Experience is not what happens to you- it’s how you interpret what happens to you

~ Aldous Huxley

Physical fitness is at the forefront of many minds, but what about emotional fitness?

One key to a successful and joyful life is balance. When our minds sway away from negative thoughts and instead focus on creative and productive activities, we experience inner stability. This stability allows us to strengthen our emotional fitness.

Children love to spin in circles, roll down hills, do somersaults, fall on the ground, and laugh because they are dizzy. When their equilibrium returns, they do it again. These activities help children develop a sensory mechanism in their brains, which helps with their overall balance. It is through constant adjustment that they figure out where their center is.

This continuous adaptation to change has also proven to increase the benefits of physical exercise. Training on natural surfaces such as trail running or mountain biking instead of treadmills or riding a stationary bike utilizes more muscles due to the continuous re-balancing needed to keep us upright.

Emotional stability is also attained through knocks, falls, and bumps. When we habitually readjust, seeking equilibrium, the benefits of continually resetting our emotions follow suit. Doing so allows us to find and connect to our emotional centers.

Curveballs are a part of life. Unfortunately, we cannot find emotional balance when we spiral out of control. Seeing the light when we live in uncertainty, anger, or blame is impossible. Lurking just below the surface of reason, these emotions strangle our inner well-being and feel all-consuming. If allowed, this indulged state of mind will steal our joy and centeredness.

The key is not to allow them to knock us off course.

Our thoughts and reactions are the cornerstones of our emotional health. Learning to recover when out of balance is crucial to our equilibrium.

The solution is to reset our thoughts through practice. Through repetition comes permanence. We can train our minds, just as we have trained our bodies to improve our handling of change, and with practice, we build resilience.

Changing our perspective occurs as we reset our mindset. This switch allows our brains to recalibrate. So often, our default thoughts turn negative when our expectations turn left, confirming the accuracy of self-fulfilling prophecies. My motto of no expectations and no disappointments serves me daily when the universe tests whether I live in my truth.

As an example, I planned on going for a hike. I had arranged to meet a friend, woke up early, and was about to leave the house when I got a phone call that there was a problem with work that needed my immediate attention. I could have been upset. Instead, I readjusted, calling my friend to reschedule and then focusing on the issue.

Expectations and the belief that life travels in a straight line are surefire ways to become disappointed. However, rolling with the punches and not trying to strong-arm a situation allows us to find the gem within the detour.

Shifting to the flexible go-with-flow alternative will open our worlds to possibilities and train our brains to reset when the road gets rocky. Navigating the more minor detours will build our ability to remain calm and focused when more significant challenges arise.

It’s okay to have a bad day; we occasionally do. Relish in the feelings of it, vent if it makes you feel good, and then move on. Let go and turn your focus on the next project, concern, or adventure.

Epiphanies often come from seeing or hearing something outside our standard process. The twists and turns allow us to refocus on our goals. Life reminds me of the punching clown toys with a weighted bottom. No matter how hard you knock them over, they repeatedly pop back up, righting themselves.

Sometimes, we need to swing off-center to reach our balance points. Developing emotional fitness is crucial to inner stability. All it takes is a bounce-back attitude and a willingness to flow. That’s the beauty of life.

“What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality.”
― Otto Rank