Ditch the shoes, get grounded with nature...
Reconnect with your SOUL/SOLE(S)
Today we are going to discuss a simple-spiritual-ritual (say that 3x fast) that will connect your [Soles and Souls] with nature.
We're also going to show you how to make your very own ROCK- MAT.
Standing or walking on rocks barefoot may not sound all that appealing, but there is a method to the madness I promise and it feels very relaxing.
Our ancient ancestors walked barefoot for thousands of years- making this practice extremely primal and instinctual. I promise not to go down a rabbit hole of chakras, and electro-magnetic ionic energy transmitter grounding ritual stuff, because that goes way over my head & falls more into the woo-woo category for me.
I am going to instead concentrate on the spiritual & scientific benefits in a more pragmatic and practical way.
We have over 200,000 nerve endings in our feet, they are one of the most important sensory organs we are equipped with. Unfortunately our feet spend the most time in shoes and socks, completely cut off from the environment not sensing anything at all.
Power of Proprioception
When you are in shoes and socks it is more challenging for our feet to actually ‘feel’ & ‘sense’ & like many things in life when you don’t use it you lose it.
Imagine some big, bulky, stiff mittens on your hands while trying to buckle a belt, tie a string, or brush your teeth etc… Pretty frustrating and it becomes almost impossible to NOT tense up in the head, neck and shoulders in an attempt to compensate & use whatever muscles you can to accomplish the task... Now think of that in terms of your feet while squatting, lunging, lateral stepping, going up and down stairs etc.
That is exactly the same thing happening when we become over-dependant on increasingly more and more “comfortable” &/or fashionable shoes. (both of these terms are extremely questionable & up for debate)
The more fashionable and comfortable- the more they disconnect us from nature & our ability to ‘feel.’ Everything up the chain in the body starts to tighten up and move less intelligently. This is because the body cannot appropriately sense and anticipate the needs of the movement system. A high incidence of low back pain, neck pain, rolled ankles, shin-splints & knee problems could very well be due to the fact that we are retarding the very thing that sends feedback to the brain to adjust our muscles, gait & body positioning/posture accordingly.
..My conclusion is that the majority of footwear is ‘anti-spiritual.’
{An image from Homebodies member Rebekah A.}
Let’s take OG homebodies member Rebekah for example who sustained an ankle injury & instead of accepting the modern medical ‘whac-a-mole-model’ cure she is getting straight to the ROOT of the issue and mindfully rebuilding the sensory motor patterns from ground to foot.. NOT restricting the natural movements necessary for her to accomplish everything that life asks of her.
Although it is getting progressively harder to distinguish between ‘high fashion’ & ‘corrective’ footwear these days- I will debate all day that toe spreaders reign supreme on the function & FASHION totem pole. I will now momentarily further my attack on modern footwear…
Let's play a game:
Try to distinguish high fashion from function/corrective footwear below:
Check this out- Balenciaga really outdid themselves with these- A subtle heel elevation to improve squatting posture while maintaining toe separation integrity. What do you think of them
Create interesting (NOT painful) sensations with a rock mat.
Stimulating the nerve endings in our feet is often called reflexology. This isn’t some “out there” term but has legitimate science and medical studies backing it up. It’s as simple as putting pressure on specific spots on the feet. This incredibly simple practice of spending time barefoot on a rockmat awakens the senses by grounding the body in nature. Endless scientific literature proves that walking barefoot harmonizes and stabilizes our bodies' biological rhythms-reinstilling intelligent movement, as well as reducing and eliminating chronic inflammation.
Improve your Senses
Re-instilling this lost connection allows us to accept feedback directly from the ground to our brain creating a shift in our entire physiology.
Improvement of the sensory information (intelligent movement) from the foot improves the stability, reaction time, and strength of all connected & related muscles up the body. We can naturally rejuvenate & harmonize our spiritual health while improving the physical body as well.
Kill 3 birds with 1 stone.
((Do this whilst sharpening the mind to hit all 3 components))
(modern man in search of a soul)
Live deliberately, in good health.
Click to see how you can make your own rock mat.
-Nate
Materials needed: river rocks, superglue, old yoga mat
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