Artist: Paola Pivi
Here’s a BEAR AND WINTER HIBERNATION spiel in case you hadn’t had enough this winter already. Bear with me and all will be revealed!
Picture this, it’s cold and crappy outside, food is hard to find and you haven’t got enough energy to beat up your fellow bear for what scraps are around, so why not curl up, conserve energy and sleep it off. BUT did you know that bears get up once a day round midday to move their bodies to keep their muscles and fascia toned and healthy, then go back to sleep. So there’s a mini regeneration by the bear every day in their hibernation period.
In fact all day, every day, cells in our body are dying and new cells are being created. Regeneration is continuous. Cells are predetermined when they’ll die in utero, but we can help keep them healthy whilst they are alive by compressing and stressing our body every day. The trick is to move differently rather than repeat the same thing over and over again so that ALL areas of the body are targeted.
Anyway I wanted to write about regeneration of oneself during winter. Many of us decide that we are bears too and hibernate for the winter, BUT forget the important part of moving for about an hour each day. So if you can, turn on the music and dance like no one is watching, even if it’s just for 5 minutes. And if that seems too extreme, go for a walk but really make the effort to notice what is going on around you – so NO ear phones, telephones etc. just you and your environment. Either way, take a little time each day to be present.