Nov. 10, 2011 Newsletter

Do you spend time people watching? Have you ever noticed how many people walk along looking down at the ground, instead of where they are going? For the equestrians among my readers, have you ever noticed how many riders look down at their horse instead of where they are going? Start noticing whether you walk, or ride, looking down. How about when you are driving, do you look right in front of your vehicle? Or do you look down the road?

From a physical standpoint it is much easier on your body if you look up (ahead, at eye level). In the Centered Riding® Instructor’s course I went through this year a bowling ball with a felt ‘face’ was passed around the group. It represents how much our heads weigh. When you look down much of the time it puts more stress on your neck, shoulders and back muscles.

In Sally Swift’s second book entitled ‘Centered Riding 2’, she states that our heads weigh between 10 to 13 pounds, and that your head is one of the key components in balance, direction, and control. Sally also states that, "your eyes (where you are looking) control the position and direction of your head". (parentheses mine)

Looking up and looking where you are going when walking, and/or riding, is much easier on your body. It will relieve a lot of neck and shoulder tension and strain. It is also better for your horse, if you are a rider, if you look up and don’t have the extra weight of your head looking down.

Looking down the road when driving is a better practice than looking at the road right in front of your vehicle. It is easier to stay straight and in the center of your lane when you are looking down the road.

Try experimenting with these things. Look down when walking. Then walk looking up and where you are going. You should notice less tension in your neck and shoulders.

Next time you are driving notice whether you look right in front of your vehicle at the road, or whether you look down the road. Try both and see which is easier.

Start noticing how often you look down, or have your head and neck in a forward position.

The same principle applies to our lives and achieving our goals. Look up and keep your eyes on the goal instead of looking ‘down’ at your circumstances, or where you are at. Looking down at where you are, and at your circumstances, keeps you stuck there. Look up and focus on where you want to go. Keep your ‘eyes’ focused ahead and it will be much easier to stay on track. Focus on the goal, not your circumstances. As the saying goes, “what you focus on expands”. And remember, you tend to go where you are looking.

Looking down physically not only puts more stress on your body, looking down at your circumstances, or where you are at, puts more stress on you emotionally. Relieve some stress. Look up, at (focus on) where you want to go. Both physically, and mentally.

That is a big principle in riding, particularly in some disciplines. ‘Don’t look down. Look where you want to go.’

The same applies to life. Look where you want to go, not down at where you are, or at your circumstances.