Using Muscle Memory for Mental Health

Using Mindfulness as a Tool

If I have deodorant on, I know I’ve taken my morning allergy pill. lol  Like many people, I use muscle memory to help me keep my life in order.  I have paired these two activities together, so I always know if I have done one then I have also done the other.  

Even if we don’t plan to do this, our lovely brains/bodies do it for us. And good thing, too!  Muscle memory keeps us safer.  Walking upstairs in the middle of the day feels fine, but walking upstairs at night feels weird if we haven’t done our check of locked doors. 

But the most important way I use muscle memory, is for my mental health. When I was pregnant, I always used the same song when doing Savasana (that final resting pose in yoga).  Playing this song became an invaluable tool to staying present when I was in labor and wanting nothing more than to retreat from the present moment.   My body remembered my daily yoga practice, and responded when I heard that song. Muscle memory!

I also find mindfulness in my hiking routine. After a busy day, I often go on a quick hike to shake off my thoughts . During extremely stressful moments in my life, when my thoughts go into a daze and I feel as though I’m watching my life instead of living it, hiking becomes an invaluable way to gently bring myself back. Muscle memory!

Being mentally healthy is as important to me as my allergy pill and wearing deodorant.  I certainly don’t always get it right, but having a yoga and hiking routine gives me a much better chance. Is there a routine that brings you into the present moment? Meditation, prayer, running? Keep at it, because you never know when you are going to need that important muscle memory.

Until next time,

Laura