When the body aches

Muscle aches are very common and can be due to various factors. Rather than stretching, we should focus on slow, focused, conscious movements to soften the body.

Luckily for me, I don’t often experience discomfort - at least not anymore. But I often hear people complaining that their body aches. From fibromyalgia, ME, thyroid problems, autoimmune disorders to over exercising, the flu or bacterial infections, the list of possible causes is quite long.

Sometimes, we feel the need to stretch - especially if discomfort is due to overusing muscles during exercise- but I think that most of the time, we need to adopt a gentler approach. When the body aches, too much stretching might lead to further tension.

Why the doctor hits your knee

In fact, the doctor or neurologist hits our kneecap tendon just below the knee cap. Not to hurt us - I hope- , but to test our stretch reflex that prevents our muscles, tendons, and ligaments from tearing.

The stretch reflex is basically the contraction of a muscle that occurs in response to its stretch. So when the little hammer hits our knee, our quadriceps should contract and our foot should kick up. If that doesn’t happen, it could be a potential sign of a neurological disorder, such as receptor damage or peripheral nerve disease.

Slow, focused, conscious movements rather than stretching

So when our body aches, although we might feel like going straight into a deep stretch, we should remember that the stretch reflex will automatically kick in. Our muscles will contract to prevent overstretching and injuries.

Instead, we should focus relaxing, softening the body with slow, focused and conscious movements. It often helps to ‘forget about our muscles’, and rather remember that up to 60% of our body is made of water. So move like water, with fluidity.

Click on the image below if you’d like to do a gentle 20 min routine to relax and soften the body.

Sending you all lots of warmth and love

See you on the mat