I have been told that 2009 will be the year of Movement. I know a thing or two about Movement. I have also been told that we have three types of people in the world, those who are in touch with their emotions first in any given situation, those who think first before they react, and then those who move first. The people who move first are few and far between. They are those who get into a new vehicle and figure out how it functions before anyone else, or those who flee the scene and leave everyone else to wonder what happened, or where they went. They do not think; words are hard to come to them until much later after that situation has occurred. And their emotions are second to getting far away from the situation which has just occurred. Strangers. I am sure you all know someone like this, remote, and fast to move, jittery and never slowing down. Alas, I have been categorized as such and I am here to let you in on a secret… movement doesn’t always look like physical movement.

For instance, when you go on a diet, you are told to move, exercise… when you are at your computer or job all day, you feel like moving your body. Yes, but take note that there are several types of movement; moving your body, moving your mind, moving your spirit and moving your emotions. We will use the diet example because it is known widely and it is pretty popular in our society. If you decide to start a diet to lose weight or to be healthier, you are told to go to the gym, walk, and run, move your body… right? Well, most times that fails; it is all about discipline, habits, etc. But what they forget to tell you is that there should be movement of the rest of our beings;  the mind, the spirit and emotion. You cannot succeed in a diet plan without moving your emotions, “I hate food… I love food… I hate that kind of food… I need one more sweet food…” You cannot succeed without the mind, “today I have a plan, which is to not eat sweets, not eat carbs… I have a plan… or do I?” You cannot succeed without the spirit, “This food is not beneficial for my body, or is it? What is beneficial for me? What does my body need right now? Do I need starches, more vegetables? Do I know?”

My point is that movement is very involved. We need to incorporate all aspects of movement and not only body. I believe our society, media, whatever you want to place blame on… that is to blame.

So, when you start your new year’s resolutions, remember that there are other aspects to consider before you embark on your big new adventure to a new you… remember that we are not only physical beings, we are multifaceted beings; beings which consist of a mind, a spirit, emotions and a body. And actually, coming from a moving type of person… body is last on the list, if the other three are not taken care of, forget the physical aspect… it will not work!

Good Luck in your new year of movement!