catch your mind wandering,

you can bring it back.

Bring it back to a sensation.

This is the practice going through these different things.

What do you feel now in this body as you open up the space?

To some feeling from the body come to the top of mind.

You can lean into that message from the body.

Can help us

stay out of a cycle for feeling hungry.

If we're feeling anxious, like we can lean into it,

we can acknowledge it and accept it.

If it's a negative experience that can help us go

through the process of releasing it.

If it's something good, we can allow that to expand

and fill our awareness.

We get into a really calm state sometimes.

Can you even feel the heartbeat?

But you feel it slow down a little bit.

It's always there,

driving the life of the body.

Take one big deep

breath in through the nose as big as you can.

Feel the ribcage expanding,

stretching out and then slowly exhaling through the mouth.

If you've had your eyes closed, you can remain like that.

Feel free to open them.

Also, so nice to be here with you in this space.

I don't know about you.

I know for me even leading it,
you know I'm doing talking through it, but I'm going through it.

I'm feeling more calm, more centered, more grounded.

This is the type of space
as you get that parasympathetic flow through,

you know,
we just take a few minutes and flow through this in the morning.

It can you take this feeling

in the body that we've developed through this space,

calm and centered, not distracted?

Can we take this and flow it out into the rest of our day?

No matter the stress that we have, the obstacles
we face, you know

we're here fasting space or trying to say, let's

take a graceful step down our weight loss path in this day.

Take this sort of mindset.

We can see it now.

Are there challenges that are going to arise?

Difficult situations, social interactions,
our interaction with food

that we're trying to build into the most healthy
and nourishing relationship.

We take peaceful, centered space like this

with us as we go.

Use it to bring grace

and compassion to every difficult space.

Shine the light.

That's what I want.

That's my goal for this day. So shine the light.

I find a practice like this

especially valuable in a fasting space

for trying to deal with hunger,

trying to open up that space in the body

some more time without food so we can run these incredible
cleansing pathways, the autophagy,

cellular recycling, everything that is serving the body,

just a small amount of space,
not necessarily going some giant amount of time,

but just a little space to let the cells of the body

relax, run those beautiful DNA repair enzymes.

Every wonderful thing that we have to do,

the thing that we can buy in that space just to practice,

that we have to give the body some time and space.

Here we're starting a dialog.

Open up a little space to listen to the body.

What is it saying?

Then give it a gift.

Some space

can burn through some excess.

Can see hunger.

If that's something that we struggle
with, it's a collection of sensations.

Can use a sensation.

Meditation.

You don't have to run away from it.

If there are sensations that you feel.

Tightness, emptiness, right?

Tension of any kind

can lean into it and open it so that you can release it.

Send the message back to the body through the breath.

Say, I see you.

I'm receiving the message.

Okay, but everything is okay.

By observing

that unpleasant feelings that are coming in,

simply observing them, we realize, not so scary, not so bad.

We sit.

We're present with it and we can see that it can diminish.

Then it can become more manageable.

This is how we gain control over it.

Don't have to run away from it.

We can see these things are normal,

natural, temporary,

just like the clouds floating through in the background.

Temporary light

they pass.

Give you a few moments here

just to sit with these thoughts.

Sit with these feelings in mind and body

and in that space invite you when we're done with that.

Share any reflections you have from that space.

How are you feeling in the body?

How are you feeling from this time?

And I'll be happy to take any questions you have in this space

is your space.

I find I come into a space like that,

give the body a little open room and then.

Two things can happen.

In my experience, either no thoughts can come

and if no thoughts come, that is okay.

That is like a beautiful space
just to float through like these clouds.

Bring a moment for a few moments in our day.

Some lightness, you know, not a care came into my mind.

Think of a carefree space.

That's a type of space

where meditation can really take you.

That's not the most common that happens to me, though.

It's like every once in a while.

Of a beautiful space like that.

I think that's really some parasympathetic flow
coming out into the body.

Like mind has gotten totally relaxed.

Beautiful space.

The thing that happens for me more often.

What's your experience like?

The thoughts start popping in, okay, what do we got to do next?

What is the next thing or what is the concern?

What is the worry?

Then this is the practice.

This is the work.

You know, the work of a meditation, not the physical work of.

Doing every other job.

We have to do
just the work of releasing the thoughts for a while

or acknowledging them,

maybe say, hey, we've gone through this space.

Now it's time to move to what's next.

Some space to think and process.

It's okay to think in a meditation.

Sometimes people say, oh, it's like if I'm thinking
it's failing, no, this is just a space, okay?

There's no rules to it.

What was coming to me in this space,
I start to think myself, okay, what's next?

What are we doing?

Bring some love and lightness and joy to it.

So that will be my centering thought for us in this day.

If you have found some beautiful space here.

Calmness, centeredness in the body.

Same thing in the mind that we realize these are the same.

This is the practice.

Realize that these are the same,

and that we can use these practices
together to move forward in health.

Hope you have a beautiful day.

Share any thoughts reflections in the comments.

Love to hear your perspective on these things
and I will look forward

to being back with you tomorrow.

Have a great day everybody!