Recently, I hosted a live Mindful in Motion session where we explored this eye exercise. At first, participants weren’t all that impressed. Rolling your eyes? Easy!
We do this every day, and often without thinking. Especially at night when we dream, we move our eyeballs a lot.
When it came to actually feeling relaxation in the face and body during the exercise, most people didn’t notice much at all.
Then we got to the part where I suggested letting the eyeballs sink into their sockets, and that’s where things got tricky. How do you even do that? Should you push them down?
This is when I realised what was happening. People were using their usual approach to movement — engaging their muscles with more strength than necessary.
Even though I always emphasise moving softly, gently, and slowly, those words don’t always have meaning. Many of us aren’t used to tuning into the subtle sensations within our bodies. We move in a habitual way, relying on patterns that don’t require much attention. As long as our bodies perform as expected, it’s easy to assume everything’s fine. But here’s the catch: these habitual, forceful movements can actually limit our flexibility and movement over time. Eventually, they can even lead to physical restrictions.
When those limitations set in, we often adapt by finding ways to move around the problem. Our super helpful body automatically does this for us. In the short term, this compensation works really well. In the long run, it can create more blockages elsewhere in the body.
What we do in Mindful in Motion is all about moving while letting go of muscle tension. The idea is to find the softest, smallest movement possible. Sometimes, the movement becomes so tiny that it’s almost just a thought. This practice helps you become more aware of how you move on a deeper level. It also activates the smaller muscles while relaxing the larger ones, making your movements more fluid and natural.
Mindful Motions are focussed finding softness in the body so that we can improve our flexibility. It helps you to find back your natural way of moving. It’s a different approach and once you experience it, the effects can be truly transformative.
Feel free to try out this fun practice and see what effect it has on you. I'd love to hear your experiences! Will you share them with us in the community?
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