Students explore the mind-body connection

Lights dim, quiet fills the room. Lying on your back, hands resting on your midsection, eyes closed -- it's time to focus on inhaling and exhaling. Imagine your ribs expanding as you breathe in deeply, and then contracting as you empty your lungs.\nStressed out? After going through an intense day of classes, work, or whatever it may be, many IU students are turning to activities that exercise the mind as well as the body -- such as pilates, T'ai Chi or yoga -- to release the built up tension. \n"These exercises have continued to grow over the past five years dramatically, and I suspect the growth will continue," said Dan Cheeseman, a certified HPER yoga instructor who has been practicing for 28 years.\n"These aren't fly-by-night exercises, they've always been around -- people are just now noticing the benefits," said Colleen McMahon, assistant director of Fitness and Wellness at IU.\nRecSports has increased their mind-body classes 30 percent since last year, McMahon said. There was such a high demand for these classes that many wanting to participate were put on a waiting list. RecSports offered mind-body classes at the HPER for the first time this year to accommodate the demand from IU faculty and staff.\nWhy the sudden interest? There are a few different possibilities. Guo Lei, SRSC Kung Fu and T'ai Chi instructor, attributes the recent popularity to the new American trend of focusing on the inner self. \n"These exercises are a good combination of spirit and body, they connect them together," Lei said.\nTraditionally, Americans focus on the end result of exercise rather than their mind and spirit. It wasn't until recently that American culture realized the importance of total wellness. \nThere are five types of wellness: social, emotional, intellectual, spiritual and physical. \n"It's one's personal responsibility to become well in all five components, and mind-body exercises offer that in each of the types," said William Thornton, Coordinator of Wellness Programs.\nAnother related theory deals with the ongoing need for our society to use exercise as a stress reliever. A recent poll in Fitness Magazine revealed that 49 percent of those surveyed relieve stress by exercising. \n"High stress levels force Americans to scale back and seek ways to relive stress," McMahon said.\nAt the end of a stressful day at work, the first thing most people want to do is lay on the couch -- not go to the gym for an intense workout. So instead, people are turning to mind-body exercises that are slower-paced and more relaxed. \nThere are two types of exhaustion: physical and intellectual. The two types aren't the same -- it's up to the individual to distinguish between the two, said William Brechue, HPER professor of kinesiology. \n"Mind-body exercises empty your thoughts and let you relax," Brechue said. "These exercises are physical manipulations of the body."\nAs with any trend, an obvious contribution to the increased interest in mind-body exercise is advertisements and the media. Jane Fonda made aerobic dance popular, Billy Blanks introduced Tae-Bo, Madonna popularized yoga, and the list goes on. \n"Another trend will come along, it will be the same concepts, just repackaged," Brechue said.\nWith mind-body exercises, participants are able to take their skills home with them and practice on an individual basis. \n"That's the beauty of yoga and other mind-body exercises, people can leave the SRSC and take it home with them," Cheeseman said. \nIf the day is too busy to make it to the gym, these exercises can be performed at your own convenience.\nBrechue said exercise has three main goals: health, fitness, and performance. When choosing the best exercise program for yourself, consider what you are trying to accomplish and what you enjoy. \n"In terms of exercise, anything is better than nothing," Brechue said.