The Metaphysical Weight We Carry.
Let’s get physical.
Most people move through life, not fully aware of the degree to which we carry and wear our lived experiences.
Commonly in fitness, when we talk about weight, we think about physical weight. The bags we carry, the pounds you gained or lost, or the amount you can lift, carry or throw. In this sense weight is a sort of added or subtracted resistance. We understand in this context that more weight typically means more challenging, and less weight means less challenging. When we pick up a weight that's too heavy, we may feel inclined to reduce or eliminate that weight altogether. When we feel strong we may be inclined to add greater weight for greater challenges.
As a society we understand that we can consciously build our biceps, our back, and our butt, but what about the body we build unconsciously? Are there times when your body weight just feels like it weighs you down in every way? How do our ideas of weight and mass: large builds, small builds, a “weak” or “strong” body, affect our physical constitution? How do our ideas about weight and mass affect our consciousness, our sense of self, and our overall performance in the context of exercise but also in everyday life? When it comes to your body, what is heavier… your physical or metaphysical weight?
How do our ideas about weight and mass affect our consciousness, our sense of self, and our overall performance in the context of exercise but also in everyday life?
Let’s get metaphysical.
For some, the weight we carry is beyond physical. In the last few years of a pandemic and global tumult, we have probably all experienced a day or two that just felt “heavy”. We have collectively felt the weight of loss, fear, anxiety, and maybe even change. So, it's not hard to understand that the weight we carry is sometimes psychological and emotional in nature.
Tight shoulders, tight back, grinding our teeth, migraines, etc are all physical manifestations of psychological and emotional burdens causing wear and tear.
Central to the NEO Classical Pilates philosophy we believe that the body shapes the mind and the mind shapes the body. This is critical as a learning tool and agent for overcoming physical, mental, and even spiritual hurdles.
If the body knows intuitively to let go of a dumbbell that's too heavy, isn’t it reasonable to assume that we can teach the brain to offload the same mental, emotional and spiritual weight?
