Have you ever felt out of sync with your body? Maybe you’ve felt tense and unable to relax, or you’ve been so focused on your work that you didn’t even realize you were hungry until your stomach started growling. Do you bump into things a lot, or do you have trouble knowing where your limbs are in space? If any of this sounds familiar, then you might need to work on your body awareness. Body awareness is the ability to sense what’s happening in your body and to feel comfortable in your skin. It’s an important part of self-care and can have serious health implications. In this article, we’ll explore what body awareness is, why it’s important, and how you can develop it.
Body awareness is the ability to sense what’s happening with your body. This includes both physical sensations and emotions. It also involves being aware of your posture, movement, and breath (3).
Kinesthetic awareness is the ability to feel your body in space and to know where your limbs are in movement (10).
Body awareness involves the proprioceptive system—a network of nerves that helps you sense your body in space. It also relies on the vestibular system, which is responsible for balance and movement.
The proprioceptive system is made up of receptors in your muscles, joints, and skin. These receptors send information to your brain about your body’s position and movement (15).
The vestibular system includes the parts of your inner ear that help you balance and the nerves that connect it to your brain (9).
Here are several everyday examples of body awareness:
In each of these cases, you are aware of your body and its sensations. Body awareness also refers to a more global understanding of your bodily state, such as knowing where your limbs are in space or being able to identify different parts of your body by touch.
It’s easy to be unaware of basic bodily sensations and functions. We often take it for granted and fail to take notice until something goes wrong. For example, you might not be aware of the sensation of your heartbeat until you have a heart attack or feel pain in your chest.
As well, you might not notice your poor seated posture until you experience back pain. Or you might not be aware of how shallow your breathing is until you feel short of breath.
Body awareness can be hard to achieve if you are not used to paying attention to your body. It takes practice to develop body awareness, but it is an ability that anyone can improve.
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There are many reasons why body awareness is important.
Paying attention to your body can help you maintain better balance and stability. This has a lot to do with the vestibular system, which is responsible for your sense of balance.
The vestibular system is located in the inner ear and sends information to the brain about the position of your head in relation to gravity (9).
If you have poor body awareness, you may not be able to tell if you’re off-balance. This could lead to falls and other accidents. Developing better body awareness can help you avoid these potential hazards.
Body awareness also plays a role in movement. When you’re aware of your body, you’re able to move more efficiently and with greater precision. You’re also less likely to injure yourself because you’re more in control of your movements (6).
As an example, a tennis player who’s aware of their body can swing the racket with the right amount of force and hit the ball in the desired spot.
A golfer who’s aware of their body can make a smooth, controlled swing. And a dancer who’s aware of their body can execute the steps with grace and precision.
In contrast, someone who’s not aware of their body is more likely to make jerky, awkward movements. They are also more likely to injure themselves because they don’t have control over their movements.
Lack of body awareness can lead you to misinterpret your body’s hunger cues and cravings (16). For example, you might think you’re hungry when you’re thirsty, or you might eat even when you’re not hungry.
On the other hand, if you have a good sense of body awareness, you’re more in tune with your body’s needs. You’re able to tell the difference between hunger and thirst, and you’re less likely to eat when you’re not hungry.
This can be helpful if you’re trying to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight. When you’re aware of your body, you’re less likely to make unhealthy food choices.
Sensory information from the body plays a role in pain perception. When you have poor body awareness, you may not be able to tell where the pain is coming from or how severe it is (1).
On the other hand, when you have good body awareness, you’re able to pay attention to the sensations in your body and better understand your pain. This can be helpful if you’re dealing with chronic pain or recovering from an injury (5).
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You have physical and emotional needs, and it’s important to take care of both. When you have good body awareness, you’re more in tune with your needs and more likely to take care of yourself.
For example, if you’re tired, you might take a nap. If you’re thirsty, you might drink some water. And if you’re feeling stressed, you might do some deep breathing or go for a walk.
In contrast, if you have poor body awareness, you might not realize that you’re tired, thirsty, or stressed. As a result, you might not take care of yourself as well as you should.
When you have good body awareness, you’re more in tune with your body’s physical and emotional needs. This can help you manage stress and anxiety.
For example, if you’re feeling stressed, you might notice that your muscles are tense. This awareness can cue you to do some relaxation exercises or take a break.
Or if you’re feeling anxious, you might notice that your heart rate has increased. This awareness can cue you to do some deep breathing exercises or take a few minutes to relax.
In contrast, if you’re not aware of your body, you might not notice the physical signs of stress and anxiety (2) (17). This can lead to chronic stress and anxiety, which can have negative effects on your health.
Some of the potential effects of chronic stress and anxiety include (13):
There are many things you can do to develop body awareness. Here are a few ideas:
Mindfulness meditation is a type of meditation that involves focusing your attention on the present moment. This can help you become more aware of your thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations (12).
An example of mindfulness meditation is sitting quietly and focusing on your breath. As you breathe in and out, you pay attention to the sensations of your breath. If your mind wanders, you simply bring your attention back to your breath.
Yoga involves both physical and mental components. The physical component can help you become more aware of your body, and the mental component can help you become more aware of your thoughts and emotions (8).
Some specific yoga poses that can help you develop body awareness include:
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Pilates is a type of exercise that emphasizes controlled movements and breathwork. This can help you become more aware of your body and how it moves.
Body scanning is a practice in which you focus your attention on each part of your body, from your head to your toes. This can help you become more aware of the sensations in your body (11).
To do a body scan:
Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) is a practice in which you focus on tensing and relaxing different muscle groups. This can help you become more aware of the sensation of tension and relaxation in your body (7).
To do PMR:
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Proprioceptive activities involve using your muscles and joints to move your body in specific ways (14). These activities can help you develop a better sense of where your body is in space.
Some proprioceptive activities that you can do at home include:
Balance exercises involve maintaining your balance while you move your body. These exercises can help you develop a better sense of where your body is in space.
Some balance exercises that you can do at home include:
Body awareness begins as early as 4-6 months, however, it develops significantly during the toddler years. As a parent, there are things you can do to help your child develop body awareness (4):
Children with poor body awareness may exhibit the following signs:
If you’re concerned about your child’s development, talk to your child’s doctor. They can assess your child and provide guidance on how to help them develop body awareness.
Body awareness is the ability to pay attention to the sensations in your body. This can be helpful if you’re trying to lose weight, manage pain, or reduce stress and anxiety.
There are many things you can do to develop body awareness, such as mindfulness meditation, yoga, Pilates, body scanning, and progressive muscle relaxation.
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